The United Kingdom’s leading business-facing university, the University of Hertfordshire is a well-renowned public research institution attended by over 25,000 students a year. Its position as one of the top nine universities in the UK is supported by its 2,500 staff, who run 800 undergraduate and postgraduate courses. A descendant of Hatfield Technical College, the University has been in business since 1952 and is based in Hatfield, England.

THE PROBLEM:
Retaining a strong alumni network after graduation is a common problem among universities, who attempt to retain connections via social media, alumni magazines and giveaways. The business-facing University of Hertfordshire was no exception and, with 25,000 students attending during a given year, they knew they were missing a trick. Free facilities, live entertainment and worthy mentors were on offer – yet were alumni aware of these offerings? The University needed an easy, fun way to attract past and prospective students to their offering.

EVAMOTION’S SOLUTION:
Inspired by the sense of fun and banter that students enjoy during university, Evamotion developed a humorous yet fun education marketing video that caught alumni at the pivotal moment of their studies – their graduation. Videography of a range of staff, fellow alumni, students and memorable people were peppered with animated graphics that illustrated the script and made meaning of what could have been lecture. Familiar icons such as the Twitter bird, mobile phones and globe graphics were coupled with DJI Ronin Glimbal technology to add dynamism, while sliding text boxes quickly introduced key people and added symmetry to the video page.

THE RESULTS:
To reach 2015’s technology-savvy alumni, the University of Hertfordshire needed to produce an education marketing video – and it worked. 2,000-capacity venue The Forum attracted more alumni to use its facilities, while alumni in turn brought the business connections they now held to the party. First and second-year students were keen watchers of the video, sharing it on social media and awaiting their turn come graduation time. The education marketing video was also uploaded to YouTube and reported on university sourcing sites such as whatuni.com, which prompted prospective students to choose University of Hertfordshire as a modern and stylish alternative.