The Advertising Council Inc. has partnered with the Lumina Foundation for Education and the American Council on Education to produce a national public service advertising campaign to encourage low-income and first-generation students to take the steps necessary to go to college.
KnowHow2Go is a multichannel campaign that features television and radio PSAs, outdoor and print advertising and an interactive Web site at www.knowhow2go.org. Each vehicle delivers guiding information to students, parents, other adults and organizations.
The campaign will also use a network of grassroots partners, including mentoring and youth-serving organizations that will reinforce the campaign in local communities.
The American Council on Education will reach out to nearly 2,000 colleges and universities and higher education associations that comprise its membership to further expand the campaign.
Through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Education, students and parents can access a toll-free number to request a brochure containing tips on preparing for college.
The Department of Education is providing fulfillment and printing costs for the student/parent brochure.
KnowHow2Go primarily targets low-income students in grades eight to 10, as well as their parents and adult influencers to encourage them to start the college preparation process early.
Created pro-bono by ad agency Publicis, New York, the campaign focuses on four messages that aim to speak to young people directly. Those steps are: “Be a Pain,” “Push Yourself,” “Find the Right Fit” and “Put Your Hands on Some Cash.”
The Ad Council, in partnership with Russell Research, conducted research with students throughout the country in September to test the new ads for effectiveness.
The new campaign will run for approximately two years. The ads are being distributed to 28,000 media stations nationwide over the course of this month.
New advertising created specifically for the Hispanic community will be available in upcoming weeks as well. All of the new PSAs will run in advertising time and space that will be donated by the media.
