Buxton and Leek College

Buxton and Leek College in Derbyshire has been a client of Adverta’s for 18 months, placing frequent, short-term, advertising campaigns on buses to highlight their enrolment periods, Advice Days, Open Days and to generally raise awareness of their two campus locations.

With the college having undergone a merger in 2012, the problem arose that many people were under the impression the college had fully closed down and was no longer accessible. This created the need for the college to reassure the local community that they were still open for people of all ages, abilities and ambitions; alongside the daytime courses they also offer evening classes for adults.

Having previously tried the more common types of advertising such as newspapers and radio, they also tried petrol pump adverts but had never considered bus advertising. What sold the concept was the ability to target their key demographics across the two areas of the college locations.

Laura Swanwick, Recruitment and Marketing Manager for the college, says “We’ve had a lot of feedback from people who have seen the bus adverts. James, Adverta’s account manager who we work closely with, has been great – he continually informs us of offers and new opportunities to help us maximise our advertising and exposure. Also, it’s really easy to book and place the adverts. Bus advertising is flexible, in that we can change the messages at key times of the academic year. It’s affordable, convenient and gives great coverage in many towns and villages surrounding our campuses. More to the point, it’s effective!”

Their buses run on main commuter routes as well as school routes into Buxton and Leek and this, coupled with the modest cost, creates a constant presence in the area all year round. It also generates the opportunity for them to plan their advertising around key times, such as the Open Days, whilst fitting in with the rest of their marketing strategy. Everything comes together to drive people to book onto an Open Day.

Laura finished by saying “I would definitely recommend Adverta to local businesses. It helps raise awareness of the College in the local communities and helps to increase brand recognition and awareness, without costing a lot. This is our second recruitment cycle now using bus advertising as a key marketing tool and we will continue to use it.”

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