Brazosport College Issues Branding RFP

Brazosport College (BC) requests quotations to provide market research and branding services. The selected firm will be expected to work closely with the Director of Marketing and Communication and

Background:

Located on 156 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds in Lake Jackson, Texas, Brazosport College has served as the College of Choice for students in southern Brazoria County since 1968. Brazosport College offers two-year degree and certificate options in a variety of career fields, as well as courses in major fields of study, which will transfer to four-year schools. The healthcare program at BC offers ADN and LVN opportunities. BC also offers four-year degree programs in Industrial Management and Health Services Management.

The Brazosport College campus has expanded in recent years. Additions include the BASF Center for Process Technology, the Dow Academic Center, the Byron & Sandra Sadler Health Professions/Science Complex, a new Student Pavilion, a revitalized library, the Freeport LNG Crafts Academy and, most recently, the BCPC Welding Technologies Laboratory. With its growth has come a variety of accolades. In 2013 and 2015, the Aspen Institute ranked Brazosport College among the top 10 community colleges in the nation. Other awards include Safest College Campus in Texas, as well as a Top 10 Beautiful Yet Affordable College Campus in the nation.

The College’s continued commitment to student success drives initiatives to assist students in attaining their goals. Partnership  programs between the college, community and local industry leaders are steered by the Brazosport College Foundation to help ensure student success.

Brazosport College enrolls about 4,000 degree-seeking students each semester and another 4,000 continuing education students each year. Virtually all of our students come from our service area: Southern Brazoria County. For our degree-seeking students, about 25% are in high school taking dual­ credit courses; 80% are part-time; 55% are pursuing programs that transfer to a four-year school, 40% are pursuing workforce programs that lead directly to employment, and 5% are pursuing an applied baccalaureate degree. BC employs about 100 full-time faculty, 200 part-time faculty, and has an annual operating budget of about $52M.

The five public high schools in our service area graduate about 1,400 students per year. About 675 of them do not enroll in college in the fall semester after high school graduation. Recent US Census data show there are 9,714 people age 18-24 in our service area and 4,137 of them have only a high school diploma. There are 14,939 people age 25-34 and 5,218 of them have only a high school diploma. And there are 43,457 people age 35-64 and 12,841 of them have only a high school diploma. Brazosport College believes that its mission requires a concerted effort to serve these people.

Brazosport College sees itself as an integral part of the regional community, and has deep, lasting relationships with the schools in the region as well as local industry, business and political leaders.

Brazosport College is a public college classified as a “Baccalaureate/Associates College -Associate’s Dominant” and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

Background on Brazosport College Brand:

• BC has emphasized its slogan as “The College of Choice” in its marketing for the past several                years.

• BC sees itself as “a national leader of student success initiatives” (in our Vision Statement) and was a Top 10 Finalist for the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence in 2013 and 2015. We have emphasized our Top 10 selection in many of our communications; however, we did not make the Top 10 in 2017, so we are not emphasizing it as much as in the past. The college is      currently engaged in two  innovative initiatives that will span many years: Guided Pathways, which provides clear and simple plans to achieve college completion starting from 10th grade or from the start of college, and ACE it, which provides personalized coaching to all first-time-at­ Brazosport-College students, including three meetings in the first semester to establish an educational plan and empower students with the knowledge to successfully navigate the college experience. Guided Pathways and ACE it are programs that affect every student at the college       and are important ways that students experience the college’s brand.

• BC was founded in 1968, so this year (2018-2019) is our 50th anniversary, and we have a number of events and associated marketing efforts celebrating this milestone.

• BC has a rich mix of marketing channels: a fully-developed web site, an active Facebook page, billboards, radio advertising, television advertising, dual-credit counselors who work in the local high schools and interact directly with students and their parents, and a full calendar of                 community events where campus representatives promote the college.

• Anecdotal evidence suggests that the BC brand means different things to different people:

• BC is a good place to “get your basics out of the way.” In other words, do your standard freshman and sophomore courses at BC before going to university.
•  BC is the place that can prepare you for a $SOK job with a 1-year certificate (welding, pipefitting) or an $80K job with a 2-year degree (process technology, instrumentation).
• Local leaders see BC as providing high quality degrees that are essential for the economic      health of the region.

Scope of Work:

We seek a marketing firm with a proven track record for market research, brand development and execution. Responsibilities of the successful flrm are as follows:

1. Work collaboratively with the Director of Marketing and Communication and the Provost and Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs to review the seven market segments (a.k.a. Student Archetypes) listed in Table 1 and ensure that they represent all of the important market segments in our service area, including the population of people who have finished high school but have not attended college.

2. Work collaboratively with the Director of Marketing and Communication and the Provost and Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs to develop value propositions appropriate to each market segment. (An initial set of value propositions has been developed by a group of faculty and staff.)

3. Conduct market research to:

a. Empirically measure the appeal of the value propositions to the relevant market segments, i.e., whether the value propositions increase the likelihood that people will enroll at BC, and

b. Measure existing impressions of BC’s brand.

                     It is absolutely essential that the research be thorough so that the results are credible.

4. Develop a comprehensive brand strategy designed to increase enrollment at BC, especially of underrepresented groups. The strategy should NOT include changing the college’s logo or colors, but it may include modifying the college’s tagline: “The College of Choice.”

5. Provide recommendations for ongoing monitoring and continuous improvement of BC’s       brand effectiveness.

Due Date:

February 26, 2019.

Address:

Brazosport College

Cara Green, Procurement Specialist

RFQ: 2019.01 Branding Services

500 College Drive C-127

Lake Jackson, TX 77566

Coyne PR and Shift Communications have relevant experience.