LSAC and Cooley - Personalized Advertising

Here's a little personal experience I've had on the receiving side of a cross online-offline promotion. When I completed an online registration for the LSAT (Law School Admissions Test) several months ago, I was asked my ethnicity and among several options I consented to being sent recruitment information from any law school registered with LSAC (Law School Admission Council). One thing that stood out was a tiny little box that asking for consent to disclose my ethnicity to these schools. Now I am of Asian descent and I was curious to see what would happen, so I clicked it. The thought briefly passed through my mind, wondering if it would result in racial discrimination. Several months passed by and I'd totally forgotten about it, but lo and behold a little card came in the mail as shown on the right.

I only scanned the front side of it, but it is a recruitment postcard from Cooley Law School. Support of student diversity is the obvious positioning they are taking in this instance. From a glance I see Spanish, French, and Korean words in the background in addition to the professional looking Asian male in the foreground. The background of the card is a solid red, a lucky color with deep cultural implications for the Chinese (I can't really speak for the other Asian countries).

So what is it that Cooley and LSAC have done here? They have in effect partnered up, helping each other with a targeted approach to marketing law schools to prospective students. On top of that, they have integrated both online and offline promotions to do this. LSAC through its registration process has in essence developed databases of information on prospective law students, the kind of information law schools would dearly love to get their hands on. Keep in mind these postcards would only be sent to students who consented to being sent recruitment information. In addition, this particular postcard directs you to the Cooley website, so the offline advertisement loops back to the online campaign. But now I understand why they asked for my ethnicity, they wanted to send me a targeted ad that would most appeal to my demographic. Personalized offerings can go a long way in attracting and retaining a potential customer. Now I'm curious to find out how many variations they have of these postcards.

So what does this example highlight? I think it really homes in on the fact that there still is a place for offline advertising in conjunction with online advertising, but you need to personalize your communications no matter the medium to get through to consumers. In fact, even as marketing budgets slowly migrate online, I think we will still be receiving flyers years from now. With all the emails we receive now, a handwritten letter seems like quite a novelty. If you have a special occasion coming up, try writing that special person a letter. I bet they'll find it a refreshing change from all those e-cards.

But regarding Cooley, will I apply there? I didn't even know of them before, but they're in my consideration set now.