From News Shop to Strategic Storytellers

The Challenge

All who know Auburn University love it. However, not all who love it are aware of its whole narrative. And there is always room for more prospective students, industry partners, leaders, and influencers to learn about Auburn.

Our Approach

Market&Message senior collaborators Amy Burtch, Alice Manning Touchette, and Richard Campbell helped Auburn’s central communications team transition from a mostly news and press release shop to a strategic storytelling agency focused on telling human-centered stories that highlighted:  Research and Innovation: The problems Auburn researchers solve Outreach and Impact: Living the land-grant mission Academic Excellence: World-class faculty and academic programs Campus Experience: Exceptional student experiences Auburn Family: Students, alumni, faculty, and staff

What We Did

1. Created a Strategic Storytelling Playbook that defined a framework for well-told stories:  Focus on the audience. Who are you talking to – who is the story for?

What do you know about them – what do they like, what interests them?

What do you want them to know, feel, and think?

Make it memorable and shareable. Make them care - Introduce your hero (student, alumnus, donor, faculty, staff)

Define your core message: Institutional goal + emotional appeal/hook.

Engage audience emotionally with details and dialogue.

What is the conflict, issue that needs to be resolved, and how does Auburn help guide the hero to a solution?

Drive home the call to action. (CTA) What do you want them to connect with, to learn, to do after reading the story? This is why you are telling them the story.

Hit them with the point/the punchline. Have the CTA delivered by the hero of the story/interviewee for impact.



2. Established a content planning ecosystem and structure for consistency.

Transitioned from "story gatherers to story hunters," shifted from collecting news from colleges and units to actively seeking out and crafting compelling stories.

Developed a new online content calendar and revitalized the content planning process that included bringing all creatives to the table (design, photo, video, and social media) for ideation, creative brainstorming, and story format decision-making.

Launched a Monday.com content planning workflow and calendar (accessible to all campus communicators).

Specified digital story layout, imagery style, and sizing guidelines.

Created tips and best practices for crafting attention-grabbing headlines and excerpts.



3. Created new digital content strategies, platforms and tools to reach external audiences.



Designed a new "Auburn Stories" section on the university website.

Launched the "Orange & Blue Review," the university's first campuswide external newsletter, which allowed subscribers to select the types of stories they wanted to receive every Thursday morning.

Conducted storytelling training sessions for campus communicators.

Transitioned from "go post this to social" approach to a new social media strategy and content process that produced unique content for each social platform and target audience.

Provided a uniform, campuswide content development approach focused on storytelling.

Positioned the central communications team as active agents in helping tell the university's complete narrative. Gained 20,000+ new subscribers for the university's first external newsletter in less than 12 months, with an open rate of 70%.

Grew earned media value by 150%.



Social media impressions increased by 52.7%; engagement by 65.4%; while growing the audience by 175%.

The Impact

Why It Worked

Through a focused, institution-wide content strategy, we aligned central communications efforts to deliver human-centered, audience-specific stories that advanced Auburn's priorities and amplified its impact — engaging both those who know the university well and those discovering it for the first time.