YouTube Video Enhances Effective Media Relations Campaign
In summer 2008, a private, all-girl high school in St. Louis called on Casey Communications for marketing and communications support aimed at bolstering the school’s image and boosting the size of incoming freshman classes.  Over the prior four years, the school had experienced a downturn in enrollment due in part to heightened competition for qualified applicants among the area’s more than one dozen all-girl secondary education institutions. 

Setting out with a first year budget that was less than the tuition to be paid by a student over four years, Casey and its client collaborated to:

1. Enhance the image of the school by surfacing a common theme that resonated and could be expressed authentically by staff, faculty, students, parents and alumnae.
2. Attract five percent more applicants in year one through communication and events targeting sixth, seventh and eighth graders and their parents and teachers.

Among the tactics used to elevate the profile of the school with prospective students, Casey deployed a targeted media relations plan aimed at generating news coverage of school events that reinforced the themes identified for recruitment messages. In one instance, when nearly 20 percent of the student body fulfilled a pledge to donate their hair to the national charity, Locks of Love, Casey secured television coverage from two local affiliates. Footage of the event aired on five local news casts and was viewed by an estimated 500,000 people. Casey also produced a video of the event and secured a vlog posting on STL TODAY.com  The video was also posted on YouTube and received more than 1,200 views.

As year one marketing activities drew to an end, the school reported a 17.25 percent increase in applications and a 6.9 percent increase in freshman enrollment from the previous year.