Work Samples Prepared for:

There are few universities in the world that have the gravitas of UCLA. Globally recognized, highly sought-after, and one of the most applied to schools in the country. Yet, in the broader community, there are still a lot of misconceptions out there about who and what UCLA actually is and what it stands for. As the institution approaches its centennial anniversary in 2019, the leadership team recognized this was the perfect moment to clarify UCLA’s narrative for all audiences, drive key revenue generators across the institution—such as advancement, enrollment, athletics, and more—and lay the groundwork for the institution’s most ambitious fundraising effort to-date.

160over90 was tasked to create an overarching institutional brand that would shape perception in the community and beyond, and also to translate that brand narrative for the centennial comprehensive campaign. The vehicle we found to deliver this message came from an in-depth discovery process. From the moment we stepped on UCLA’s campus we felt an overwhelming sense of optimism. Just about every student, faculty and staff member we met projected an air of informed, inclusive, positive enthusiasm. They not only knew they could make a difference, they were absolutely certain that they would. This unique, powerful, inspiring anomaly became the through line of the brand we built. The brand platform then translated to the campaign by drawing on the UC System’s motto, “Let There be Light,” while leaving the phrase open-ended to create a flexible device that could serve every area and cause across the entire institution. The Let There Be campaign launched in 2014 and has since surpassed its $4.2M goal 18 months ahead of schedule.

UCLA has capable and robust in-house teams of communicators across advancement, communications, and enrollment. From the start of this process, this relationship has been more than a collaboration. It’s been a shared journey of uncovering the institution’s essence, articulating and coauthoring a resonant campaign narrative, and co-creating the massive body of work that moved this campaign—this entire institution—forward to UCLA’s centennial anniversary, and beyond.

Situation

The state of Wisconsin and the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) were born in the same year, and their joint history tells the tale of success achieved together. Yet UW-Madison is very different in outlook from the state it serves, and ideological differences between the two led to steep declines in state support. To help secure the school’s enduring mission, UW-Madison prepared to launch its first-ever comprehensive fundraising campaign, calling on 160over90 to shape a compelling campaign narrative of ‘All Ways Forward.’

While UW-Madison boasts 400,000 living alumni, historically, 94% of giving has been attributed to fewer than a dozen donors. So it was imperative to widely disseminate the message.

Solution

For greatest reach and access, 160over90 developed a campaign site that takes an audience-centric approach to fundraising. In the interest of diversifying the giving base, micro-donations are encouraged from the outset of the digital experience. And a crowdsourcing strategy invites visitors to identify specific areas of interest, donate to them directly, and track sub-campaign progress.

The agency also partnered with the Wisconsin Alumni Association and UW-Madison on an omni-channel storytelling campaign the canvassed every pocket of state. ‘Project 72,’ so-named for the 72 counties in Wisconsin, leveraged TV spots, out of home and print advertisements, local-market earned media coverage, social media chatter, and a surprise-and-delight ice cream truck tour to proudly proclaim that the school and the state are, at once, inextricably bound and boundless together.

Lastly, to encourage ongoing, smaller-scale giving that isn’t directly tied to an ongoing comprehensive campaign, 160over90 partnered with UW-Madison to concept their Day of the Badger Annual Giving Day initiative. Through a dedicated microsite that tracked progress, gifts given by state, and programs/schools with the most dollars given; as well as social media call-to-actions; and on-campus engagement opportunities; individuals were encouraged to give to schools, colleges, departments, sports, research initiatives, or causes of their choosing. Certain colleges and offerings even implemented a dollar-for-dollar matching program that increased UW-Madison’s total dollars earned during this 24-hour period.

Results

Advertising has successfully driven awareness and traffic; a broadcast spot earned 100+ million impressions, while a digital campaign served 6.5 million impressions and nearly 25,000 clicks. As of April 2020, ‘All Ways Forward’ raised $3.41 billion from 232,118 donors, eclipsing the $3.1 billion goal.

The Day of the Badger Giving Day raised $1,804,332 within 24 hours. More than 5,000 people donated within 24 hours, with only 1,739 of those gifts coming from individuals within Wisconsin.

