From the Nominator

"Elizabethtown College strives to engage students in finding and pursuing their life’s calling, work, and their most fulfilling future. That promise begins to take shape long before their first semester class. Etown’s committed engagement with students is established at the first inquiry and grows stronger with time. 

During the height of the pandemic, the office of marketing and communications was tasked with planning and executing a sequenced mail communication. Our objective: create a series of unique touchpoints that would establish connections, generate excitement, and convert accepted students into deposited students. Our in-house team began brainstorming creative concepts that would provide a memorable first impression. The idea of a layered, personalized, yield gift mailer series was conceptualized, built, and delivered to roughly 1,800 accepted students over the course of seven months. 

Starting in Nov. 2020, four distinctive mailers were designed, printed, kitted, and distributed in a layered timeline, entirely dependent on when a prospective student entered the admitted student cycle. Much more than school-spirited swag, our smartly designed packages were on-brand and engaged the recipient through a fun, tactile opening experience. Individually, the mailers stand alone with strong messaging and bold designs. Together as a complete series, they provide brand recognition and continuity.  

Did our creative efforts pay off? Reactions were overwhelmingly positive, ranging from excitement and pride to emotional connections. Most importantly, swift admission deposits signaled our calls to actions worked. Ultimately, the yield gift mailers proved to be a vital part of the Elizabethtown College 2020-21 enrollment growth."

From the Judges

Most effective because it was a series with many touchpoints over the course of the yield term. Achieved their ROI.