Marketing communication of a public university

Abstract

PURPOSE: The aim of the article is to determine the sources of adopting marketing orientation in communication by public universities and to identify its manifestations in the areas: communication participants, message, communication channels, disturbances, feedback and the context of communication.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Several research methods were applied: literature review, desk research and audit of university websites and social media.

FINDINGS: The research clearly shows that universities have undergone a transformation from the classical model to the entrepreneurial model. It was conditioned by many factors, such as the massification and marketization of education, increased competition in the education market, as well as the ubiquitous globalization, internationalization of education processes, reforms in education and the digitization of economic and social life. In these new realities, universities began to function as enterprises. Public universities, though with some delay, have also followed this trend. As a result, universities had to develop functions specific to the enterprise, especially marketing.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The conclusions of the study and observations contributed to the creation of a catalog of university marketing communication tools.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The article develops the university's marketing theory, as the author attempts to characterize other than promotion-mix components of marketing communication.