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The value of higher education has been on a steady decline for Americans over the past 15 years. According to a September Gallup poll, only 35% of U.S. adults said a college education is very important, compared to 75% in 2010. This is what a marketer would call a brand problem. The University of North Carolina is unveiling a refreshed brand identity and reorganizing its marketing structure to meet these 21st-century challenges. The centuries-old university has a storied history as a top-ranked academic institution and a legendary sports brand (thank you Michael Jordan). Chancellor Lee Roberts says that awareness isnt UNC’s problem. Everyone in North Carolina knows the school, and applications continue to climb each year. The truth is, it is a competitive landscape across higher ed. We are in a competition for research dollars, for rankings, and for the best students, Roberts says. We thought it was time to do a better job telling our story in a more proactive and effective way. In the contemporary media environment, you can’t just sit back and hope that everyone will recognize what makes you great and unique. You need to be a little bit more aggressive about communicating your story to the world. [Image: courtesy UNC] First. And for all. Its an obvious observation, but universities are not the same as corporations. The stakeholders involved in a brand refresh are many more than you’d find in a typical boardroom. Its why marketing at UNC has long been decentralized, spread across its more than 25 schools and units, all telling their own stories in a variety of ways. As a result, even the UNC logo had been spread thin. All told, there were 666 variations of the UNC logo being used. In order to more effectively tell the universitys story, as Roberts wanted, the decision was made to break down these silos and create a centralized marketing department. Adrienne King was hired in February, coming from Indiana University, as UNCs associate vice chancellor for marketing to lead the effort. Roberts also brought in former Phoenix Suns CMO Dean Stoyer, a veteran of brands like Nike, Under Armour, and ESPN, as vice chancellor for communications. This is the first time we’ve ever had a centralized marketing team at the university, King says. But this isn’t a situation where we needed to come in and start all over. [Image: courtesy UNC] King and her team partnered with creative agency 2×4 to conduct market research, do a comparative analysis, and develop an updated brand positioning. The research included surveys, focus groups, and one-on-one discussions with alumni, faculty, staff, students, and North Carolina residents. For starters, they found that the schools interlocking NC logo dates back to the 1870s, and it has remained the symbol alumni and North Carolina residents most identify with. From a brand perspective, it is internationally recognized. But more importantly, back at home we feel like it represents the people in the state that we serve, King says. This is the university for the people. And you can’t create a new logo that would have better equity than that. The brand refresh utilizes one version of that logo, as well as a standardized version of the iconic “Carolina Blue color. For a tagline, the school looked back at its history as Americas first public university and landed on First. And For All. [Image: courtesy UNC] In terms of the declining opinion about higher ed, Roberts says people tell pollsters they think universities are expensive, elitist, and don’t do a good job preparing students for the workforce. Well, here at Carolina, our tuition’s been flat for 9 going on 10 years in nominal terms, meaning it’s gone down by about 20% in real terms, and 82% of our undergraduates are from right here in North Carolina, Roberts says. We were just No. 3 nationally in the Princeton Reviews ROI survey. So we don’t think any of those concerns really apply to us. But again, that comes back to telling our story as effectively as we can. Meanwhile, competitors are stepping up, and not just the traditional rivals. Roberts name-checks schools like the University of South Florida, which is now a leader in new patents. You have an entire crop of new entrants who are gunning for the traditional top tier of public higher ed in the United States, and it requires everyone to continue investing, continue raising the bar, he says. [Image: courtesy UNC] Demographic cliff vs. Reputation cliff Twenty years ago, King wrote her dissertation on the role of marketing and higher education. I remember at the time marketing was seen as very much a negative term, and when you thought of marketing and higher ed, it was strictly enrollment focused, she says. For years, the postsecondary education industry has been bracing for what it calls the demographic cliff, when high school graduation numbersand consequently potential enrollment numberswill decline significantly. A Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education report says high school graduates will peak this year at about 3.9 million, and then start falling until there are about 13% fewer graduates by 2041. Kings says that given all the other challenges and narratives around the perceived value of a college education, more people within the industry are recognizing that while they were focused on that demographic cliff, they missed the reputational cliff that it has fallen off of. Now the work to repair and rebuild that reputation includes acting like a world-class brand and telling the story of its value. “I think often we in the public higher-ed sector take for granted that we are uniquely positioned within our states to drive economic development to benefit the people of the state, King says. I like to think our greatest investors are the citizens of North Carolina, and we need them to know all the ways that we are positively impacting their lives. That’s a very different position than strictly focusing on enrollment. That really is about reputation, and that’s what the focus is now.
