Massachusetts College Goal Sunday

College Goal Sunday is a nationwide program that brings financial aid professionals together with college-bound students to provide free assistance filling out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form. When College Goal Sunday launched in Massachusetts, they sought assistance from The Castle Group to develop a marketing plan and spread the word about this valuable resource now available to students.

The Castle Group’s goals were to Massachusetts College Goal Sunday gain name recognition and to drive attendance to the event. Additionally, Castle helped develop and design the organization’s website, collateral, signage and platform to attract sponsors. The Castle Group approached these goals by targeting multiple media channels, including print, broadcast and radio. In addition to distributing a Public Service Announcement on behalf of College Goal Sunday, The Castle Group conducted targeted outreach to public affairs programs and education reporters to secure interviews with College Goal Sunday spokespeople. In 2007 The Castle Group secured statewide print coverage, PSAs on more than 25 radio stations and 10 television stations, and multiple in-person interviews at local television and radio stations. As a result of the outreach, many College Goal Sunday locations doubled their attendance from the previous year. Massachusetts is now often cited by the national College Goal Sunday organization as a successful model for other states to follow. For the 2008 program, Castle has secured the program’s first media sponsor to reach even more deeply into the Hispanic community.