The Go Blue Guarantee (GBG) was launched in 2017 as the University of Michigan’s commitment to cover the full cost of tuition on the Ann Arbor campus for up to four years for qualified undergraduate in-state students with family incomes of $65K or less. In partnership with the Office of the President, Provost and Enrollment Management, the Office of the Vice President for Communications launched the first phase of an integrated marketing communications campaign to support the GBG announcement, including news and public relations, social media, and digital components.
The high-profile launch helped raise public awareness about the university's commitment to making U-M affordable and accessible to in-state undergraduate students and their families.
From 2017-2019, paid social media campaigns highlighted the affordability message through student profile videos, animated GIFs, and static images targeting men and women with family incomes both under and over $65K. Other tactics included stadium/arena advertising (marquee and concourse ads and radio spots), and a variety of print collateral materials including flyers, banners, and table tents for use by recruiters.
Given this heightened awareness, we decided to seize the opportunity to deepen the conversation and address misconceptions about affordability for all in-state residents. A digital recruitment campaign was launched to support the GBG in 2020 that included an updated landing page, and new elements including an email nurturing drip campaign, a Facebook Leads Objective campaign, and a SnapChat campaign.
