Promotional Campaign of TAFE Universities - Assignment Example

? Promotional Campaign of TAFE Universities Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 0 Introduction 4 2.0 Executive Summary 5 3.0 Market Research Overview 5 4.0 TAFE Entity Outline 9 5. Marketing Objectives 10 7. Promotional Plan 12 8.0 Action Plan 13 9.0 Budget 14 10.0 Performance Control & Evaluation 14 11.0 Conclusion and Recommendation 15 12.0 Reflection 15 Reference List 17 Appendix 18 1.0 Introduction The education system of a country plays pivotal role in strengthening the economy of a country. A country needs a better education system to produce its own talents and not depend on expatriates to accomplish complex tasks (McCarthy, 2012). As a result of that, governments spend huge sums of money for the development of educational infrastructure and system of the country. It should be also noted that education has different forms such as general education, technical education and vocational education. Students usually select one of the forms on the basis of their desire and requirements of the situation. Intention This report deals with the TAFE colleges in Australia. In Australia, TAFE colleges, commonly known as technical and further education provide a wide range of vocational tertiary education courses, under the National Training System/ Australian Quality Training Framework/Australian Qualifications Framework (Victoria, 2011). Purpose and Scope This research paper will principally focus on the four main aspects of TAFE institutes in Australia. One important part is the background of TAFE schools in Australia. It also encompasses, the employment opportunities provided by the institutes. Apart from that, the background also includes the marketing techniques employed by them and comparison of their marketing approach will be done with the mainstream colleges. The second part mostly concentrates on the advertisement campaigns of the TAFE schools and their reach to the target candidates. The third and last part of the study is meant for summarizing the overall findings. This section is also responsible for identifying the pros and cons of their marketing strategies. The analysis of the findings will also be carried out in this part itself. The last and final part of the study will be about providing recommendations to the TAFE institutes pertaining to their marketing campaigns. Hence, it is evident that the central aim of this research paper is to recommend a promotional plan for the TAFE institutes. In doing so, the study will consider both traditional and modern approaches of marketing. Background TAFE schools provide education in different fields such as finance, construction, visual arts, information technology and community work, tourism, business, hospitality and engineering. These institutions are individually owned and are commonly known as TAFE colleges or TAFE schools depending upon the territory or state in which it operates. The financing is generally done by the territorial government or state government (Bosch, and Charest, 2012). Reports have suggested that TAFE colleges are one of the popular mediums of education in Australia. The TAFE colleges do not offer bachelor degree, rather it offers diploma which is often valued less. However, some of the TAFE colleges based in Queensland and Victoria has the authority to offer autonomous bachelor as well as post graduate degree to the students. The degree provided by the TAFE schools is essential in equipping candidates with the necessary industry related skills. The TAFE colleges offer students with a variety of vocational trainings in the field of finance, mechanics, construction and engineering. Thus, TAFE colleges can be effective for those students who lack the ability to afford university education (Sedor, 2009). Moreover, TAFE education is also a way by which students can get quick employment opportunities. There are several TAFE schools in Australia and some of the established ones are Brisbane North Institute Marketing, Southbank Institute of Technology, The MSIT. In addition, there are several other TAFE schools in Australia, but this study will deal only with the marketing and promotional campaigns initiated by the aforementioned TAFE institutes (Evans, Haughey and Murphy, 2008). The next sections of the study will shed light on the findings and will accordingly frame a plan for the same. Confidentiality The report will not be distributed to the public in general; rather a strict confidentiality for the same will be maintained. The owners only will have the access to go through the report and no authorized access will be permitted. 2.0 Executive Summary The study has shown that the impact of advertisements in influencing the students to take admission in the universities is minimal. Majority of the students surveyed for this purpose have stated that they have joined the institution not because of the advertisement campaigns, but because of their financial constraints. This response was common in 62% of the candidates. Around 19% of the students have mentioned that the parental influence have made them join the TAFE institutes. However, the main driver was the opportunities provided by the institutions to gain early employment opportunities. One of the key findings of the survey was that around 26% of the candidates who have joined one of the TAFE institutes have been partially influenced by the advertisements. In terms of the advertisements, it has been found that students mostly get attracted by the advertisements that are colored bright. However, it should be noted that more than the quality of advertisements, it is the promotional campaigns, course offerings and marketing activities helps in attracting large numbers of candidates. A trend has been observed that if the institution is offering scholarship to more than one child in a family the admission rate is increasing. Thus, scholarship schemes can be highly effective. The major operational issues appear in the form of gaining access to funds. The institutes often face difficulties in gaining access to the extra funds from the government or from any other sponsoring agencies. Another major issue is that elderly faculties often find difficulties in using the modern technologies. Furthermore, these universities also do not make use of modern advertising consultancies that often hinders the growth of the universities. 