Client: Dillard University

Scenario / Challenge:

Dillard University a Historically Black & College/University in New Orleans produces an annual fund-raiser concert during their commencement week activities. This fund- raiser is one of the University’s largest fund-raisers of the year. In the past the University allocated approximately $20,000.00 to the advertising of this fund-raiser. This year the budget for the overall event was much smaller hence the resources for advertising the event was also considerably smaller due to economic conditions.

Solution:

Spears Consulting Group was retained to revamp the way this event had previously been advertised. We were to develop and implement a grassroots outreach campaign to publicize the event. Given the fact that Dillard University is a Historically Black College/ University and the programming of this event it easy to determine the target audience and the outreach strategy.

Spears Consulting Group creating 3 key strategies. Those steps included the following:

• Advertising Posters: Spears Consulting Group created hundreds of posters and worked with establishments that we believed our target audience frequented. These establishments included African American barber and beauty shops in Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany and St. John Parishes. Those establishments also included restaurants, nightlife establishments, churches and social aid and pleasure clubs that we believed the target audience frequented. Lastly we would also canvass areas where large events were scheduled to take place with the posters. Events such as the Jazz Fest Super Sunday and etc. As part of this poster campaign we put out over 400 posters in and around the metro area.
  Flyer Canvassing: The flyer canvassing project was much like the poster campaign and utilized many of the same types of venues. The difference is the flyers provided an opportunity for more hand to hand distribution and human interaction. This allowed the outreach teams the opportunity to speak with people and tell them about Dillard University, about the event and how important this fund-raiser was for the University.
  • Developing Partner Entities: The 3rd component was establishing partnerships with establishments that we believed the target audience frequented. This partnership was for the owners of the establishment to promote the event to their audience via placing posters and flyers in the establishment. Lastly making live announcements to their patrons of the upcoming event and offering ticket information from the microphone every night for a period of 2 weeks. We also offered each establishment tickets to the function to be offered to their patrons. This served as an incentive for persons to come to the establishment and made the partnership mutually beneficial. Complimentary tickets were also offered to the business owners who agreed to serve as promotional partners.

   

  Result:

  Dillard University was extremely pleased with the concepts developed and executed by Spears Consulting Group. The event was a success a 90% capacity crowd even after spending a fraction of what had been spent in previous years to advertise this event.

Client: Advance Baton Rouge

Advance Baton Rouge was a 3 year old charter school organization with a poor reputation in the community it served. The expressed concerns were lack of school performance and safety. Due to those factors student/teacher recruitment projections were down and public perception was very poor.
The Board of Directors for Advance Baton Rouge made the decision to reorganize the entire organization starting with a change in leadership. In May of 2009, the board installed a new leadership team that included a new CEO, CAO, Communications Director and Human Resources Director. Spears Consulting Group is retained in June of 2009.

Spears Consulting Group was charged with the following:
The CEO and Communications Director relayed that they wanted to completely change the public perception of the organization. They identified the following issues:

• The perception was "the organization was not in the business of educating kids." They believed that many factors contributed to that perception one of which was the organization's logo.
• They went on to say there was a disconnect with the community and they wanted to re-engage the communities that the schools were in.
• Lastly they absolutely needed to get student enrollment up as soon as possible, as school funding is directly associated with the total number of students enrolled.

• Spears Consulting Group immediately began research and planning of a media campaign that would target the parents and community leaders who decide where children would receive their education. This included a heavy focus on media outlets that targeted parents, grandparents through predominately female outlets. There was also some allocation to media that targeting the actual students.
• We identified optimal media outlets to reach the target audience. We then began the process of developing the message. We had to create a positive message for an organization that we know had a negative public perception and try to get parents reengaged and to trust this organization with educating their kids.
• After developing a message that re-introduced the organization and instilled new confidence, we placed all media with multiple Baton Rouge outlets including print, radio, online and outdoor.
• The next step was to rebrand the organization. First we changed the name of the organization from "ADVANCE BATON ROUGE'" to "ADVANCE BATON ROUGE CHARTER SCHOOL ASSOCIATION'. The rebranding also included a new logo and slogan for the organization, as well as a public relations campaign surrounding the new leadership team.
• The implementation of the school rebranding began with changing the name of each school just as we did for the organization. Each school now became 'SCHOOL NAME CHARTER SCHOOL'. This was the first step in letting the parents and community know that it was a different school and a different organization. This also included new school crests, slogans and school collaterals.
• Spears Consulting Group also executed a Teacher Recruitment campaign. In this campaign Spears Consulting Group was responsible for all paid media, and creative including the slogan for the campaign.

• We were successful in increasing student enrollment for the 2009/2010 school year by 23%
• Deployment of the new brand for the organization and the schools were completed in the Spring of 2010 and they are currently benefiting from improved public perception
• The teacher recruitment campaign yielded over 100 certified teacher applicants
• As a result of the transformation one of the schools have been selected by NBC to be a feature of a new television program NBC will be launching in the fall of 2010 about school turn-around.

Client: Marriott International

Scenario & Challenge:

Marriott International via their New Orleans Renaissance Pere Marquette property completed a multi-million dollar renovation in early 2008. This renovation included a complete revamping of the 1st floor of the hotel and the addition of a new upscale 21st bar/lounge space for the property. The space was extremely well designed and could be used in a number of different formats and was agreed by most that saw the new space as one of the nicest venues of its kind in the New Orleans metro area. The problem was the if you build it they will come, myth did not prove to be true in this scenario.

After exploring opportunities with many very reputable, well known and well established marketing firms that did not produce the desired result Spears Consulting Group was contacted for a initial consultation. Spears Consulting Group was then secured for a period of 3 months to perform niche generational outreach to bring in the Young Professional community of the city into showcase the space as well as create programming and entertainment plans to begin to establish the space as the New, New Orleans social spot.

The 3 month programming produced by Spears Consulting Group was overwhelmingly successful in every measurable deliverable. The business of the space has increased by 50%, the Hotel has benefited from thousands of dollars in residual and carry over business from the programming and Young Professional groups that Spears Consulting invited in and most importantly the programming and marketing services of Spears Consulting Group proved to be completely financially self sufficient by generating food & beverage revenues for the property during the special programming events.