This week in PR Pubs, we heard from Mark Morvant who informed us about the newest housing addition to campus -the Residential Colleges. We learned that two Residential Colleges will be opening in the fall - one building is named Dunham College and the other is Headington College. These buildings are intended to be more than just a housing complex. They are designed to create a sense of community among the students who live there. The buildings will each have their own dining halls, common areas, classrooms, seminar rooms, faculty offices, living rooms and courtyards. Learning about the Residential Colleges was interesting because, in my opinion, they have not been heavily promoted on campus. I did not even understand the concept until Morvant came to class.
After the presentation, Croom assigned us a daunting task. He sent us out to different student housing facilities to learn more about the Residential Colleges' competitors and bring back marketing materials. I visited The Vue. I pretended like I was looking for housing with one other roommate. A lady gave me a 20-minute tour of their facilities and then showed me their apartment model. The salespeople expressed pride in the advanced security systems, the modern look, the small community feel, and the built-in furniture and storage. It was a beautiful facility, but with a modern look, the aesthetic was very different than the old, Hogwarts style facility that the Residential Colleges offers. I believe the public that The Vue targets is students from wealthy families. The rent is $950/month, which seemed outrageously expensive to me. I think they also target students (and parents) who care about security. For instance, the parking lot was enclosed inside of a secure gate and the entrance to the building was very secure. My assumption is that wealthy individuals have nice and expensive things that they care about keeping secure. I believe The Vue and the Residential Colleges target similar audiences, but not exactly the same. I think The Vue targets wealthier students who actually don't want a sense of community - even though The Vue claims pride in that - because there are only 79 beds in the whole complex. It seemed empty while I visited and I didn't see a single person using any of the amenities. The woman who gave me a tour at The Vue also talked about how many fun parties people have on their rooftop, in their lounges and in the pool area. I believe the Residential Colleges targets middle-class to wealthy students who care more about a sense of community than partying - because clearly, you are not permitted to "party" in campus housing. The marketing materials from The Vue are OU red and white, but sort of plain. I believe I can create a more colorful and appealing direct mailer for the Residential Colleges.
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Sami CanavanI'm a public relations junior and Italian minor at the University of Oklahoma. This is my journey through Public Relations Publications. Archives
May 2017
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