3.0 Market Research Overview TAFE provides an affordable, accessible and flexible solution for all higher education and training needs of the students. In Victoria alone, around 350,000 people are enrolled in TAFE insinuations. According to reports, TAFE education can be a solution for the candidates who seek to upgrade their professional and technical skills and increase the opportunity to get the first job. According to a survey carried out by Mackay Nextstep (2012), majority of the year 12 completers i.e. around 92.7% are either studying or have paid employment. The study also made it evident that 59.6% students continue with some recognized form of education or takes specialized training after leaving the school. One of the most positive outcomes of this study for the TAFE institutes was that 27.7% opt for employment based training or some kind of vocational training. Figure 1 – Main Destination of 12 Year Completers The diagrams above clearly articulate that the destinations of the students who have completed 12 year of education greatly differs. The study has also encompassed a student survey so as to get a deeper insight of the subject of concern. It has two separate survey groups. One of them are the existing students of the TAFE institutes and the other one is the students who are still in schools and is the potential target for TAFE institutes (Vandome, 2004). The survey was conducted with the help of questionnaire survey and assistance has been taken from the Queensland Department of Education. The detailed findings of the same will be elaborated in the subsequent sections of the study. Promotional Methods The TAFE institutes undertake various promotional strategies to generate awareness about their products in the minds of the target customers. Major universities directly approach to the students who are currently pursuing their 12th standard. In addition, some of the universities set up their own stalls in the school campuses so as to interact directly with the target consumers. The institutes become highly active in television advertisements as well as internet advertisements during the phase of admission. However, throughout the year the company remains highly active in newspaper advertisements. Presenting slides at the theaters and detriments in radio is another common way of promotion being pursued by the institutes. Since the last few years, the TAFE institutes have also started to actively participate in mobile advertisement campaigns. However, the viability of these advertisements is a matter of doubt pertaining to the amount of information it transfers to the candidates. Course Statistics The above diagram clearly shows the enrolment of the candidates on the basis of the activity preferences. The below diagram shown further enumerates in detail by dividing according to the divisions of male and female. Student Statistics Among the chosen group, the age group of the students falls between 17 and 20. 61% of the candidates were male and 39% were female. Age Group Percentage 17 - 18 55% 18 - 19 18% 19 – 20 27% Male Female 61% 39% 4.0 TAFE Entity Outline This section will be providing an outline of one of the the most well known TAFE institutes of Australia i.e. BMRT (Brisbane Metropolitan Religion TAFE). Brisbane North Institute Marketing Survey results On asking the students about the most attractive newspaper advertisements of the TAFE institutes, nearly 39% mentioned that the advertisements of Brisbane North Institute’s advertisements are the most attractive ones. The common sources used by the schools to advertise are classifieds and free ad posting sites. The principal aim of using these platforms is to target the local youth. Furthermore, the advertisements are designed in such a manner that it appeals to the economically downtrodden children. According to the findings of the study it is evident that the students have rated Brisbane TAFE as one of the best TAFEs. This is because of their efficient use of print media. On the other hand, Southbank Institute of Technology is considered as the second best by the students for their effective use of social media for promotional activities. The strategy of the university is completely different as it aims to target the parental generation and this strategy has paid off to a great extent. Furthermore, as per the responses of the students, Brisbane TAFE tops their choice because the wide variety of courses offered by them. 5. Marketing Objectives The objectives of the project are as follows: - Product The company’s objective in terms of product is as follows: - To offer wide range of courses To offer additional diploma courses Price To offer competitive pricing and remain competitive in the market. To target every section of the society with intelligent pricing Place To operate from a place that offers the maximum benefit to the firm. Promotion To ensure high return on investment on the promotions. 