Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | December 13th, 2022

Are your enrollment numbers where they need to be? Don’t panic!

As the year winds down, admissions and marketing staff at many schools are busy analyzing funnel activity and determining what’s next. Do you have enough leads? How many applications are started vs. completed? What are your attendance numbers for upcoming events? What needs to be done to ensure you hit your enrollment goals?

While it can be tempting to make a split decision to try something new if your numbers aren’t where you want them to be, it may be more advantageous to first re-examine your strategy and find ways to make minor tweaks to the plan you’ve already put in place.

Consider these key questions prior to making major shifts to your marketing or recruiting plans:

Does your strategy have these key elements?

Every good recruiting and marketing strategy has key elements that make them more likely to succeed.

Audience segmentation based on prospective students’ needs
Accurate positioning of your school and programs based on audience
Tactics organized by channel
Plan for monitoring

If you have these pieces in place, you can rest assured that you have a solid foundation to build from when planning ways to fill your funnel.

Did you document key performance indicators (KPI’s)?

For admissions teams, it’s easy to focus only on the end goal of seated students. But it’s likely that you have historical data at your disposal that can help you determine Year-Over-Year (YOY) numbers so you can track progress during the recruiting cycle. If your KPI’s don’t currently align with key dates throughout the year, this is an excellent place to begin charting a path toward analysis.

For example, you can start by examining event attendance for Fall, Winter and Spring events and comparing them to the current recruiting year. Are you on track? You can also look at application data to determine when a majority of your applications were started and completed over the last 2-3 years. You may be surprised to find out that you are in alignment with previous years and closer than you thought to your target.

What are the levers you can pull to optimize your marketing?

In your marketing and communications plan, you may use several tactics to communicate with leads and encourage action. Some are easier to increase than others depending on effort, resources, and budget. For example, for your unpaid tactics, consider optimizing your website, increasing emails, social posts or adding an admissions webinar. For paid tactics, does it make sense to shift a portion of your digital advertising budget from an area that isn’t working to a tactic that is performing well? Or to try a new channel or media product?

If you are looking for ways to determine whether your marketing and recruiting strategy will hit your target enrollment goals, GPRS can help. Our experienced team can evaluate where your strategy stands, how to enhance your tactics, and ways to increase enrollment through digital advertising. We can also help you create a tracking dashboard that will inform your decision-making for future campaigns. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | November 29th, 2022

Develop a strategy to reach prospects looking to upskill

Now more than ever, people are upskilling to keep up with the demands and pressures of the continually evolving economic landscape. To position your school as a partner along your prospects’ career paths, you will need a clearly defined strategy with multiple touchpoints showing how your program can help develop their talents and skills to succeed in the business world today and in the future.

Define your audience

To create a strategy that is aimed at reaching prospective “upskillers”, start with defining your audience. Think about constructing mini-personas and matching them to the programs you offer. For example, an IT professional that aims to manage a team may need to layer strategic leadership training on top of their deep technical background. For this learner, you may focus on a certificate program or management class within your Executive Education department. For a nonprofit professional seeking a corporate job, you may recommend an MBA to give them a deep dive in finance and operations.

Hone your strategy

A majority of professionals who are seeking to upskill may not see the value in a full-time degree, or even paying out-of-pocket for a program that may be less expensive online or have been previously offered in-house at their company. Your communications strategy can show them how your programs can contribute to their long-term career goals. Try highlighting alumni stories, reinforcing ROI and defining the exact path and time commitment. Focus on outcomes to address barriers in your prospects’ decision-making process.

Emphasize soft skills

Today, some of the most in-demand skills are related to how individuals present themselves and manage interpersonal relationships. Alongside your program positioning, be sure to emphasize the soft skills that will take any employee the distance, including:

Strategic management
Complex problem-solving and reasoning
Sphere of influence
Leadership
Emotional intelligence
Creativity
Analytics

With a few small updates to your marketing strategy, you can reach the upskillers who are seeking a new path.

If your team needs help, GPRS can help you construct a strategy, develop personas and create communications to meet your prospects where they are in their journey. We have worked with over 60 colleges and universities and have insights into digital marketing strategies and how to leverage your school’s unique selling points. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | November 15th, 2022

Take pressure off your marketing and admissions teams

If your marketing and admissions teams are currently trying to do more with less budget, staff, and time, you are not alone. Many schools right now are facing budget cuts and resourcing issues that can make it difficult to create and maintain enrollment momentum. Taking pressure off your marketing and admissions teams could be the answer.

A lot has changed (and continues to change) for the teams responsible for enrollment over the last couple of years. Some of your staff may still be working remotely. Your recruiting team may be smaller with more work to do. Your marketing budget may be lower than in previous years. Even if your entire staff isn’t waving the white flag, it’s likely that you are feeling the strains of a post-pandemic environment where there is still a bit of uncertainty and constant change.

If you’re struggling to create new leads, keep up with your funnel or strategize new innovative ways to do more with less, we have some ideas to help. By working with an experienced digital agency like GPRS, you will benefit from our over 20 years of experience in helping higher ed institutions just like yours.

