Marketing Assets System

Durham University Marketing and Communications Department are looking to engage a strategic partner for the provion of a cloud hosted Marekting Asset system which will enable departments to oroduce marketing and communication materials using a set of pre-designed templates.

In 2015 Marketing and Communications team introduced the Marketing Assets Management System, to enable the cost-effective production of marketing and communications materials within a series of template designs.

The system was in effect since that date, however during the course of the contract system reliability declined resulting in poor system uptake by staff.

In the absence of such a system "home-made" designs and poor print quality items proliferate.

Poor quality materials damage our reputation, undermine our brand and provide a poor customer experience.

The intention is to introduce a system alongside the launch of the forthcoming new brand positioning as a method of maintaining consistency in its implementation and continued application.

In advance of this the University's Marketing and Communications team has been looking for a replacement system to enable the implementation of the final brand positioning across the organisation and in doing so ensuring that the new system is both fit-for-purpose and meets end-user needs on an ongoing basis.

The system should provide an online platform for departments to produce marketing and communications materials using a set of pre-designed templates.

The use of this asset management style system is a costeffective way of managing the production of routine marketing materials such as leaflets, brochures, posters etc. whilst retaining a level of consistency in the implementation of a brand positioning.

In addition, the system should include pre-negotiated prices on a range of print volumes via our existing Framework Partners greatly minimising staff time when producing items, and maximising cost savings.

The system needs to be in place by early 2019; users within Durham University will be identified and trained in system use.

The benefit of a well-functioning and full integrated Marketing Asset System would: • Improve the quality and consistency of small scale marketing materials • Reduce our reliance, and expenditure, on external design agencies • Reduce staff time required to produce materials • Allow staff to easily produce great looking marketing materials on brand • Reduce print costs for departments/colleges/professional support services through pre-negotiated prices • Improve and simplify the support required to help staff use the current system, freeing up Marketing Team resource whilst providing a better service to colleagues • Giving the flexibility to consider future improvements to our communications, such as print on demand functionality and integrated media stories and staff awareness.