March 2007
When Beckley-based New River Community and Technical College decided that the school needed professional help to help it raise its public profile, West Virginias newest independently accredited higher education institution selected Image Associates to develop a marketing strategy.
The West Virginia Legislature created New River Community and Technical College in 2003 by combing one community and technical college component of Bluefield State with another from Glenville State. New River currently operates campuses in Beckley, Bluefield, Lewisburg and Summersville but suffered from an identity crisis because those four-year baccalaureate institutions previously operated its campuses.
Image Associates was asked by the college to provide immediate help in several key areas. During the first 45 days after signing an agency of record contract, Image Associates worked closely with New River officials to develop a short-term marketing plan which included launching the colleges first advertising campaign geared toward recruiting students, redesigning the college logo and corporate identity package, publishing an Annual Report, creating a multi-purpose descriptive brochure, staging press conferences, writing press releases, planning media tours and providing ongoing public relations counsel.
We couldnt be more pleased with our relationship with Image Associates, said Libby Belcher, assistant to New River President Ted. D. Spring. They were able to assess our needs quickly, meet impossible deadlines and deliver products and services in an enthusiastic and professional manner. We are looking forward to a long and rewarding relationship.
Image Associates was part of a special creative team assembled by health consultant Mary Angel to develop a new website for the West Virginia Health Care Authority (WVHCA). The new website, www.comparecarewv.gov, provides a central source where consumers can compare services and the comparable costs for those services at all West Virginia hospitals.
Users can search the website by procedure or location and receive a chart that lists all relevant facilities that offer specific treatments within a specifically chosen distance from a consumers home zip code.
Angel noted that consumers without health insurance now have a resource available that could help them find the most cost effective treatment available. The site also contains resources for discovering other general health care information.
The project, a collaborative effort between the WVHCA IT department and Image Associates, began in October and went live on January 31, 2007.
The site is a .NET site on Microsoft Servers and is hosted by the WVHCA. Image Associates interpreted Angels designs and coded them for browser display using xhtml and css. Image Associates also assisted WVHCA with back end programming in the .NET environment by providing a link between the front-end design and the database used to drive the content.