Category:
E-Commerce
When corporate crises hit, the public looks to the CEO. From product recalls to workplace discrimination to customer mistreatment scandals, CEOs are often thrust into the spotlight and forced to apologize. But do the exact words they choose really matter? Im a professor of marketing, and my preliminary research suggests the answer is yes. In fact, they can even move stock prices. A tale of 2 apologies Consider two examples from the not-too-distant past. When Samsung Electronics had to recall 2.5 million smartphones in 2016 due to battery fires, the company ran full-page ads in major American newspapers that said, We are truly sorry. Despite the apology, Samsungs stock continued falling, wiping out billions of dollars in market value. Contrast that with a famous case: the 1982 Tylenol crisis, in which seven people died after taking capsules that a still-unidentified criminal had laced with cyanide, circumventing the companys safety protocols. The then-CEO of Tylenols parent company, Johnson & Johnson, said I apologize to consumers and immediately ordered a nationwide recall, costing the company over US$100 million. His direct acknowledgment of responsibility and swift action helped restore public trust and became a case study in effective crisis leadership. The companys stock price didnt take much of a hit, either. While the two cases are different in many ways, together they illustrate a pattern my colleagues and I observed in our study: Markets respond differently to I apologize versus We apologize. Investors reward personal accountability I collaborated with marketing professors Jennifer H. Tatara and Courtney B. Peters to analyze 224 corporate apologies between 1996 and 2023. Using event-study methods common in finance, we tracked unusual stock returns around apology announcements and linked them to how CEOs framed their statements. Our results, which we are preparing for publication, were striking. CEOs who said I apologize often saw short-term stock returns rise by a statistically significant amount. CEOs who said We apologize saw no such effect. Saying I apologize lessens the market penalty by roughly 86%, we found. We think this is because markets reward leaders who take individual responsibility. I signals personal accountability and decisiveness. We, by comparison, dilutes ownership of the problem. But context matters, we found. When we zeroed in on diversity-related casesthose involving mistreatment based on race, gender, disability, or LGBTQ+ status, for examplethe positive effect of I apologize weakened or disappeared. Thats because investors often interpret diversity crises as signs of systemic failure, rather than isolated mistakes. In those cases, investors, employees, and the public may expect accountability that goes beyond the CEO. A lone I apologize can seem hollow, while We apologize may resonate more by acknowledging shared institutional responsibility. Beyond CEOs: Why stakeholders should care Apologies are among the most scrutinized executive communications. Their effects ripple across different audiences. For investors, apology language provides a real-time signal of leadership quality and future governance. Our research shows these signals are strong enough to move stock prices. For corporate boards, an apology can be as important as a balance sheet in shaping market perceptions. Our research suggests that boards should insist leaders prepare for crisis communications as a standard part of risk management. For employees and customers, apology language sends a message about corporate culture. I can demonstrate accountability; we can affirm inclusion and shared responsibility. Both matter, depending on the situation. Leading in a skeptical era Corporate apologies are nothing new. But in todays environmentwhere social media amplifies every word and trust in institutions is fragilethe stakes are higher. A single poorly framed statement can trigger outrage, stock sell-offs, or viral boycotts. The good news is that sorry doesnt have to be the hardest word. In fact, this research suggests that a good apology can pay off, literally. The key is to remember that apologies arent one-size-fits-all. The right words depend on the nature of the wrongdoing. Prachi Gala is an associate professor of marketing at Kennesaw State University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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E-Commerce
Racing along the Potomac River at 26 knots (almost 30 mph) usually guarantees a raucous ridebut not on a battery-electric Candela C-8 hydrofoil. Instead of the roar of a conventional boats fossil-fueled engine and the smack of its hull on the water, this vessel smoothly whirred along, barely shuddering over the wake of a passing water taxi as its foils cleanly sliced through the surface. The placid experience belied the speed shown on the C-8s touchscreen. And the loudest noise heard on a mid-October ride came not from the C-8s electric motor, but from planes taking off from Washington National Airport that were following a prescribed course above the river. Stockholm-based Candela (a Most Innovative Companies honoree in 2025) doesnt just want to electrify the boating-for-fun experience, however. Along with a few other companies, it aims to purge fossil fuels from the passenger ferries that regularly ply city waterways. A ride for the ruling class You can think of the C-8, starting at $300,000, as a Candela equivalent of the Tesla Roadsterthe high-priced plaything that helps boot up a line of more useful electrified conveyances. The hardtop edition we took around the Potomac and the Anacostia rivers is a sleek machine that drew compliments from boardwalk passersby when we pulled up to the Washington Harbour development in Georgetown. [Photo: Candela] The C-8 pulls out of a marina as a boat, but then starts flying on its foils at about 17 knots (19.5 mph). Candelas engineers are fixated on foilsnot only because of the speed they allow but also because, by getting the hull above the water, they vastly cut down on the drag. Candela quotes a range of 57 nautical miles (almost 66 miles) for the C-8s 69 kWh battery, with the ability to go from 10% of a charge to 80% in under 30 minutes with 135 kW DC charging. [Photo: Candela] You helm the C-8 via a steering wheel, a throttle, and a 15.4-inch