Riley Institute: StraightTalk 2022
The brief
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Get college students and community members
Who have a varying degrees of concern for climate change
To attend a multi-week speaker series on climate action
By creating additional opportunities for authentic engagement leading up to and during the event
The idea
The time for climate action is now, but what does the roadmap for meaningful action look like? In September 2022, the Riley Institute made climate action the focus of its annual StraightTalk series, a three-part event featuring nationally-recognized experts in the field.
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In the two preceding years, we observed lower StraightTalk attendance rates as result of the pandemic, which required that the event be hosted in an entirely virtual or hybrid format. To energize prospective attendees, especially students who had likely never experienced the event in its original pre-pandemic format, we rolled out a series of experiential marketing tactics.
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Working alongside Furman’s art department, I directed a traveling student art exhibit that put issues like biodiversity, pollution, and renewable energy on display in downtown Greenville and around Furman’s campus. In addition to overseeing all other aspects of marketing and crafting cross-channel copy, I conceptualized an interactive installation that motivated the campus community and event attendees to engage in conversations about climate change.
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The wins
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Increased YOY student attendance at annual StraightTalk speaker series by 37 percent, from 500 students in 2021 to 687 students in 2022.
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Received news coverage ahead of the series kick-off from FOX Carolina
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Student art exhibit
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Leading up to the event, the climate-themed art exhibit was installed in downtown Greenville, South Carolina before moving to Furman's student union. On the first night of the event series, the student artists were invited to present their work at an art show held an hour before the program. By equipping the student artists with promotional materials, we leveraged word-of-mouth as they encouraged friends to come see their art and stay for the on-stage conversation.
Photograph by Jeremy Fleming
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Interactive opinion posters
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The series was promoted through interactive posters that were displayed in the library and event auditorium. The posters proved to be popular as questions like "How much do you think climate change will personally affect you in your lifetime?" allowed attendees to readily indicate where their opinion fell on a spectrum by using a color-coded sticker.
Photograph by Jeremy Fleming
Post-event email copy sample
Promotional social media post
