What do an operations manager from New Jersey, a military family from San Diego and a college hoops star from Massachusetts all have in common? They’re loud and proud about their experience at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU). This passion from the SNHU students and staff makes us just as loud and proud about working with them on their latest national ad campaign.
In our second year partnering with the team at SNHU, we aimed to build on the success of 2018’s “Breakthrough” campaign by expanding the stories of this year’s students and alumni beyond the typical emotional, national :30 spots. Enter, “PATHS”: a new documentary series that follows a group of students and alumni who have followed their own unique paths to success at SNHU.
After sending out a casting call to the SNHU student and alumni community, we received thousands of responses from people wanting to share their stories for the campaign. Following several rounds of vetting with the team at SNHU, we landed on a group that showcased the diversity of students attending the school — from “traditional” on-campus students to online, military, graduate and transfer students — all who were able to share their unique experiences through long-form storytelling, which elevated the campaign to a higher level.
We crossed the country with the team at SNHU and spent hours getting to know each of the featured students and their families before ever rolling a frame of video. Creating an atmosphere of comfort and trust with our interview subjects is something our team prides itself on and feels is imperative to creating the kinds of moments that will resonate with viewers. We need people to be “real” when telling their stories, but it’s not their responsibility to act that way on camera — pulling that authentic emotion out of each of our students and alumni is OUR job, and one we take very seriously. Thankfully for us, the folks featured in this year’s campaign were so great on camera, the heavy-lifting was kept to a minimum!
Get a feel for the series though the “PATHS” teaser.
Check out Matt’s story, the first of the docuseries shared on SNHU’s website, as well as some shots of his dance studio below.
And finally, the compilation TV spot has been the highest-performing piece of advertising ever created for SNHU — it showcases the emotions and excitement people feel when they can finally say “I did it.” SNHU gives anyone the power to feel that way, and we made sure that was conveyed in the spot. See for yourself.
