Aston Students' Union - Social Media Strategy and Growth

I have been developing Aston Students' Union Digital Platforms and Online Brand Presence from June 2018 until March 2022. Throughout this period, Aston Students' Union Social Media Channels have achieved a fantastic growth rate, high engagement rates and built a loyal student community. It has also been in the Top 10 What Uni Choice Awards 2020 and 2022.

This graph showcases an impressions rate at the beginning of each academic year throughout the years of our cooperation.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

In 2018/19:

▪ Achieved 2385% engagement increase on Instagram

▪ Increased Facebook rating from 3.6 to 5 stars

▪ Increased e-mail opening rate to 30% for segmented messages

In 2019/20:

▪ I have been involved in sales management, sales target exceeded by 50%

▪ Coordinated marketing and sales plan for a high-quality set of events (over 7,000 visitors)

In 2020/21:

▪ Increased efficiency of marketing communication strategy by developing a campaign briefing system and providing staff members with the essential training

▪ Achieved a ~150% increase in Instagram monthly impressions through effective content management and customer co-creation

▪ Developed multiple customer touchpoints, enhancing engagement across digital platforms

In 2021/22:

▪ Provided Social Media training, managed and overviewed SMM processes

▪ Developed an efficient content planning system for the marketing and sales department

▪ Optimised SMM strategy, achieving over 700,000 impressions rate on Instagram over the Welcome Period (170% increase since 2020)

Spring Elections Campaign Case

In February and March 2022, I have been developing a brand new communications strategy for Aston University Students' Union Spring Elections Campaign alongside a wonderful SU Marketing Team.

The Elections Campaign has been divided into 3 stages:

1. Nominations period

2. The "Bridge” between nominations and voting

3. Voting

NOMINATIONS

The nomination communications had been divided into thematic weeks to speak to different types of audiences. Each idea has been successfully implemented on Instagram leading to 146,017 impressions, 9,648 target audience accounts reached, 3,207 profile visits, which resulted in over 70 candidates joining the elections process (over 30% increase compared to 2021).

Illustration of the 4 stages for Nominations period. Designed by Blanca Miguel Casanovas (Aston Students' Union, 2022).

Illustration of the type of content I have been producing for Aston Students' Union social media (2022).

A BRIDGE WEEK

This week was dedicated to making a connection between nominations and the voting period, ensuring that students are aware of the process of elections. The purpose is to clarify the process of voting.

VOTING WEEK

Voting content was divided into two categories: democracy and entertainment. Several traditional and digital marketing concepts had been introduced resulting in 5,552 accounts reached and 647 accounts engaged. In total, 2583 students voted in 2022 (it is a 37.6% increase compared to 2021).