Big brand on campus

Drake University hoped a bold, blue "D+" on a direct-mail piece and its admissions website would grab the attention of high school kids inundated with same-old, same-old college recruitment material.

What looked like a pretty bad grade was supposed to entice teenagers to take a closer look at the pluses of attending the school in Des Moines, Iowa.

Drake officials didn't anticipate their daring idea getting ridiculed on advertising blogs, angering alumni who complained on Facebook that their degrees had been devalued, or inspiring a local store to market "D+ student" T-shirts to amused Drake students and underachievers alike.

Consider it a cautionary tale for colleges embarking on marketing and branding campaigns designed to set themselves apart in the cutthroat competition to gain prestige and grab their share of a shrinking student pool.

Fifteen years ago, the term "branding" was virtually unheard of in higher education. The idea of selling college like a luxury vehicle or an expensive cup of coffee was viewed as antithetical to the academic mission.

Although pockets of resistance remain, it'd be difficult these days to find a four-year school that hasn't gone through the institutional soul-searching and subsequent marketing blitz that typically goes with being a "Brand U."

The new challenge may be this, as Drake has learned: When everyone is trying to stand out, colleges can no longer expect to meet enrollment targets by playing it safe. And pushing the marketing envelope carries risks and rewards.

"Historically, folks really have taken a fairly conservative approach," said Robert Moore, president and CEO of Chicago- and Washington-based marketing firm Lipman Hearne and author of a book on higher education branding. "We are seeing a bit more out-of-the-box stuff, and I think the jury is still out."

Drake officials asked for edgy and out-of-the-box when they hired Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based Stamats Communications, which specializes in higher education marketing, to help craft a new marketing campaign to high school students.

The D+ was intended to introduce a more conventional campaign touting "The Drake Advantage." As Drake officials saw it, their recruits are smart enough to recognize Drake's reputation is better than a D+ grade.

"The idea was to catch prospective students' attention with a symbol that was mildly ironic, that would create a little bit of cognitive dissonance, and inspire them to go further with it," said Fritz McDonald, vice president of creative strategy at Stamats.

"Everyone is trying to do something different," said Debra Lukehart, Drake's executive director of marketing and communications. "It isn't just a gimmick. It's a very strategic, well thought-out program - and it has worked with our target audience."

But six weeks after its uneventful introduction, the D+ caught the notice of a different audience: unsympathetic bloggers on the website The Awl and Adweek, as well as some students and alumni who turned to social networks and blogs to complain that it sent the wrong message about the university.

"I love that the school is getting attention," said '97 graduate Jennifer Jahde Bedell of Leawood, Kan. "But is it the right kind of attention? I'm going to pay a lot of money for a college education, and I'm going to be known for a D+?"

The furor prompted school officials to send an e-mail to faculty and staff apologizing for catching them off guard and explaining the thinking behind the campaign.

Across higher education, some faculty and administrators cringe at precious financial resources going to marketing, especially in down times.

Earlier this year in the trade publication Inside Higher Ed, a Northeastern University official warned colleagues against seeking a quick fix from higher education's "Mad Men" - recession-battered retail branding consultants eyeing colleges and universities as an untapped market. Others voice similar concerns.

"The creative-driven branding is all about just grabbing attention, that any publicity is good publicity," said Bob Brock, president of Parker, Colo.-based Educational Marketing Inc. "That really doesn't work with higher education because of the serious mission. It's not like the selling of a reality show."

Those who work in college marketing say branding is not a logo or a gimmick, but an identity - a distinctive personality based on core values and promises that can be delivered.

When American University in Washington approved a strategic plan in 2008, branding was part of it. Not well known outside the Beltway or some academic circles, the school was hoping to boost recruiting, get alumni more involved and build a stronger research reputation, among other things, said Teresa Flannery, executive director of university communications and marketing.