Talking Stick - September/October 2008 - (Page 26)

Business students. We also have lower rates for the financially conscious.” This is also a successful technique used at the University of North Texas in Denton, where they market halls lacking newer amenities as “economy halls” with lower price rates. With this socially aware generation, even the greenness factor is becoming an essential selling point for marketing residence halls. As sustainability initiatives are becoming popular on campuses, lists of the top green schools are appearing in publications such as The Chronicle of Higher Education and Current Magazine. The Princeton Review now includes green ratings in their rankings, and Peterson’s is planning a similar effort. Sustainability issues are a top priority for today’s students, and colleges and universities are using these competitive rankings within their marketing methods. Green residence halls are a direct way to involve students in sustainability right where they live; these features can make or break the residence hall choice for a student. Campus Solutions Inc., a college and university marketing company, has recently introduced “Go Green” initiatives into their marketing plans. As Bryan Carbone, marketing director and president of the company, suggests, the increased student involvement in sustainability shows that this is a marketing technique that can’t be ignored, particularly when a student is deciding on a residence hall. “Initial studies have shown that in purchase decisions, students choose the ecofriendly choice. Students play one of the biggest roles in going green, and it goes into their decisions.” Millennial college students have high expectations for their residence halls, and these halls need to be marketed accordingly. It is clear that there are a variety of different approaches to reach the fast-paced, demanding college student, and integrating these methods seems to lead to greater success for marketing professionals within housing. “In today’s media-rich environment, I think that the best marketing approach is one that is multi-faceted; a communications practitioner in today’s market must use multiple channels to effectively reach a student audience that is more wired, but also less captive,” says Miyamoto. “Marketing professionals in today’s college environment are pushed to explore variable data marketing, portal technology, texting services, and other new frontiers to reach a tech-savvy student population. However, in the push to explore new technologies, we can’t forget that the simple methods are sometimes the most effective.” ts Meredith Whipple is a Talking Stick editorial intern. http://perrydean.com http://perrydean.com

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Talking Stick - September/October 2008

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