The Opportunity
Mercedes College, in Springfield South Australia, is a Reception to Year 12 co-educational Catholic school. They incorporate the International Baccalaureate (IB) framework with the Australian curriculum to provide students with a world-class education.
Mercedes already had a strong reputation and high enrolments but was looking to refine its position for future sustainability, and proactively manage their public relations.
They were also keen to partner with a full-service agency, having utilised a range of suppliers previously.
Our Approach
Our approach to understanding the strategic marketing direction included:
- A Brand and Marketing Workshop held with 20 key stakeholders to understand the brand essence and enrolment journey
- Combining workshop results with data and behavioural insights analysis to inform the strategic marketing direction
- Capturing the school’s spirit through the launch of the College’s three-year strategic plan which included:
- Copywriting
- Creative concept and art direction
- Photography
- Design
This led to a comprehensive brand strategy and refresh where we identified a new single-minded brand idea “flourish”, which has been injected through the College’s look and feel.
We also quickly established a strong rapport and trust with the Senior Leadership Team, in particular the Principal and Marketing and Development Director.
As an integrated agency, we also manage the ongoing publicity and media relations program, telling stories that support and reflect the values of the College in addition to ongoing graphic design, digital and campaign support. This includes:
- Print advertising
- Digital advertising (social media and Google Ads)
- MMS campaigns
- Brand photography
- Video content
Late in 2019 we ran a Writing for the Web workshop, followed by a Behavioural Economics workshop that introduced how to use psychology for effective communications with stakeholders.
The Outcome
Through the workshop and our deep dive into Mercedes’ data, we identified valuable insights into the challenges faced by the education sector, resulting in a strategic marketing direction overlaid with creativity.
The beautiful grounds became the backdrop to a whimsical typographic treatment and elements drawn from the Mercedes College logo, the Fleur De Lis, taking its place across a range of campaign materials and collateral.
Feedback after launching the plan and subsequent collateral was overwhelmingly positive. Mercedes is now easily identifiable in a highly competitive private school market.
Our MMS campaigns for their Orientation Walks have improved the experience for registrants and improved response rates for the College, with the numbers of those registering and attending increasing. Our digital advertising also performs well above industry standards, increasing brand awareness and driving traffic to the College website.
Through our PR efforts, we’ve achieved an unprecedented level of media coverage, including prominent stories spanning:
- The Advertiser
- Sunday Mail
- Messenger Newspapers
- ABC
- Talkback radio
- TV news
