ROCKY TOP
ROYALTY
INDUSTRY: University, Student Engagement
LOCATION: Knoxville, TN
DELIVERABLES: Brand Identity, Graphic Design, Public Relations, Marketing
Strategy, Social Media Management, Content Creation
In fall 2016, The University of Tennessee's Homecoming committee enacted the first ever Rocky Top Royalty competition to exemplify the 'Volunteer Spirit' through Court members’ scholastic and extracurricular achievement at the university. I had the distinguished honor of being one of the 10 students selected (out of 28,000+) to be a member of the 2016 Homecoming Court.
As a court member, I was tasked with executing a social and digital campaign to promote my 2016 Homecoming platform to members of the UT student body.
In addition, the campaign could not utilize any promotional elements characteristic of a general Homecoming campaign (i.e. pins, cookies, etc.).
The Logo
I designed a combination mark that would not only relay a positive message of trust within my candidacy, but reinforce the University's 'Rocky Top' association both through the icon and the color palette.
Social Campaign Strategy
As I designed banners and post elements for digital and social media, I took a new marketing approach by creating digital buttons/pins for students, and campus leaders to share on their social platforms. To execute, I invited students to repost/share the campaign buttons on their platforms with fun messaging to build hype around my campaign. Additionally, I created a Snapchat GeoTag filter to assist the various elements - the field was set around poplar campus areas and during 'high times' when students would most likely be engaging with the application.
Paired with strategic ad placements on Instagram and Facebook, the campaign was successful as the official Instagram account gained over 200 followers and the Facebook gained over 400 followers in less than two weeks.
SUPPORTING ASSETS:
Messaging & Voice
Building a voice for 'Rocky Top's Top Notch' was essential to my messaging. The tagline "Reaching Top Quality for a Top University" was created to support not only my qualifications as a candidate, but reinforce the "Rocky Top" mantra that students hold dear.
The hashtag #KaylynIsTopNotch was used throughout social sharing platforms to assist the campaign's theme.
