RCB Fall Formal 2023
Bringing a memorable experience through creative content strategy.
Organization: Northwestern University Residential College Board (RCB)
Role: VP of Public Relations
Timeline: June - November 2023
Skills: Marketing Strategy, Content Strategy, Social Media Management, Graphic Design
Total Attendees: 441 of 450 capacity, each $35
What is RCB Formal?
Formal is planned by the RCB exec board to offer a memorable experience and
bring people together during Fall Quarter 2023. My team began planning the
event in Spring Quarter 2023.
Ticket Sales period: Oct. 11 - Oct. 25 (15 days);
Guest Tickets sold Oct. 26 - Nov. 1 (6 days)
The final ticket count on the last day of member only ticket sales, left over tickets were opened to guests.
Areas for Media Strategy Improvements
In previous years, residents didn't have a centralized place to easily find information about events such as Formal, which involves 10 residential colleges at Northwestern University. My role was to bridge this gap and facilitate cross-communication between the Communication and Public Relations officers of each RC.
The Website Plan
The solution: A website page within the current site for RCB. As a result, this page could be accessible during any part of the customer journey, whether that be directly through the website or from other owned media like social media using linkr.ee/nurcb.
Limitations: The link to purchase a ticket had to be sent through private channels, i.e. emails and residential college group chats, as this was a members only event.
Social Media Engagment Metrics
Instagram Insights (from Sept 25-Oct 24 vs Aug 26 - Sept 24)
- +3.6% Followers
- +25.9% Content Interactions
- +25.9% Profile Visits
- +10.3% Impressions
With the help of the officers from each Residential College, I was
able to engage with a wider audience on social media through their
instagram accounts by tagging, commenting, reposting.
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I created variations of the main poster to bring awareness about the event with engaging captions, encouraging residents to get their ticket.
I balanced posting to the Instagram feed and story features to reach a wider audience. Using these two designs, I occasionally overlaid additional text referencing the RCs that sold out.
Other Strategies
- Word-of-Mouth: I encouraged Communication officers of each RC to ask residents whether they got a ticket to Formal at smaller events being held during the sales period.
- I helped create a sense of urgency as each RC was only allocated a percentage of tickets, which resulted in three RCs selling out in the first three days and others following behind.
Providing Alternative Palettes
I created two additional color palettes to allow for variation in promotional material based on individual residential college colors.
The 2023-2024 Residential College Colors
The Night Of Formal
I designed a picture frame and had it mounted onto foamcore for guests to take pictures with.
It was intended for the photographer to use the prop to take photos with
but guests enjoyed taking their own photos with it.
A Token to Remember
All guests recieved a holographic sticker on the way out of the venue and back to campus.
The sun sybmbol represents the very first RCB logo with each of the residential college names.
I wanted the sticker to serve multiple purposes, therefore I did not include any identifying
text on it, such as "Formal 2023."
The holographic aspect was to provide a higher quality sticker experience like
the actual event it was meant for. It also serves as a conversation starter in the future amongst peers.
Formal Recap of Photos
Following the event, the professional photographer sent a gallery of images they took.
To wrap up the event on RCB's Instagram account, I selected photos for a slideshow.
I wrote a caption expressing that RCB was glad that the residents and guests
enjoyed their time at the Chicago History Museum. I also thanked and tagged the
photographer for the photos that showed people having a good time.
Personal Takeaways
While working on this project, I was taking a digital media strategy class which helped me to
apply those learnings about the digital media being at the intersection of consumers, content, and channel to the implementation of creative assets.
My team of executive board members were a big part of pulling off this large event.
For many of us it was our first time contributing and leading at such a large scale.
I was greatful for all the support and feeback for every step of the process.
Other roles I took on:
- I held two meeting with the PR and Communication Chairs to present the digital media strategy and gain feedback to cater the message to each residential college.
- I helped organize bus information including rosters for the designated point people into folders.
- I created bus letter signs for each of the 10 buses for residents to know what bus they will be on the night of the event.