In just 20 interviews with first-year students we uncovered the key strategic insight for attracting more applicants: offer evidence that a degree from MI leads to an enviable career (and enviable selfies). We also learned that MI’s prospective students wanted brevity in promotional materials, smaller class sizes, one-on-one instruction, and “never-the-same-thing-twice” jobs in the great outdoors.

The strategy harnessed multiple media channels—cinema, transit, outdoor, digital, social, direct mail and point-of-sale—to bolster MI’s reputation as a catapult to exciting jobs. We asked alumni to submit selfies or other images of memorable moments at work, which netted imagery of graduates at the Arctic Circle, the Lost City of Petra and other exotic locations. This gave a distinct, bold, and adventurous flavour to MI’s brand identity and the ensuing campaign.