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Public Relations & Marketing
Dwayne Dixon has served as
the National Director of Marketing for the Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.
since from 1995 to 1997 and again from 2001 to the present. In the
interim, he served as the Fraternity's first Executive Director. In this
role, he is responsible for all marketing and public relations for
organization.
His duties include creating
and directing nationwide marketing/promotional plans and special events.
He crafts the media strategy for the organization as well as securing
press coverage. Additionally, he manages all vendor relations and
contracting.
What follows is a brief
overview of some of the initiatives he has executed.
The Digital Heritage Initiative
Situation:
Iota Phi Theta's leadership expressed a desire to create a national
service program that would add value to its constituent communities
while strengthening its image as an community-focused organization. The
Fraternity's leadership was also interested in forming partnerships with
Major Corporations
Strategy:
A program entitled "The Digital Heritage Initiative" was created.
The initiative was a collaboration between Microsoft Corporation,
Africana.com, and Iota Phi Theta. Mr. Dixon created, developed, and
managed the program. His efforts included:
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Crafting of the initial
proposals to Microsoft and Africana
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Securing the partnership
agreement from both corporation
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Writing and distributing
all press releases, marketing collateral and coordinating of the press
conference
Outcome:
To date, the program has generated donations to over 125 Elementary and
Secondary Schools nationwide with a total value of over $100,000. The
program was featured in numerous publications including The Industry
Standard magazine. (Click
here to learn more.)
40th Anniversary National Convention
Situation:
Iota Phi Theta celebrated its 40th Anniversary in September of 2003. The
Fraternity's leadership was focused on having its biennial convention be
an event that properly commemorated this historic occasion. Due to past
conventions that were not financially successful, there was also a focus
on ensuring that the event was profitable and impactful in the
community.
Strategy:
Mr. Dixon served as conference chairperson and directed the
programming, site selection, and management of the conference. In
addition to handling all media releases and coordination, his
responsibilities included:
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Design of the conference
logo and collateral materials
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Development and creation
of the official conference website (Click
here to view site.)
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Implementation of the
Fraternity's first-ever online conference registration
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Securing corporate
partnerships with ABC/Disney Radio, Evanston Hospital, Edward Jones
Corporation and DaimlerChrysler Services Corporation
Outcome:
The convention was the most well-attended in the organization's history.
Additionally, the convention was the first in the history of the
Fraternity that generated a financial profit. To add additional
community involvement to the conference activities, Mr. Dixon also
created a community-service partnership with DaimlerChrysler Services
Corporation designed to provide entrepreneurial education to elementary
school students.
(Click here for more information on that program)
Entry into the National Pan-Hellenic
Council
Situation:
The National Pan-Hellenic Council
was founded in 1930 and is the collaborative organization of the nine
major Black Fraternities and Sororities in America. NPHC membership
serves as a "mark of legitimacy" for these organizations and separates
the member groups from smaller, less well-respected groups. NPHC
membership is an unspoken prerequisite for recognition in the
African-American press, the African-American political community,
Historically-Black Colleges/Universities and many social arenas.
In the first nine years of
its existence, the NPHC grew to eight member organizations. In 1939 the
NPHC determined that no additional organizations would be allowed to
join and it removed all constitutional and procedural mechanisms for
allowing organizations to do so. The organization's stance was
that no existing or yet-to-be-created Fraternity/Sorority should be
granted the status and recognition of NPHC membership.
Iota Phi Theta identified
NPHC membership as a key growth driver and tasked Mr. Dixon to craft a
strategy that would secure the Fraternity's entry to the council.
Strategy:
A strategy was created that focused on providing information, changing
opinions, and effecting organizational change from outside the
organization. Tactics included:
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Op-Ed pieces that
articulated the Fraternity's position on the NPHC
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Focused advertising in
NPHC publications
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Sourcing of White Papers
and articles that discussed the appropriate legal issues
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Collateral materials
that provided detailed information on the Fraternity
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Creation of
relationships within the NPHC leadership structure
Outcome:
Iota Phi Theta was inducted into the NPHC in 1997 and this entry was
commemorated with an historic ceremony. Additionally, the organization
has doubled in size (and revenues) since its entry.
(Click here to learn more)
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