UW-Madison earned a 6-spot jump in US News & World Report rankings and had a 16% increase in out-of-state student inquiries.

Situation

Since the 1830s, Tulane University has experienced a history of ongoing evolution and ever-increasing impact. New Orleans is a place that pushes you to be you, and Tulane has always maintained a symbiotic relationship with the city it calls home. Just over 10 years ago, when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, the city was devastated and the university was on the brink of closing. In the decade since, Tulane transitioned from a comeback mentality to becoming a distinguished national leader in higher education and offering a highly sought after experience.

Solution

Tulane approached 160over90 at the onset of the university’s largest fundraising effort in its 184-year history with a goal to raise $1.3 billion to bolster research, scholarships, and faculty. We were tasked with developing a campaign narrative that authentically represents how Tulane is thinking big, differently, creatively, and with urgency to solve significant issues of today. We conducted a robust Discovery and created the campaign’s message and brand centered on the theme Only the Audacious. With this campaign platform, our team created a multi-year campaign communications strategy and full suite of executions to support the campaign, including a dynamic microsite, anthem video assets, case statement, save-the-date, donor gifts, campus signage, print collateral, and a campaign launch event.

Event Strategy & Execution | Designed to generate awareness, instill pride, and foster excitement among the entire Tulane community, the Only the Audacious event served as an experiential extension of the Brand Concept work 160over90 created on behalf of the University. Our team developed and executed on a series of activations and “media moments” leading up to and during Tulane’s Only the Audacious campaign launch, as a means to effectively reach key audiences such as alumni and donors—and amplify the event’s reach to extend well beyond day-of attendees. Throughout the engagement, the 160over90 team liaised with and consulted alongside the Tulane Advancement Events Team to ensure cohesion and alignment on all event elements, including bringing the strategy to life and assisting with pre-activation logistics and day-of, on-site event execution.

Event PR | To help bolster the institution’s reputation and brand awareness on a national stage, and to court public opinion of key influences in support of the comprehensive campaign, 160over90 implemented a targeted earned media strategy. Media relations outreach was centered on achieving heightened visibility through a steady drumbeat of positive press coverage specifically surrounding recent rankings and recognitions, brand stories that expressly ladder up to the Only the Audacious campaign initiatives, as well as milestones, major gift announcements, and expert source positioning to increase share of voice.

Results

A successful campaign launch event in December 2017 was framed as a daylong celebration near Tulane’s Uptown campus. Attendees participated in a luncheon, concert, and other events designed to highlight the university’s contribution to areas including coastal restoration and medicine. 54,000 individuals have already donated $820 million during the campaign’s silent phase. The number of donors has increased by 2,400 donors year over year. Last year (2018-2019) Tulane set a new record with over 25,000 donors in a single year. The campaign has currently raised $1.0B towards the $1.3B goal.

Situation

Texas A&M University is a fearless front. A community, standing arm in arm, ready for anything. Steeped in history, pride, and reverence, yet fueled by diverse backgrounds, talents, and search for excellence and truth. As a world-class institution, the university seeks to combine knowledge, research, and innovation to create solutions to far-reaching challenges that few institutions have the depth and breadth to achieve.

Together, Texas A&M’s top leaders and faculty members identified key areas in which the university has the proven expertise and creativity in research and teaching to take on society’s most critical problems and look fearlessly ahead at those yet to come. From now through 2020, former students and friends are uniting with faculty and staff in the Lead by Example campaign to enhance Texas A&M’s ability to tackle real-world problems. Such a transformational endeavor requires considerable resources that Texas A&M understood are neither present today, nor likely to become available from public funding sources. Only with private support will Texas A&M take its place among tomorrow’s most prestigious universities.

Solution

In the fall of 2015, Texas A&M was readying to break precedent in Texas and launch a $4 billion campaign. At the same time, the campus welcomed a new administration—both a university president and a foundation president—who inherited the campaign and were charged with rolling it out to stakeholders first across the university, and then across the country. Coupled with a thinly staffed communications team, the mobilization of this ambitious campaign posed a serious challenge.

