Arts Management Program, University of Buffalo

About the Arts Management Program, University at Buffalo

The University at Buffalo (UB) is New York’s No. 1 public university and ranks No. 34 nationwide. As a flagship institution in the State University of New York system, UB is the system’s largest and most comprehensive campus. It is consistently recognized as one of the world’s most exceptional and affordable universities, making it a top choice for students and faculty around the globe.

One of the school’s premier programs is the Master of Arts degree in art management. Buffalo is home to several world-class art institutions, including the Albright-Knox-Gundlach Art Gallery and the Burchfield Penney Art Center, and boasts a rich store of public art in terms of murals and sculptures, making the city the perfect canvas for student exploration.

The Challenge

***we were attracting and accepting high quality international candidates, but we were not converting that interest into students choosing UB.

UB’s art management graduate program was attracting and accepting high quality international candidates, but was not converting that interest into students ultimately choosing UB. Officials with the school’s arts management program wanted to create a social media video campaign to showcase both the program’s value and the student experience.

But the program’s email marketing efforts were already effectively targeting students from Asian countries. It quickly became apparent that there was a disconnect in the message.

Students from all geographies can reap numerous advantages from being in Buffalo and enrolled in a renowned, competitive, and exclusive—yet accessible—arts management program. So why weren’t those value propositions resonating?

The Problem

Program officials knew that competitor institutions were successfully enrolling international students in their arts management programs.

But why were those students choosing other universities? In addition to UB’s stature, Buffalo is well-positioned in the world of arts education. And along with world-class art institutions, a rich store of public art, and a deep bench of talented professionals like artists, designers, and architects, Buffalo enjoys proximity and easy travel to art destinations like Toronto, New York City, and Chicago.

Program officials wanted to more effectively tailor marketing messages to capture interest from their target audience.

The Approach

When we work on projects like these, we feel that it’s our job not to seek answers, but to work collaboratively with our clients to seek questions. Only when we ask the right questions do we uncover the pain points of our target audience and, with them, a message that resonates.

We took a nuanced approach to creating a video that would showcase the benefits of being an international student at UB, asking a variety of open-ended questions that focused on target audience, student needs, values systems, and more.

The Solution

Our deep dive revealed that the disconnect wasn’t a result of a deficiency in UB’s program, the university itself, or Buffalo.

It was due to a lack of brand awareness around the arts management program. Competitor programs had heavily invested in building both brand awareness and relationships in Asian countries, so they were top-of-mind for students from those populations.

Armed with that knowledge, we began crafting a video that would connect our target audience to the international student experience at UB and, more specifically, the experience they could have in the school’s arts management program. Social proof from peers is a powerful motivator of human behavior, and people know when someone is being genuine. That’s why our work is so heavily focused on drawing truth from those we include in our videos.

In short: We wanted to show them a truth that they could envision themselves being part of.

The video needed to spotlight the quality of the academics and the professors who lead the program, the intimate class size, the ease of social integration, and the seamless coexistence of the city, its art institutions, and its well-connected community of art professionals.

We believe that it’s not about what we say, but about what we do. With that belief as a foundation, we created our video from the student point-of-view, knowing that students want to hear directly from other students. We selected a group of engaged students and followed them as they moved through their experience both in the classroom and throughout Buffalo. Our goal: To show them that there was a place for them in Buffalo; that their unique perspective was welcomed and that they could enjoy an authentic, valuable educational experience.

The Result

Our video launched in 2020 and brought to life the experience of existing international students in UB’s arts management program, lending authenticity to both the university and the program. The video positioned the program to attract and retain students. As a result, the program noticed an appreciable increase of retention among students from their priority list.

“Working with Luis was a dream,” said Kevin Leary, the assistant director of UB’s Arts Management Program. “In the UB Arts Management Program, we like to focus on the “why?” So does Luis. We got to work identifying the purpose of the video campaign and set to work on creating a narrative that would achieve our desired results. His personable nature made our students feel comfortable and his passion ignited theirs. We were left with authentic stories that wove right into our narrative, making the finished product powerful and effective.”