Understanding student debt through social media

How can college be more affordable?

This is the question that the Peter G. Peterson Foundation asked when putting together their Student Debt Smarter initiative. Student debt is an often discussed, but often misunderstood, part of the college experience, and can play a huge role in your immediate and long-term future if not approached properly.

Thus, the foundation put together an Affordability Calculator that factors in your chosen university, major, timing, desired destination after graduating, and expected loan burden in order to help you determine if you can truly afford your envisioned college experience. In addition to the calculator, the Student Debt Smarter website has resources for users that can help them get a grasp on financial aid. However, this whole initiative needed a strong marketing push, particularly on social media, in order to be a viable resource for college hopefuls in mapping out their next few years.

That’s where Matchfire comes in.

My role within Matchfire’s handling of the strategic marketing for this campaign was assisting with the creation of social media assets, both paid and organic. Although I never came up with the ideas themselves, I brought them to life visually, and went through multiple rounds refining them. These social media assets include dozens of carousels, stories, and gifs for September-November 2022.