Virginia Polytechnic Institute

and State University

ICAT
Madeline Link
Cecile Nguyen
Wayne Veldsman

WHAT IS ICAT?
Implemented in mid-2012
Foster creative process
ICAT has a vision to create possibilities for exploration and expression
Small Grants Program

Executive Memo
1. Situational Analysis
2. Research
3. Campaign Plan
4. Implementation This is up to the client; everything is
a suggestion

Public of ICAT

Blacksburg/VT community
K-12 students
Undergraduate students
Graduate students
PK12 teachers

VIRGINIA TECH FACULTY

Research Done to Investigate

Current Situation

Search Engine Optimization

(SEO)
ICAT has strong SEO - ICAT and Virginia Tech
Student Grants but could be improved
Improved SEO will come from:
a.Social media integration
b.Strategically written and shared blog posts
c. Rewritten website

Website Evaluation
Official website = easy to navigate
a) Tabs located near top of homepage = easy to locate information
b) Detailed summary about mission, vision, and goals
c) Not very much info about research grant opportunities
) Funding optys need to be reformatted and readily accessible to audience

Social Media Evaluation

ICAT Social Media Activity
2.5

1.5

0.5

Sun. 7/10

Mon. 7/11

Tues. 7/12

Facebook

Wed. 7/13

Twitter

Thurs. 7/14

Youtube

Blog

Fri. 7/15

Sat. 7/16

Campaig
n Plan

Goal Statement
With this campaign, we hope to generate the most interactivity between ICAT
and Virginia Tech Faculty on a consistent basis in order to build a stronger,
mutually beneficial relationship.

Campaign Objectives
A. Increase website traffic and improve SEO
B.Increase ICATs social following to 1000+ in first 6
months; create LinkedIn Profile
C. Increase social media activity/interactivity
D. Create an email subscriber listserv of 200-300+ VT
faculty and grad students
E. Get ICAT featured in The Collegiate Times

Campaign
Strategies
and
Implementation

Website Reconstruction
ICAT website = user-friendly and geared towards supporting funding
NEW Homepage Banner
In your face; very visible to users
Click Now button leads to NEW Funding Optys tab

Homepage w/
NEW Funding
Opty Tab
Entirely separate
tab - increases
visibility to
users

NEW Funding Opty

Page Layout
Entirely separate space =
stronger presence
Easier to search
When you land on the site,
copy has all been
changed/shortened but
still conveys the same
purpose

LinkedIn
A. Target demographic uses LinkedIn as
primary social media account
B.Provides a social interactive community
but is more mature, business focused, and
success oriented.
C. Should be a primary asset of ICATs social
media profile

Social Media Activity

A. LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and
the ICAT Blog need to be integrated
B. Content must stay consistent with website
a. This creates an integrated image as a
company
b. Benefits SEO
c. Important for the ICAT Blog

Facebook
Important to stay
active to interact with
other demographics
Increase content
about ICAT small
grants info

Twitter
A. ICAT should treat
Twitter as a featured
news medium
B.Be informative and
engaging, while also
promoting ICATs
small grants.

YouTube

A. Update after every ICAT event and completion of funded research projects
B.Purpose = build backlinks to website, increase SEO, and inform/ entertain
audience

Social Media Calendar

Blog
A.Most beneficial in improving SEO
B. Creates content that can be shared across social platforms
C. Strategically writing posts on past or upcoming events = increase amount
of digital content about funding opportunities
D.Blogs also offer opportunities for engagement

Email Listserv
Effectively send out mass emails with
info about grants
Update subscribers on different
opportunities and deadlines.
Encourage subscribers to provide
feedback with any and all questions =
increased interactivity

Times
A. Professors = more likely
to use traditional news
media
B. Make ICAT a front page
feature in the Collegiate
Times
C. Pitch & Press Release

Budget
A. Cost varies depending on what willing
to spend for this project
B.Promoting and boosting posts = $$
C. Option to hire a student worker for
$7.50/hour or an unpaid intern for
college credit
D.Budget can be personalized!

Appendix
Survey

Any Questions??
Thank You For Your Time!