In 2019, McGill University’s Research + Innovation (R+I) unit launched an ambitious plan to revitalize the University’s signature public talk, the 65-year old Beatty Lecture. With audiences in sharp decline, we decided to use the powerful story of the lecture’s origins and roster of iconic speakers to renew the brand and strengthen its reputation among target audiences.

In this presentation, you will learn how to use your institution’s heritage and one-of-a-kind stories to raise brand awareness and engagement as we walk you through R+I’s award winning Beatty Lecture Revitalization Project, which culminated in a sold-out lecture delivered by conservation icon Jane Goodall.

Robin Koning, R+I’s Digital Marketing & Outreach Associate, who is also a trained archivist, will share insights into how to create valuable digital assets out of untapped, content-rich material held in institutional archives and use them in your digital marketing efforts. Gregory Houston, New Media & Digitization Administrator in McGill Library’s Digital Initiatives unit, and a project partner, will delve into the tech side and explain how his unit provided resources for interactive digital exhibition development that helped make content come alive.

Specific topics covered during the session will include: collaboration, story development, website redesign, video production, digitization of photographic and audiovisual material, digital touch tables (e.g. Intuiface) and dealing with copyright/access/privacy laws.