6.0 Marketing Strategies Course Range TAFE institutes offers a variety of courses and are meant for equipping the candidates with the industry skills. The TAFE institutes offer courses from various fields of study such as advertising, accounting, international business, economics and finances, marketing, management, business and administration, supply chain and logistics. Diplomas The diplomas provided by the TAFE institutes are as follows: - Certificates The certificates offered by the TAFE institutes are as follows: - Course pricing Diplomas The pricing of course is done in an extremely intelligent way. The course pricing generally falls between $150 and $250. In addition, these institutes also offer concession and installment options for the overseas students. However, the advanced diploma courses are priced extremely high and can cost up to $300 (OECD, 2010). Certificates The certificate courses are priced less than the diploma courses and the range usually lies between $30 and $50. Delivery Modes Diplomas The delivery mode is another essential criterion for the success of an initiative. Regarding this context, the delivery of the services is usually done through the learning centers itself. However, students who are enrolled in distance education are provided with the opportunity to access the course materials online. Certificates In the similar ways, certificate courses are also delivered in the similar ways as the diploma courses or the advanced diploma coerces is delivered (MobileReference, 2007). In this section of the study, the analysis of the findings from the student survey will be carried out. The sample size was 100 TAFE students. On asking them about the source from which they became aware of the TAFE institutes, 42% of them stated that newspaper advertisements mostly influenced them. Interestingly, a handful of student i.e. around 28% mentioned that they became aware by SMS blasting. Direct call from the consultancies was another source of information. Hence, from this fact it is evident that mobile advertisement and newspaper advertisements are the two most influential forms of advertisements. 7. Promotional Plan It has been observed that TAFE schools employ several promotional activities. The promotional activities range from traditional forms to the most contemporary modes. Traditional The traditional way of advertising and promotions is directly approaching the candidates via consultancies (Hills, Hultman, Kraus and Schulte, 2010). In this context, the TAFE schools also offer various kinds of scholarship programs and student loans so as to attract them. In addition, a number of universities use new paper advertisements and billboards so as to increase the visibility. Radio advertisements and slide shows in theaters are also popular traditional advertisement modes. Another interesting approach is to set up stalls in the school campuses to directly approach the parents of the potential students. However, the survey shows that the impact of these advertisements is limited as only 3% student stated that these advertisements have made them aware of the offerings. One of the negative aspects of such traditional campaigns is that TAFE schools are often overshadowed by the more appealing and mainstream universities. Online The online advertisement is the latest buzz in the field of marketing and promotion (Hultman and Shaw, 2003). Despite the cost effectiveness and mass reach of internet, TAFE universities have started to use social media promotion and internet advertisements to communicate. In addition, the universities also use their website for the purpose of attracting the students. The websites also provides information about the courses, admission procedure as well as the contact address. Mobile The mobile advertisement campaign is one o the latest and contemporary forms of advertisements (Hultman, 1999). Majority of the universities nowadays make use of mobile campaigns to promote their offerings in the recent past. However, mobile information provides minimal information and is not colorful and attractive as online advertisements. On surveying the students, it has been found that the effectiveness is less as only 9% students mentioned that they were influenced by the mobile advertisements. 8.0 Action Plan The action plan will be about the marketing activities of the firm. The action plan will be of one year i.e. January to December. Task No. Task Start Date Duration End Date Responsibility/Comments Completed 1 January 2 months End of February Carry out promotion via stalls set up at school campuses 2 March 2 months End of April News paper and social media advertisement development and launch 3 May 1 Month End of May Development of mobile campaigns and radio advertisement campaigns 4 June 3 months End of August Development of television advertisement and its launch. 5 September 2 months End of October Direct campaigning to schools and meet the parents and students 6 November 1 month End of November Admission phase and coordinating with the external consultancies. 7 December 1 month End of December Taking admission and making word of mouth promotion. 9.0 Budget Particulars Amount (in $) Expenditure of different forms of advertisement development 10, 000 Direct marketing expenses 5,000 Outsourcing and other Miscellaneous Expenses 3,000 Total Expenses 18,000 10.0 Performance Control & Evaluation It is important to manage the performance of the company and simultaneously carry out continuous evaluation of the performance. The performance in this context refers to the way by which TAFE institutes are performing their marketing activities. The control and evaluation in this context will be carried out with the help of different performance benchmarks and also the return on investment will be calculated. Moreover, milestones will be also set to ensure that the tasks are being completed within the given time frames. Activity Progress Status Completion and development of the advertisements Launching and publicizing the advertisements Monitoring the return on investments On Going On Going On Going 11.0 Conclusion and Recommendation The survey was meant to assess the viability of the promotional campaigns of the TAFE schools. The study revealed the major cause behind these institutions failing to get the desired number of enrollments is the end to end and comprehensive promotional activity of the mainstream universities. The students who enroll in TAFE schools are either schools dropouts or the one who have been rejected by mainstream universities. As a result of that, the market size is limited. However, the universities are recommended certain initiatives that will help them to target more audiences effectively. One of the recommendations to the company is that the colleges should invest more in the field of advertisements. Moreover, the universities are also strongly