Annual Conference for Marketing and Branding Professionals 2024
The 2024 Annual Conference on Marketing and Branding is now sold out!
You can register online only to join the waitlist.
We will reach out to those currently on the waitlist. If we are unable to accommodate those on the waitlist, fees will be refunded in full. Joining the waitlist does not guarantee a place at the conference and we are unable to provide advance notice of when and if a space might become available. Please do not book your travel until a space becomes available and you are notified by CASE.
Building a strong brand for your institution has never been more important. Balancing the reality of your campus with the overwhelming nature of being a marketer today, this conference will help participants identify, explain and integrate the key ingredients to creating, sustaining and measuring the impact of a successful brand strategy and market position. Join your colleagues to gain insights into how to start the process, bring your campus stakeholders with you, build the optimal organization, determine metrics that matter and develop inspiring creative work that supports your effort.
This conference is designed for professionals with mid-level responsibility.
Learning Objectives
- Define the core competencies needed to identify actionable strategies, tactics, and tools to strengthen your marketing, communications and branding efforts.
- Identify creative ideas and innovative techniques that will set you apart in a crowded marketplace.
- Demonstrate effective strategies to champion your organization (or campus), president, chancellor, dean, or other campus stakeholders.
- Highlight the value of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging efforts as part of your institution’s identity.
- Prioritize operational effectiveness to better structure your marketing/communication function.
- Analyze Data-driven insights to inform brand strategy and reputation.
Who Should Attend
- Chief marketing officers
- Branding and promotions staff
- Marketing specialists
- Brand managers
- Marketing and communication division heads responsible for the university brand position
- Anyone who is considering launching, presently launching or striving to launch a brand initiative
Meet Your Co-Chairs
Russell Yost
Russell Yost, APR is Associate Vice President for University Marketing and Communications at the University of San Diego (USD). At USD, Russell leads the campus' marketing and communications efforts, is part of the leadership team of USD's integrated advancement operation and serves on the President's cabinet.
Prior to joining USD, Russell served as Senior Director for Marketing and Communications at the University of Washington's College of Arts and Sciences, leading communications efforts for the UW's largest academic unit. Russell brings over 18 years of experience in higher education communications, has worked for PR and marketing agencies in Oregon, and has served as a legislative assistant in the Oregon State House and Senate. During his 14-year tenure at Willamette University, Russell served as a communications director, associate vice president and Chief Communications Officer for the university.
In 2018, Russell's team at Willamette won a prestigious national Silver Anvil Award from the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) for its solar eclipse event. Russell’s team at the UW won a Bronze Anvil Award for its student recruitment video in 2021. Russell received the Portland Business Journal’s “Forty Under 40” award in 2011, the Portland Business Alliance’s “Volunteer Recognition Award” in 2014, and the American Marketing Association Oregon President’s Award in 2011.
Russell chaired the PRSA Counselors to Higher Education Forum in 2016, 2017 and 2018 and Senior Summit in 2020. He has been on the faculty for the CASE Conference on Marketing and Branding since 2021. He holds an Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) and has a bachelor’s degree from Gonzaga University and master’s degree from Willamette University.
Kinnari “Kin” Sejpal
Kinnari “Kin” Sejpal is the Vice President of Marketing and Communications/Chief Marketing Officer at the University of Redlands where she oversees brand management, enrollment marketing, and communications and digital teams. Before joining Redlands, Kin served as the Associate Vice President, Marketing and Creative Services at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). Among her many accomplishments there, Kin developed RIT’s brand strategy and launched its first national reputation campaign.
Kin started her career in the U.S. by joining Purdue University’s Office of Marketing and Media where she held progressively responsible roles in the areas of advertising, marketing strategy, and marketing intelligence.
Dedicated to advancing higher education and the importance of marketing in shaping the perception of our industry, Kin serves in prominent positions with CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) and AMA (American Marketing Association).
Kin has an M.B.A in Marketing and Strategic Management, and an M.A. in Communications from Purdue University.
