10 sparks of marketing inspiration from Results Day 2024

On the 15th August, we asked two of our Future Index trendspotters, Valerija and Emilia, to spend the day checking the action from UK universities who were doing a brilliant job helping students navigate the rather strange world of Clearing and Confirmation. Here's 10 sparks of inspiration that you'll want to check out.

Aston overcome phone anxiety

Aston told students to 'bring it on' but they recognised that momentum could be stalled by phone anxiety. It's a big thing, and it impacts on lots of people of all ages. So there's 2 big ways that Aston helped. First, there's the TikTok sample call to show students how simple, and friendly, it all is. That scored a huge 60,000 views on TikTok.

Second, for all those still preferring an alternative to the phone (anxiety or not), there's the Instagram DM route. It's great to see universities offering different channels to match the ways a typical applicant might communicate. Additionally, Aston offered the filter to celebrate - always a nice touch!

Coventry's rather brilliant film

‘A chance to feed the life that survived, amongst the weeds, amongst the doubts, amongst the streets.’

Coventry University embraced the talents of Graduate poet @malizahofficial to launch a brilliant collaboration 5 months ago, manifesting as one of the best university films we’ve seen in a long time. It was relaunched for Results Day in the UK, across TikTok, Instagram and Facebook, racking up a quick 10,000 views in the process. If any film deserves more views it’s this one. Just like the wonderful UEA's ‘I am a Snowflake’ student poet collaboration of 2020, this is a must-see!

The film also plays out as the backdrop to a great Results Day initiative to build a mural of new students. You can see the time lapse on Instagram by clicking here.

Manchester Met's broadcast chat

They always seem to be on trend at Manchester Met these days, and it was certainly the case on Results Day with the launch of their Instagram broadcast channel, quickly acquiring 1500+ members. Just like how the youth brands, YouTubers and Podcasters are doing, the team at Manchester Met are seeing the importance of a new type of group chat that is being embraced everywhere. This broacast channel included all sorts of valuable information, as well as a number of interactive features. These included a 'what are you looking forward to most' poll that had 750 participants. That's 50% of the group - not bad! And the winning answer? 'Meeting new friends' of course! And, these channels are also proving a valuable way for new students to connect with each other too.

Greenwich's playlist

Another university successfully using the broadcast channel feature was the University of Greenwich. In this case they used it to co-create a celebratory Spotify playlist with incoming students. We love the simplicity and joy of this!

Manchester live

The University of Manchester broadcasted their own 'congratulations show' live from the campus. But as well as some great interviews with students, the team smartly recyled some of their most relevant recent content to appear within the show. This included the brilliant idea to create a ‘100 free or cheap things to do in Manchester’ scratch-map, 2 student teams, and a YouTube film telling the story of their mission to get everything scratched off.

UA92's powerful storytelling

Yet again, Gary Neville pushed everything else aside to make sure he was on hand to answer Clearing calls and to personally present scholarship awards to new students. One film in particular is very emotive, capturing the moment that 2 students are told their tuition fees will be covered by the University.

The engagement generated with films of the action was huge - with hundreds and thousands of views on TikTiok. And yes, we get it that Gary Neville is a huge draw. But we should also acknowledge that he's an incredibly inspiring personality in Higher Education leadership across the UK. Many other leaders could learn a lot from him.

Bradford ask the questions

The University of Bradford led out with a simple quiz on their home page to help students quickly filter through to some course inspiration. You can suggest that you're most likely to appear in Black Mirror and that regenerative medicine really excites you. As well as many other things. It's pretty thought provoking and good fun. It's not designed to provide the definitive answers, but it can help open minds to what's possible - and Clearing should be about inspiration and choices more than anything.

Essex prioritise well-being

The University of Essex publicised webinar style support for Results Day, but as well as offering the usual insights froim students, a deliberate focus was put on mental health and well-being. We expect to see much more parity for mental health across the board in coming years.

UCLan answer the questions

After starring in a previous YouTube video series in the build up to Results Day, UCLan's students returned to create their very own social takeover on the day itself. There was a whole host of short films offering a spectrum of support and the engagement results were very impressive. You could say the students themselves acquired celebrity status as they became the face of Results Day. The 'Your Clearing Questions Answered' film pinned on TikTok generated over 112,000 views. It's amazing to think that some people still remain unconvinced by the huge value of the channel.

LMA welcome packs

Like UA92, LMA benefits from a famous co-owner. In this case Robbie Williams. But that doesn't trigger any complacency from a team that consistently delivers some really great work. This includes the wonderful welcome packs for new students and a reminder of how important it is to help students feel like they belong from day one, and to help share the joy.

We know there are plenty of other great examples out there. If there's any others you particularly like, please do tell us! And finally, a big well done to every University team that has worked incredibly hard to help thousands of students on their exciting journeys ahead.