The following series of direct mail postcards spearheaded a tailored marketing campaign for Complete 2 Compete (C2C), a Mississippi program founded to help stop-outs (students who left college without a degree) return to college and finish what they started. The ultimate goal was to increase the number of college graduates in the state, and prepare the workforce to compete in the changing economy. C2C’s focus is removing barriers that are keeping adult learners from returning to get their degrees. To that end, C2C offers personal coach support from start to finish, fast-path degree programs designed for adults, and a renewable grant to those who qualify.

The audience was segmented based on the prospective student’s progress toward their degree. The fronts of the postcards featured brightly colored images of animals in their natural habitats sporting a graduation cap. The messaging encouraged them to stand out by completing their degree. Each audience segment received a different animal on their postcard with customized messaging and calls to action incorporating their name, the number of credits they had earned, the logo of their prior school, and imagery that matched their gender and ethnicity.

Each prospect received a personalized URL which led them to a landing page, again featuring tailored messaging, imagery and greeting them by name. Clicking through the landing page took them to an interactive application to collect their preferences and prior educational institutions and experience. Forms were conveniently pre-populated with their contact information to allow them to complete their responses quickly and easily. Everything was done with deliberation to assure a smooth user experience.

Personalized emails complemented the direct mail channel, seamlessly leading the prospect to their personalized landing page and application.

To increase brand awareness and recognition, Facebook and Google banner ad campaigns were deployed as well.