With over 300 societies here at Exeter, we know it can be tough getting your society noticed. Here are some of our top tips for marketing your society:

Create a brand

Your brand should reflect the personality and values of your society. When creating a brand for your society, you want to develop something that is:

• Easily identifiable, recognisable and distinct from other societies
• Scalable and flexible so it can be used across different media
• Cohesive and easy to apply

Things to consider creating for your brand:

• Logo
• Templates for different types of posts (e.g. events, announcements)

It’s ok to seek inspiration from others, but make sure you are not copying!

Think about the different marketing and advertising you’ve seen and why it’s memorable and look at brands of all sizes.

What is your Unique Selling Point?

With over 300 societies here at Exeter, we recognise that it can be hard to stand out from the crowd.

A Unique Selling Point (USP) is the thing that makes your group different from all of the others. Your USP should be the primary reason individuals could choose to join your society, for example:

• You are the only society at Exeter to offer...
• As a [name of society] member, you will gain exclusive access to...
• As a [name of society] member, you will get discounts at certain brands

You can use this as a central pillar for your marketing, especially around Welcome Week when you’re focused on attracting new students to join your society.

Are you using the right social media platform?

Each social media has its own purpose and audience, and they each have their own advantages and disadvantages. Depending on what purpose your society wants to use social media for, you may find certain social media more useful than others.

Have a plan for your advertising

Advertising is how you promote your society and its services. Here are a few things to consider when you’re planning your advertising:

• Ensure your advertising has a focus to help provide directions (e.g. increase society memberships, increase ticket sales for your event)
• Think about the result you would like to get and whether you need any budget to achieve this.
• Using photos and videos from past events to promote your upcoming events can help your members get a feel for what to expect if they were to buy a ticket
• Consider when and where you’re advertising (e.g. which social media is the best platform to use, and what time of day is the best time to reach your members)
• Be creative and don’t be afraid to try new things to try and gain the attention of your members

Accessibility and Inclusivity

It’s important to consider how to make sure your social media content is accessible. Here are 4 ways you can make your content more accessible:

• Add alt-text to all your photos
• Add subtitles to all your videos
• Make sure the colour of your text is clear and stands out from the background
• Consider the language you are using is accessible (e.g. avoid acronyms without context, jargon and complex language)

The Neurodivergent & Disabled Students Society (NDSS) have created a Social Media Accessibility Guide which contains lots of information to help you ensure your social media content is accessible.