Financial Aid Now: Building National Thought Leadership and Authority in Financial Aid

Financial Aid Now Founder and CEO Stuart Siegel initially operated two complementary companies, FAFSA Assist and College Tuition Solutions, which focused on helping families navigate the financial aid process, providing tools to help them handle the complexities and costs associated with higher education. The companies worked with families to identify colleges that offered the best financial aid packages, compared award offers, increased available funding, and negotiated for more in grants and scholarships. The goal was to help students attend the colleges and universities of their choice while securing as much financial aid (i.e., the lowest tuition) as possible, limiting the amount of debt they incur.

Our education PR firm identified a fundamental branding challenge: many families new to the college financial aid process did not know much about FAFSA, or even how to spell it, making “FAFSA Assist” a difficult name to build on. As Rosica conducted its work for the businesses, we created a unified brand, “Financial Aid Now.” We recommended consolidating the two companies under one clear brand that better reflected their shared missions. The firm developed the Financial Aid Now brand name and registered the domain, bringing FAFSA Assist and College Tuition Solutions together under a single identity.

In parallel to the rebrand, Rosica built Siegel’s thought leadership, positioning him as a national expert on financial aid, navigating FAFSA, and reducing college debt. We developed timely media opportunities around: changes to the FAFSA application; studies on increasing college debt; and other issues affecting students and families navigating their post-secondary education options. This strategy established Siegel as a go-to national media resource and generated coverage with CNBC, CBS News, NPR, and dozens of other top-tier national outlets.

Rosica’s earned media program garnered millions of media impressions annually, strengthening Siegel’s credibility and authority. Combined with the new Financial Aid Now brand, the agency gave the company a clearer brand identity and a stronger platform for communicating its mission to families selecting colleges and managing the complex financial aid and scholarship processes.

“The strategic counsel that Rosica provided eliminated two of our companies and incorporated them into one strategy and a new name, Financial Aid Now. This brand clearly exemplifies our mission and has helped us increase website traffic and conversion rates. In addition, the national media coverage the Rosica team secured has created significant thought leadership opportunities and credibility for my company.” — Stuart Siegel, Founder and CEO, Financial Aid Now