Communication Campaign for Boston University

Good Night, BU

A PR plan for Boston University's Wellness & Prevention Center to promote sleep hygiene adoption among undergraduate students

SWOT Analysis

Strengths:

Boston University's Wellness & Prevention Center ("the center") is a credible information source among BU students therefore this campaign is likely to result in cognitive and behavioral changes in the target audience
Services and information offered by the center have a big influence on target audience
Students are receptive to information from the center and are likely to respond well to new information and calls to action

Weaknesses:

Healthy sleep habits promotion by the center have only reached a small amount of target audience yet
On-going engagement levels of the center's events are low
The stigma associated with the center as being a place for sick people
Lack of interest among the target audience in sleep habits related topics

Opportunities:

Partnership with the medical department, behavioral department of Student Health Services, BU Sleep Center, and other off-campus resources such as experts on sleep issues

As the target audience is the BU undergraduate community, word-of-mouth as well as social media will be effective for the campaign

Threats:

Lack of knowledge on problems caused by unhealthy sleep habits and the solution

Goal Statement

The goal of this public relations plan is to promote the importance of sleep hygiene adoption among Boston University’s undergraduate students.

Target Audience

The target audience is the undergraduate student population at Boston University between the ages of 18-22, who live in the dorms, have poor time management skills, and unhealthy sleep habits. We also target a secondary audience of undergraduate students, who live in off-campus apartments.

Objectives & Tactics

Objectives

To inform 25% of undergraduate students on campus about healthy sleep habits by May 2015
To increase the center's online output on sleep issues by 50% by May 2015
To engage 5% of students on campus participating in sleep events by May 2015

Tactics

Objective 1: to inform 25% of undergraduate students on campus about healthy sleep habits by May 2015

Establish a mandatory wellness lecture about the importance of healthy sleep habits during Boston University’s orientation sessions to reach the entire incoming freshmen class
Invite guest wellness lecturers to BU to speak on the importance of maintaining healthy sleep patterns and overall well-being. We recommend Gabrielle Bernstein, Arianna Huffington, and Steele Belok as well as BU sleep center staff
Partner with the Fitness and Recreation Center, Sargent College, and introductory psychology classes to infuse their curriculum with the importance of sleep on physical and mental well-being. We suggest offering “Happy Friday” group exercises to students and hosting helthy sleep habits workshops at Sargent College

Objective 2: to increase the center's online output on sleep issues by 50% by May 2015

Create an editorial calendar for the center's social media channels and blog. We suggest scheduling tweets at 12 a.m. to inform students that it is time to go to bed during high stress times
Use the hashtag "#goodnitebu" to provide students with a catch phrase to rally behind
Launch a nap-map, a map with key napping locations on BU's campus. Students can easily access nap map locations through Google’s Map service, or through a link provided to them by the center
Pitch BU Today, the Daily Free Press, BU radio station, BU television station, and other online BU media outlets continuously on the importance of sleep issues. Offer media training to the student wellness ambassadors
Modify the center’s website - add social media links, update events pictures, and create a running Twitter feed on the sidebar of the website featuring the center’s most recent tweets

Objective 3: to engage 5% of students on campus by participating in sleep events by May 2015

Create a nap center on campus, where students can reserve a space to nap during the day
Provide students with pillow consultations and organize a raffle to win a pillow that best corresponds to their sleep types
Partner with the meditation club and Fitrec to organize a meditation camp during periods of high stress for students

Evaluation

To evaluate objective 1

Survey a random sample of undergraduate students on the BU campus to see if students’ knowledge has increased

To evaluate objective 2

Track the traffic, impressions, and engagement level on the center's social media channels, blog, and online BU media coverage

To evaluate objective number 3

Monitor the attendance of sleep related events to obtain the total number of students engaged

Good Night, BU

A PR plan for Boston University's Wellness & Prevention Center to promote sleep hygiene adoption among undergraduate students

Boston University's Wellness & Prevention Center ("the center") is a credible information source among BU students therefore this campaign is likely to result in cognitive and behavioral changes in the target audience

Services and information offered by the center have a big influence on target audience

Students are receptive to information from the center and are likely to respond well to new information and calls to action

Healthy sleep habits promotion by the center have only reached a small amount of target audience yet

On-going engagement levels of the center's events are low

The stigma associated with the center as being a place for sick people

Lack of interest among the target audience in sleep habits related topics

Partnership with the medical department, behavioral department of Student Health Services, BU Sleep Center, and other off-campus resources such as experts on sleep issues

As the target audience is the BU undergraduate community, word-of-mouth as well as social media will be effective for the campaign

Lack of knowledge on problems caused by unhealthy sleep habits and the solution

To inform 25% of undergraduate students on campus about healthy sleep habits by May 2015

To increase the center's online output on sleep issues by 50% by May 2015

To engage 5% of students on campus participating in sleep events by May 2015

Establish a mandatory wellness lecture about the importance of healthy sleep habits during Boston University’s orientation sessions to reach the entire incoming freshmen class

Invite guest wellness lecturers to BU to speak on the importance of maintaining healthy sleep patterns and overall well-being. We recommend Gabrielle Bernstein, Arianna Huffington, and Steele Belok as well as BU sleep center staff

Create an editorial calendar for the center's social media channels and blog. We suggest scheduling tweets at 12 a.m. to inform students that it is time to go to bed during high stress times

Use the hashtag "#goodnitebu" to provide students with a catch phrase to rally behind

Launch a nap-map, a map with key napping locations on BU's campus. Students can easily access nap map locations through Google’s Map service, or through a link provided to them by the center

Pitch BU Today, the Daily Free Press, BU radio station, BU television station, and other online BU media outlets continuously on the importance of sleep issues. Offer media training to the student wellness ambassadors

Modify the center’s website - add social media links, update events pictures, and create a running Twitter feed on the sidebar of the website featuring the center’s most recent tweets

Create a nap center on campus, where students can reserve a space to nap during the day

Provide students with pillow consultations and organize a raffle to win a pillow that best corresponds to their sleep types

Partner with the meditation club and Fitrec to organize a meditation camp during periods of high stress for students