by Bob Topor, Senior Consultant

For many, especially those who had family members and friends in New York City at the time, the impact is still felt. The pain lingers. In our history, other such emotional impacts have occurred. JFK's murder was one that comes to mind. Dr. Martin Luther King's assassination and Viet Nam were others. This war in Iraq is our current one.

So what can we gather from all this? Life is changed. We know how difficult change can be. A restlessness prevails. Skepticism runs rampant. Ideas (such as marketing higher education) are suspect. Lots of "what was" is no longer.

However. out of all this chaos comes a renewed hope. The idea of marketing higher education has been reborn! Now, more than ever, marketing and all the positive opportunities it suggests emerges as a renewed force. I strongly believe we can make changes happen. I believe we can cope with change and uncertainty. I remain an optimist. Are you?

Lots of institutions have reacted by tightening up...emotionally and economically. Budgets have been cut. Administrators seek proof for activities (including marketing). But this is not new. Many marketing activities have been suspect through the years...even before 9/11! We know, in marketing, we need to supply proof for activities. We have been accustomed to using research, both qualitative and quantitative, to support our work.

In California many schools have begun to cut programs! Some majors have been dropped. This "tightening down" has two effects: one, obviously negative, as courses are cut, faculty jobs lost, supporting functions eliminated and negative impacts spread throughout the institution and systems. The other effect, much more positive, is that your school has an opportunity to focus on its strengths, shed "deadwood" and move on to a brighter future, more concise goals. At the end of this article I include a method to help you evaluate your mission statement. This may be the most important thing you do this year. This helps you find ways to focus on your strengths and primary reasons for existence. It is critically important to recognize where your strengths lie, and to take advantage of them.

Look at what is happening in government. We are seeped in a wave of flooding Conservatism. Higher education is a target because it has always been a bastion of liberalism. Politicians will focus attention on education, curricula, and people (faculty and leaders). Budget cuts will run rampant. They already are! Liberalism will be attacked It already is! Some of the basic tenets of higher education we hold dear will be re-evaluated. A rocky, rough road lies ahead. (I am glad to be retired!) It will take strong, committed professional people to survive. Technology will help us.

What I have learned from this 9/11 emotional swell is that we need to cover what we do with thoughtful, careful analyses. The day of seat of the pants actions are gone. Post 9/11 announced days of justification. Justify what you do with solid, factual, honest accurate information. Fact, not fiction, is what the new marketing is all about. Please keep that in mind as you go about your work. Good Luck, Trust God, God Bless America (and higher education).
-Bob

p.s. For me personally I have found a new love, Eleanor. I have become active in my church. I am a deacon. I live in a new home. My life has been changed. Yours has been too! (You may not realize it.)
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How to evaluate your mission statement

Many years ago I was faced with the problem of evaluating a college mission statement. I thought long and hard about it. After much thought I come up with a simple solution. Despite it being simple it is powerful and I am happy to share it with you. I call this the "Topor Mission Evaluation Test." Try it out on your school's mission statement. Follow these easy steps:

1. Type out your school's mission statement in your computer or on paper
   (for you old farts who still rely on the IBM Selectric)!
2. Think of an institution most un-like yours. For example, if yours is a
   coed state university, think of a private college or a military academy or
   some other ridiculous institution most UN like yours. Make sure it is
   severely dissimilar.
3. Using your original mission statement, SUBSTITUTE the unlike
   institution's name for yours.
4. Then read the "revised" mission statement over critically, evaluating
   every idea, every nuance.
5. The more it now fits your school, the poorer your original mission
   statement is!

The idea is simple: institutions, like vegetables, breakfast cereals, cookies or people, are known by their dissimilarities, not similarities. In order for your school to occupy a distinct marketing position in the competitive marketplace of higher education, it must stand out with a distinctive brand identity. If, when you revise your mission statement with the dissimilar school and it seems logical, the more your original mission statement sucks, as the kids say. If this is the case, you need to reexamine your original statement to find why it is too wishy-washy. If it is like many mission statements, it may "try to be everything to everybody," careful to not alienate anyone and, as a result, it is many pages long and, in sum, says very little of marketing "positioning" importance. It may very well be a political statement, not a true mission statement. It may be the result of careful compromise reminiscent of Washington, DC politics. It may be someone's dream. As such it may suck.

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