160over90 was tasked with developing a singular brand voice for the institution to elevate the recognition of the university’s academic and research excellence, secure increased private funding, and strengthen state and federal resources focused on educational and research needs. The new brand platform we helped launch enhanced the perception of Texas A&M as one of the best and most dynamic universities in the world: a single progressive force on the leading edge of it all. As a result, the institution’s new positioning engaged multiple constituents with diverse (and sometimes conflicting) perspectives in a consistent, yet meaningful manner.

Results

The new brand platform served to realign Texas A&M at the overarching level, including a new omni-channel marketing campaign that launched in epic fashion just six months after the new president arrived. The comprehensive campaign included print, digital, TV/video, social media, and web initiatives, and gained the following results:

• Campaign:
  Raised $3.87B to-date
  More than 194K donors
  834K gifts
  Overall: 49MM total campaign impressions
  PSA: 4.9MM views
  Digital Ads:
  17MM digital ad impressions
  Impact video unit had high CTR of 4.41%
  Display ads on The Chronicle of Higher Education (+50%), Forbes (+30%), and The Atlantic (+43%) performed well above CTR benchmark
  Print: “Ripped from the headlines” print ads impacted more than 12+ publications nationally with 4.6MM impressions thus far
  OOH: By leveraging markets with the biggest Aggie alumni networks, OOH placements gained extra traction on social media (in addition to 14.7MM impressions)

• Social Media:
  15K shares of PSA
  Posts featuring the :30 Fearless on Every Front video achieved .56% CTR on Facebook and .47% CTR on Twitter
  3.8% CTR for paid social

Situation

Research powerhouse, University of Arizona, is the premier institution within the state of Arizona and its influence has broad reach across the country and around the globe. As a Land- and Space-Grant institution, home to two medical schools, and a designated a Hispanic-serving institution, the university is instrumental to the future of the state and is uniquely positioned to solve many of the world’s grand challenges.

Solution

In April 2019, UArizona partnered with 160over90 to develop branding, marketing, and advertising in an effort to cement its preeminent position within the state and to bolster its awareness and reputation on a national and global stage. This important work serves as a precursor to an upcoming comprehensive campaign, intended to fuel support of all kinds, beyond just fundraising.

160over90 conducted a robust Discovery & Research process to establish the strategic foundation and creative platform for the brand campaign, “Wonder Makes Us.” Our 360-campaign includes OOH wallscapes, transit wraps and metro station takeovers and custom content, TV, OTV, programmatic digital and social.

Results

Following the launch of the new brand, UArizona has achieved the following results:
• 47,000 new visitors to the site
• Increase in visitation in opportunity markets of TX (17,000) and CA (12,000)

Situation

There are a lot of amazing athletes across all of professional sports, but only a handful of G.O.A.T.s. Peyton Manning was one of these rare breeds who could carry a team and an organization on his back, embodying all of the characteristics of a first-in/last-out midwestern mentality. He really could do it all… until he was gone, leaving behind a fanbase who expects AFC championships and doesn’t know how to support a team after two 8-8 seasons. So with a new GM, and a QB who’s health was in question, 160over90 was brought in to help define and articulate the shared values of the Colts and the greater Indiana region.

Solution

Built on the platform of strong Midwestern values (hard work, family, character, hospitality, trust, loyalty), we launched the “Midwest Earned” brand with a cinematic two-minute anthem video. The campaign spanned TV, digital, social media, outdoor, and cinema. The campaign at its core is all about the ethos and the value system that drives and defines not just the team and the organization, but Indiana and the Heartland. It represents a turning point, where being a part of the Colts family means more than football, more than showing up each week, more than wearing the shoe. But forging it in a fire that burns so hot, it’s blue.

Results

Our launch campaign achieved the following results:

• 74.2M social impressions
• 4.3M video views (Spanish and English versions)
• 58K engagements on social media
• Attention from Sports Illustrated
• Celebrity support form Mike Epps and others

The ticket sales campaign achieved the following results:

• 22.2M social impressions
• 904.8K social engagements
• $50,000 increase in ticket sales