touchscreen. Candelas software monitors the boat and will automatically slow it down if you bank it too muchas I found out firsthand during an August 2023 ride on the San Francisco Bay in an earlier model of the C-8. Three seats and a bench aft of them can accommodate up to six passengers, while a cozy belowdecks space forward of the controls hides sleeping quarters and, below a cover, a small toilet. [Photo: Candela] Almost two hours of cruising up and down the Potomac and the Anacostia, most of it on the foils, took the battery from 100% of a charge to 63%. Candela has sold more than 100 C-8s and delivered about 90, spokesman Mikael Mahlberg says; about half of those deliveries have gone to U.S. customers. It has also delivered 32 C-7 boats, the companys debut electric hydrofoil that it no longer produces. The privately held firm has raised $96.2 million in funding so far, according to Crunchbase data, but isnt disclosing financial details. Were aiming to be profitable next year, Mahlberg says, describing Candelas current phase as a hyper-growth curve optimized for research, development, and sales. Fossil-fuel-free ferries That joyride on the C-8 doubled as a chance to show off how passenger ferries can provide a useful transportation alternative. With Washington roads gridlocked due to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyys White House meeting with President Trump, as well as the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group, my boating-enthusiast friend Bob Vanasse couldnt make it to Columbia Island Marina on the south side of the Potomac. So we zipped up to Washington Harbour to pick him up there instead. Vanasse, whose day job is representing seafood and fishing-industry interests, pronounced himself impressed and gave an impromptu sales pitch to a guy at his boat club by the District Wharf in Southwest D.C., when we pulled up there. [Photo: Candela] Candela aims to offer that convenience to larger groups of people with its P-12 battery-electric hydrofoil ferry. It can transport up to 30 people at a cruising speed of 25 knots (almost 29 mph), with a range estimated at 40 nautical miles (46 miles). Candela doesnt specify a price for the ferry; Mahlberg only says its of course more expensive than the C-8 and slightly more expensive to purchase than the cheapest diesel vessels of the same sizeoffset by annual operating costs about 60% to 70% lower. As with electric vehicles, the low maintenance of an electric motor makes a large contribution to those savings. [Photo: Candela] The P-12, however, is just pulling out of the dock in terms of commercial deployment. One P-12 is providing ferry service around Stockholmwhere Candela was able to get a waiver from no-wake speed limits, cutting travel time on an 11-mile commuter route from an hour to 30 minutesand another serves as a demo vessel for the firm. Candela has 50 P-12 orders booked, with plans to deliver the first eight starting in the first quarter to customers in Saudi Arabia and Mumbai. And it has one new U.S. ferry operator, FlyTahoe, that’s considering the P-12 for a planned service going north and south across Lake Tahoe. FlyTahoe CEO Ryan Meinzer says that the company, based in San Francisco and Tahoe Vista, California, considered and rejected non-hydrofoil ferry concepts. [Image: Candela] Conventional hull and propulsion designseven when electricstill displace water as they push through it, making them far less efficient and less comfortable in choppy conditions, he says. Meinzer isnt disclosing FlyTahoes financial arrangements with Candela but says the company is advancing toward a tentative 2026 launch for our cross-lake service, subject to regulatory approval. Candela, meanwhile, will need to start building boats in the U.S. to advance its own ferry business herepre-Depression U.S. laws impose a buy-American requirement on vessels transporting people between American ports. The U.S. is potentially our biggest market potential, Candelas Mahlberg says. Were in advanced discussions with several states regarding a U.S. factory, and we hope we can shed more light on this soon, as we aim to deliver our first U.S. vessel in 2026. Other passenger ferry prospects Candela already has company in that market. Belfast-based boat builder Artemis Technologies inked an agreement in February with the U.S. firm Delta Marine to develop battery-electric hydrofoils for Puget Sound routes. Artemis’s EF-24 will carry 150 people at a cruising speed of 34 knots (39 mph) and a range on foils of 70 nautical miles (80.5 miles). And in the Bay Area, the San Francisco Bay Ferry placed an order in December for three battery-electric, 150-passenger catamaran ferries from All American Marine, with the first vessel set to begin service on its shorter routes in early 2027. That ferry operators electrification ambitions include converting four 400-passenger diesel ferries to electric power. Putting batteries in a boat might seem like a much more ambitious venture into zero-emission transportation than electric cars, but the concept also has some nonobvious virtues. [Photo: Candela] Ferries are the largest vessels capable of becoming pure electric due to their well-defined operational profilesoften the exact routes, energy profile, stoppage times, size, load requirements, etc., are accurately known during the powertrain design, eliminating range anxiety and allowing high-cost batteries or other energy storage systems to be right-sized, says Mika Takahashi, senior technology analyst at IDTechEx, a Cambridge, England-based research firm. But electric ferries also constitute a tiny raction of the worldwide ferry fleet. IDTechEx estimates that only 280 e-ferries have been sold, with 440 more sales predicted through 2030. In the U.S. alone, 604 passenger ferries were in service in 2022, per the latest Department of Transportation statistics available; the industry group Interferry estimated there were 15,400 in operation worldwide in 2019. Takahashi also notes two other possible obstacles. One is being a relatively small subset of the EV industry relative to cars, meaning a slower pace of innovation. Another is unpredictable policy shifts in the U.S. and other countriessuch as the Trump administrations weird and evidence-detached hostility to EVs.
Category:
E-Commerce
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