The Janet Prindle Institute Examining Ethics Podcast is now advertised in the Indianapolis International Airport as of Oct. 1. The marketing strategy is part of a plan to brand both Prindle Institute and DePauw University in an area accessible to many people, according to Andrew Cullison, director of the Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics and professor of philosophy.
Cullison has worked closely with the DePauw Office of Communications and Marketing to put this plan into action. The goal is to see if the advertisement increases download of the already popular podcast, Examining Ethics, with the hope that the “branding message sticks.” He hopes that after listening to the podcast, people will subscribe, saying it is “largely about getting students to come to a college about ethics.”
The advertisements will stay up for the next 3 months, covering the biggest holiday travel days.
In terms of analytics, the Examining Ethics podcast already succeeds in a 10 percent growth increase each month and is “always going up,” according to Cullison. At the end of November, he will be able to analyze how the new advertisement has impacted an increase in subscribers. Currently, Prindle already advertises online but is “trying to figure out which advertising works the best.”
Christiane Wisehart is the assistant director of digital and academic services at Prindle and also took part in the new marketing advertisement. She thought, “why not go with the podcast because people can take action from it?” She says nearly every day Prindle Instagram and other Prindle social media accounts receive messages of positive feedback about the advertisement in the airport. “The community response is heartwarming.”
“I think [the advertisement] is a great idea because part of Prindle’s mission is national ethics education outreach and this advertising can help achieve that,” says Barb Castellini, senior. Castellini is the Hillman intern at Prindle Institute and handles logistics for the intern program. She herself enjoys listening to the podcast, saying “it always makes me think about the issue at hand from a different perspective.”
Cullison is optimistic about the impact of Prindle and DePauw’s presence at the airport, “It’s a way to engage where people are.”