In the heart of the Clearing data jungle

Krystle Hall, Campaign Officer 

It’s all about the analysis right now.  As current campaigns have been delivered and some are now coming to a close I have begun evaluating the activity. The ‘mother of all evaluations’ is Clearing, which is currently at about 52 pages and counting. I have been looking at trends in the market as a whole, as well as, our direct competitors. Our Market Research, Admissions and Digital teams produce reams of quality data and I have been able to use their findings to measure the success of the campaign in greater detail. You want it; they’ve got it, the old ‘kid in a candy store’ chestnut.

I have created a campaign map that indicates what activity ran where across the country and it is really telling. It captures the sheer volume of advertising that we ran and our practical utilisation of geo-targeting. I nearly broke google maps (don’t be giving me none of that ‘no more layers’ google, no one’s got time for that). I have then been able to plot that against applications and enrolment figures. Outdoor and print based activity has been the most challenging to pin down as these platforms are notoriously difficult to track and evidence, so I have been formulating more innovative metrics to squeeze as much information as possible.

Really, I need to bring it to a close now, for my own sanity’s sake. There is such a wealth of data that you can really get lost in it if you’re not careful. *David Attenborough voice* Here we are in the heart of the Clearing data jungle, and it really is a thing to behold. To my left the radio schedule, its rich spots on full show. To my right the digital display stats scrap; the Student Room ready to do battle with Hotcourses. In the distance the tall bars of the SOI graph waving in the breeze, Google adwords towering over his brothers; perched just on the edge we catch a rare glimpse of the regal twitter bird flying high above its social media counterparts. Here we have a bright outdoor demographic pie chart spreading its wings to ward off predators; a young print readership line graph looks to its mother and cries ‘what are my proof points’…Like I say, for my own sanity…

The next step is the campaign plan. I already have a head start on myself last year and grand plans afoot. We have highly ambitious targets to hit so I am determined to use all the information that I have gained on performance to produce the most robust plan to date. The team has already been discussing what bright ideas we can come up with to give a unique spin on Clearing; I’m looking forward to seeing how they develop. Lest we forget, keeping it fresh, at the forefront and allowing room for experimentation is essential.

What else; I have been doing some gap analysis looking at the platform spend across campaigns to determine where we have made cost savings and where there is room for negotiation. I have really been scrutinising and crunching those numbers and made some interesting findings. Sometimes it isn’t until you really strip apart the components of a project that you really find clarity.

Over the past couple of weeks I have delivered the last bits of Aylesbury and Pre-Clearing copy, the Radio LaB brand guidelines are pretty much complete, just a case of final approvals, and I have been monitoring current activity to see if there is any room for optimisation. I have also been updating some of our online profile copy. We now have an enhanced profile on WhatUni.com with new images, video and content. Lots of other little projects chugging along in the backdrop too. And back to the jungle I go.

Later skaters,

Krystle