Purpose

In recent decades, higher education institutions (HEIs) have increasingly adopted marketing-oriented approaches. While the adoption of marketing was slower in Europe and Spain, it has become a vital tool for HEIs, both to stay competitive in a changing socio-economic context and to face the challenges posed by the transition to the University 2.0 model. This study aims to analyse the historical evolution of communication techniques used by universities, bringing into focus the relevance of social networks in the most recent decades.

Design/methodology/approach

This research methodology consists of two components. Firstly, a comprehensive analysis of the available data is conducted to investigate the earliest marketing and communication actions involving universities, as well as their evolution over time, contextualizing this within the significant shifts in the social, political and technological background. Secondly, a specific focus is placed on the contribution of social media, particularly Twitter, as a powerful tool in creating a university brand and effectively promoting educational institutions, especially during the last stage of this historical evolution. To identify and analyse these trends, Natural Language Processing is used, specifically by leveraging topic modelling techniques.

Findings

The results of this analysis offer insights into the evolution of marketing communication applied by Spanish universities and show the increasing importance of social networks and the use of specific topics and contents to enhance their impact on engagement.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the literature by using a novel methodological approach to the research on the historical development of communication in universities in Spain, providing guidance to manage their social media strategy to differentiate themselves, increase engagement and foster brand loyalty.

中文翻译：

---

Twitter杀死了媒体明星：西班牙大学营销传播的历史演变

目的

近几十年来，高等教育机构（HEIs）越来越多地采用以营销为导向的方法。虽然营销在欧洲和西班牙的采用速度较慢，但​​它已成为高等教育机构的重要工具，既可以在不断变化的社会经济环境中保持竞争力，又可以应对向大学 2.0 模式过渡带来的挑战。本研究旨在分析大学使用的通信技术的历史演变，重点关注近几十年来社交网络的相关性。

设计/方法论/途径

该研究方法由两个部分组成。首先，对现有数据进行全面分析，以调查涉及大学的最早的营销和传播行为及其随时间的演变，并将其置于社会、政治和技术背景的重大转变的背景下。其次，特别关注社交媒体（尤其是 Twitter）作为创建大学品牌和有效推广教育机构的强大工具的贡献，特别是在这一历史演变的最后阶段。为了识别和分析这些趋势，使用了自然语言处理，特别是利用主题建模技术。

发现

该分析的结果提供了对西班牙大学应用的营销传播演变的见解，并显示了社交网络以及使用特定主题和内容来增强其对参与度的影响日益增加的重要性。

原创性/价值

这项研究通过使用一种新颖的方法论来研究西班牙大学传播的历史发展，为管理其社交媒体策略以实现差异化、提高参与度和培养品牌忠诚度提供指导，从而为文献做出了贡献。