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Bridging the brand content divide: The cross-departmental collaboration that created institutional best practice and a high-performing website
Journal of Education Advancement & Marketing,
8
(1),
60-68
(2023)
Abstract
This paper analyses how Ferris State University unified two rival teams to rebuild their College of Business's web presence, create a model for cross-departmental collaboration and innovation and grow the college's web traffic and conversions for the first time in more than seven years. Learn how the College of Business and the university's Advancement and Marketing team came together in the face of enrolment declines to rebrand and rebuild their prospective students’ online experience and improve their conversion rate. While the authors discuss the best practices they utilised to develop the site, this paper focuses on how these two teams navigated previous conflicts and leveraged the unique expertise of both teams to create something neither was capable of on their own.
Keywords: marketing; brand awareness; enrolment; website design; digital user experience; digital conversions; innovation; collaboration
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Jeremy Mishler is the Associate Vice President for External Relations at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan. In this role, Mishler leads a purposeful, energetic and collaborative approach to marketing and constituent engagement, overseeing the work of the marketing, website, alumni relations and news services and social media teams. Mishler also manages a portfolio of annual and major gift donor prospects, as well as providing leadership support to the Ferris State University Alumni Association, serving as its Executive Director. Mishler has been an active member of CASE throughout his 24-year career in higher education. He currently serves on the CASE District V Cabinet and chairs the district's scholarship initiatives.
Eric Hazen is Director of Digital Marketing at Ferris State University and leads a dynamic team of content creators and web developers in telling the Ferris State University story through powerful digital experiences. His team oversees the university's digital presence and the development of distinctive, highly personalised content and user experiences that focus on organic acquisition and conversion rate optimisation. Eric holds a BA and MFA from Columbia College Chicago in creative writing.