recommended to not focus on only single form of advertisement, but concentrate on every aspect of advertisements. The universities should stress more on the cost effectiveness of the courses as well as should highlight on the easy educational loan system. The universities are also strongly recommended to enhance the frequency of the advertisements in the newspaper and television. The universities are strongly recommended to consider distance education mode. A number of students like to enroll into distance education and offering this program can be beneficial to them. 12.0 Reflection This part of the study will critically reflect upon the market plan developed in the above sections. The study completed above was about the marketing plan of the TAFE institutes based in Australia. While doing the study I have found that TAFE schools are one of the important educations centers of the country. I have also identified that students who intends to get an early job and are comparatively economically weaker takes admission in these colleges. However, such institutes are failing to compete with the mainstream colleges and universities of the country because of the appeal they makes and also the differences of courses. One thing become evident to me is that the degrees offered by TAFE colleges are limited and their acceptance in the market is a cause of concern. On the other hand, mainstream colleges offer various degrees and diplomas. In the above study I have tried to assess the reason behind the inability of TAFE colleges to target students. The key was that TAFE colleges lack the required marketing activities. Hence, I have tried to formulate and recommend certain plans through which the colleges can benefit. Now in order to formulate the marketing plan for the TAFE institutes I have relied on the data provided by THE NEXT STEP survey. The process used by me was also simple. First of all I have assessed the background and history of TAFE institutes based in Australia. During this process I have tried to identify the different courses being offered by the institute the degrees offered and also the course fees. Furthermore, since the aim of the report was to formulate a marketing plan I have also analyzed the marketing techniques being adopted by the institutes. Along with that I have tried to indentify the marketing campaigns used by the mainstream colleges. This approach has provided me the opportunity to contrast the communication strategies of the two institutes and simultaneously recommend strategies to the TAFE institutes. In the context of the data received from the Queensland government, it was mostly related to the direction chosen by students after going through TAFE education and their background as well. However, the data presented in the report is absolutely authentic and accurate as most of them have been retrieved from governed website This thing which did not worked out properly is the way of data collection. Initially I thought of collecting raw data and would use statistical tools to analyze the same. However, due to certain reason it did not work out. The difficulty mainly raised in the form of availability of the respondents. In addition, requirement of time and resources was another major issue. As a result of that, I have used secondary data and find it to be more accessible. In the future, if I do a project on the similar topic, I will definitely use primary data as the findings will be more pertinent and I can select the variable to my choice. Reference List Bosch, G. and Charest, J., 2012. Vocational training: International perspectives. London: Routledge. Evans, T. D., Haughey, M. and Murphy, D., 2008. International handbook of distance education. West Yorkshire: Emerald Group Publishing. Hills, G., Hultman, C., Kraus, S. and Schulte, R., 2010. History, theory and evidence of entrepreneurial marketing – an overview. International Journal of Entrepreneurship & Innovation Management, 11(1), pp. 3-18. Hultman, C. and Shaw, E., 2003. The interface between transactional and relational orientation in small service firm’s marketing behaviour – a study of Scottish and Swedish small firms in the service sector. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 11 (1), pp. 36-51. Hultman, C., 1999. Nordic perspectives in marketing and research in themarketing/entrepreneurship interface. Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneurship, 1 (1), pp. 54-71. McCarthy, A., 2012. Australian resumes for dummies. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. MobileReference, 2007. Travel Sydney, Australia: Illustrated travel guide and maps. Boston: MobileReference. Nextstep, 2012. A report on the destinations of Year 12 complete from 2011. [pdf] Available [Accessed 17 October 2013]. OECD, 2010. Higher education in regional and city development: State of Victoria, Australia. Paris: OECD Publishing. Sedor, T., 2009. TAFE Schools in the Australian Continent. Sydney: Bloomsbury Publisher. Vandome, N., 2004. Getting a job in Australia: A step-by-step guide to finding work in Oz. London: How To Books Ltd. Victoria, T., 2011. Tafe Victori: Victoria University, Australia, Rmit University, Northern Melbourne Institute of Tafe, Swinburne University of Technology. Memphis: General Books. Appendix Questionnaire (SET I) Demographic Information Name: Age: Sex: Annual Earning: - Surveyor Type: School student Existing TAFE Student SET II 1. In which of the following medium you mostly find advertisements of TAFE universities? Newspaper Radio Internet Promotional campaign Mobile ad 2. How often you notice their advertisements? • Once in month • One in a quarter • Once in a six month 4. Which one of the advertisements influences you the most? o Newspaper o Radio o Internet o Promotional campaign o Mobile ad 5. What do you think is the most attractive feature in a TAFE ad? Part 3 1. Dou you think advertisement campaigns influenced you to join TAFE? 2. What are the factors of TAFE that attracts you the most? 3. Do you had any kind of parental influence during the admission? Read More