A Longtime Partnership Shouldn’t Be a Stale Partnership
The year was 2015, and leaders at Houston Christian University had identified a specific need for their campus: a “designer down the hall.” They came to 5° Branding and our team stepped up to fill the role, becoming a marketing and communication partner who could fulfill project and production roles. It was then that HCU, then Houston Baptist University, became the first Boost client at 5°. Now, more than a decade later, HCU and 5° still work together to tell the HCU story.
The latest chapter in that story is HCU’s record enrollment of 954 freshmen in the fall of 2025, a 36 percent increase from the previous year. In conjunction with a six percent growth in new transfer students and a 14 percent increase in total undergraduate enrollment, HCU is soaring past its enrollment goals. The school now has 4,693 total students, a 10 percent jump from the previous fall semester.
HCU established this new record just three years after undergoing a seismic shift: changing their name from Houston Baptist University to Houston Christian University. In explaining the reason for the name change, university president Dr. Robert Sloan emphasized the need for clarity about the university’s core convictions and the desire to reflect the diversity of denominations represented within the school’s student body, faculty, alumni, and donors.
This refinement of who the characters are in the HCU story — and what they are all about — presented 5° with the opportunity to be part of communicating how HCU fulfills its mission and why a prospective student should consider enrolling. This storytelling included physical assets like campus banners and a full suite of admissions materials. More recently, 5° designed a new website for HCU that showcases the university’s commitment to Christ, excellent liberal arts education, and diverse student body that represents 56 states and 59 countries.
“I don’t know if I can find the words to say how great 5° Branding is.”
As HCU continues to tell its story, they have a next chapter in mind: ten thousand students by 2030. James L. Steen, HCU’s VP for Enrollment Management, describes 5° as a partner that will continue to help HCU “sharpen the saw and move the needle” toward this goal. Specifically, Steen lauds two specific 5° tools — the Global Pulse Survey and Higher Ed Marketing Truths — as strategic tools that will buoy their success.
The Global Pulse Survey
When it comes to the idea that “perception is reality,” there may be no clearer example than higher education. How key stakeholders experience and describe the culture, strengths, and weaknesses of an institution has a direct impact on the institution’s reputation externally.
To empower HCU with a clearer understanding of their public perception and identify opportunities for brand messaging, 5° surveyed alumni as well as parents of both new and returning students Global Pulse Survey (GPS). Steen credits the GPS with giving his team insights they need to better “evaluate marketing performance and strategically plan for what’s next.”
The Global Pulse Survey (GPS) is a comprehensive research instrument designed to measure and evaluate the effectiveness of higher education marketing efforts. This survey provides invaluable insights into how key stakeholders perceive an institution's marketing strategies, communications, and overall brand positioning.
Higher Ed Marketing Truths
Designed to bridge the gap of understanding, the Higher Ed Marketing Truths give institutions a framework for comprehending and communicating the most effective ways to tell their story. From “know your people” to “stay agile,” these truths are as simple to remember as they are essential to implement. In a higher education landscape too often defined by stress and silos, the Higher Ed Marketing Truths assess gaps and opportunities, provide clarity, and stoke creativity.
Steen says that the truths challenge the HCU team “to think differently about how we connect with prospective students and promote the HCU brand.” That’s one of the most profound elements of the truths — they provide the structure needed for marketing teams to innovate and ideate in each new season. The truths offer a lens for seeing what is so that institutions can dream, design, and drive toward what can be.
The truths aren’t a checklist; they’re a hope-filled reality check for leaders who are eager to learn what’s working, what isn’t, and what the future can hold.
The Higher Ed Marketing Truths Workshop provides a framework to help bridge the gap of understanding about marketing.
Are you interested in bringing the Truths and the Global Pulse Survey to your campus? We’re here as true collaborators to build your dream with you. Contact us to chat about how 5° Branding can partner with your institution.
