The benchmark – Deakin Open Day

My grandfather made and sold his own brand of bicycle from a shop in Malop Street in Geelong’s CBD and while there are days I wish that I had been inducted into the family trade, Sunday was not one of them. One street away, Deakin has turned a derelict section of the Geelong Waterfront into a spectacular campus and it was clear from the outset that the well-drilled Deakin team really know how to do an Open Day.

There’s nothing quite like the smell of freshly laminated signage and piles of brochures hot off the press to excite the hordes, but it was the attention to detail that I really appreciated. I’d never been to the waterfront campus before but the gods opened up a park nearby and all along brougham street there were enough signs and teardrop banners to know that A. I had arrived near a series of the Universities buildings and B. I needed to keep walking to get to Open Day. Better still, humans stationed at key intersections in Deakin gear were able to point us in the right direction and after the obligatory tote bag pickup, we landed directly in the most important zone – a spin and win tent for free merch, where it took only about 30 seconds to be fleeced of our contact details before winning some very cool Deakin sunglasses.

Within 10 minutes of leaving the car, we had course guide, sunnies, a free smoothie and were in a courtyard with a host of people holding signs for various campus/faculty tours. Five minutes later we were on a tour, which I ditched after five minutes (scripting and engagement needed some work, and it was due to last half an hour), but our son Josh and his two companions stuck with the herd, and ended up feeling quite persuaded by the visit to the Deakin Law Clinic.

We talked to several people, including a long talk with an Associate Professor on the business booth who gave a masterclass in engagement – found out what the boys wanted to study, made rapid and specific recommendations on courses backed up by evidence rather than gut feel, provided frank comparative insights and didn’t oversell. My charges felt that they had really learned insights and for at least one put Deakin on the serious consideration list, where it hadn’t been before.

There are several really important factors that made this event highly successful:

1. Serious investment in humans / by humans – lots of people stationed in visible university shirts who were primed to proactively offer help, rather than wait to be spoken to. This means the campus could give more individualised experiences and provide an immersive and effective experience very quickly – there was virtually no waiting times.
2. Thoughtful layout – course guides and tote bags provided a welcome in the entry corridor, with other staff stationed nearby to point you in the right direction. Pedestrian traffic then naturally flowed to the courtyard, which had a feeling of student vibe and colour and movement despite only a small number of tents – filling the small space with action made it feel festive without having to invest in large scale entertainment.
3. Signage – the signage was exceptional. From the teardrop banners on the street to interior signage, it was clear, bright and consistent. I particularly liked the signs on sticks held by students or staff in the court yard with the name of a specific tour – they were easy to see above the heads of the crowd, and meant info on the tour was immediately accessible. Also these sign bearers were stationary – corralling people for the next tour to depart, meaning there was a consistent range of information available.
4. Simple booths. Brochures were lined up behind people, and each faculty area was well staffed, so there were plenty of people to talk to. This means there is no barrier between the people manning the booths and the visitors, and the brochures can be presented to the visitor, rather than getting in the way. This is a much better sales and engagement approach.
5. Quality merchandise. You don’t need a lot, just the right stuff. Bucket hats seemed reasonably popular and the sunnies were a genius move. My son was still talking about the Frank Green water bottle he could have snagged had there been more time. I am sensing a move towards less, but higher quality merchandise might be paying dividends, but only tends to work with some universities that need to work to cultivate demand.

I don’t know whether it was part of an Open Day script or just a common topic of discussion in the Deakin world, but both people I spoke to on the booths raised cost as a consideration – inviting students to think about how much lower their FEE-HELP debt would be at Deakin vs a sandstone university. Given the recent publicity on HECS debts, starting salaries and the value of degrees, this was an interesting part of the narrative. Price sensitivity hasn’t been evident in the domestic undergraduate market until now, but perhaps it will be in future.