This is what St. Edward’s University has just done with its Student Ad Contest.
Participants were asked to submit an ad concept for the university’s ad campaign “Learn to think.” Launched in September 2001, these ads decline the same theme by contrasting real-life situations and course titles.
To get a chance to put their hands on the big prize, a year of free tuition at St. Edward’s University, high school seniors had to review the ads available on the website and browse through the university online course catalog.
Such contest rules were a good way to entice high school seniors to explore the university’s website – whether they decided to submit an entry or not.
As stated in the university’s press release about the results of the contest, “St. Edward’s launched the contest as a fun way to inform college-bound high school students about the university and to offer them the chance to experience St. Edward’s for free.”
This integrated marketing initiative resulted in 13,000 visits to the contest web page, 97 contest entries, a lot of buzz in the targeted high schools and probably some good media clips.