Recruiting assistance

Many schools are starting to realize that depending solely on traditional recruitment methods to meet the 24/7 demands of today’s prospects is unrealistic. To connect with prospects on their terms, and within their timeframe, you need more scale. This is where a centralized contact center can become your support system. At GPRS, we can provide inbound or outbound support that is in alignment with your brand. We can also help pre-qualify leads so your staff can be more effective with their time.

Email nurture campaigns through your CRM

Although personal follow-up is extremely valuable, communicating individually with every prospect can eat away at your recruiting team’s time. When you create nurture campaigns that send automated emails through your CRM, you are ensuring a continuous flow of valuable information so you can stay top-of-mind with prospects while also relieving the pressure on your team. There are several ways you can create an email campaign that works for your team, starting with the segmentation of your audience and a targeted build of information with an automated schedule. By doing the work upfront, you can create an “easy button” for communicating with prospects and reduce the stress on your team to be constantly available.

Get strategic help from a qualified firm

Industry and strategic enrollment experience, mastery of lead generation, and technical measurement platforms for optimization and ROI tracking are some of the most important factors you should consider when hiring a firm to support your recruiting and marketing teams. If you’re looking for a firm that has higher ed strategic experience, can prove their results, and has worked with your peers, GPRS can be a great partner to help you.

If you need help taking the pressure off your marketing and admissions teams, GPRS can be an extension of your recruiting and marketing staff. We can assess your needs, fill the gaps and find ways to bolster your team so they can do what they do best – find and connect with students. We have worked with over 60 schools nationwide, and have insights into digital marketing strategies and how to leverage your school’s unique selling points to enhance communications with prospects. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | October 27th, 2022

Why employment data matters in your marketing

In a recent survey conducted by GMAC, it was reported that 86 percent of 2022 U.S. business school students were employed immediately after graduation, which is up from 80 percent the previous year. This rising employment rate for graduates is promising for higher education as a whole, even as we enter a recession because it showcases the sustained value of the skillsets a business degree offers.

In addition to employment data, it was also reported that for students seeking a career change or promotion as part of their degree plan, a majority (57 percent) achieved this goal post graduation. So what does this mean for business and graduate program marketing? In addition to a closer focus on career data, schools can also highlight their career coaching and placement services, student testimonials, and corporate partnerships.

Here are a few ways your program can amplify its messaging surrounding employment and career data to help you stand out from the competition.

Showcasing promotion and career advancement

Whether prospects are looking to move up the corporate ladder, or they’re looking to switch industries all together, they may see an MBA as the key that can open the door to their next career move. Finding a way to position your program as a trusted partner along the journey to a rewarding promotion or management role is critical. You can showcase the value of your program through the lens of career growth by sharing alumni testimonials, including promotion data, and reinforcing how a broadened perspective can help students speak the language of business.

Career Services

Allowing your students the opportunities to explore career options while in school and ultimately set goals that are the right fit for them requires coaching and guidance. If your school offers career services, now is the time to highlight the process so it can help prospects understand how you’ll help them compete in the business world and forge their unique path.

Consider pulling together data for the past 2-3 years that showcase the industries, firms, and titles of students hired from your school. You can include metrics such as internships, job offers post-graduation, salary, firms, locations, and job types. This gives a well-rounded view of the results of your program as it relates to the end goal – a job that will provide a solid return on investment and pay dividends for the future.

In addition, try highlighting other key aspects of your career services including corporate partners, leadership development, and even employer and alumni profiles to highlight success stories.

If you need help determining how well your marketing plan covers the career and employment aspects of your program, GPRS can help. We have worked with over 120 schools and have insights into digital marketing strategies and how to leverage your school’s unique selling points to enhance communications with prospects. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | October 18th, 2022

How well is your website equipped for helping your school meet enrollment goals?

Your website is your number one vehicle of communication with prospective students. It’s the first place they land when starting their research and it’s the last stop on their journey toward creating and submitting an application. Although there are many other touchpoints throughout the admissions process — personal conversations, campus tours, events, etc. — your website is the key to communicating your brand and helping you meet enrollment goals. As a result, it’s important to treat your site as a critical team member and make sure it has all of the resources it needs to accomplish the task at hand — landing your next seated class.

Within your website, the active enrollment pages that contribute to your prospects’ decision making-processes need to be top performers. Here we will examine the ways that you can evaluate and optimize them (at least on a monthly basis) so they can help you achieve your goals.

Engagement

The true test of how well a page is performing is related to user engagement. The longer a prospect stays on your page, the better because this means they are engaging with the content. In addition, you’ll want to track how many (and which) links they click on and their scroll rate if your analytics allow it. Some platforms even give you the ability to apply a heat map to a page so you can see which areas, sections, and menus are the most used.

Another test of engagement is bounce rate which is defined as the percentage of people that visit your page without taking an action or entering your site and then immediately leave. Often this is measured on the site’s main entry points like the home page or admissions page, however, you can also track your pages that are intended to spur action. If you see a high bounce rate, for example, on your application page, it could signal that people need more information from the previous page before making that decision.

Traffic

Traffic to your site can be deceiving. In addition to ensuring that your reporting dashboards are set up to capture accurate information, you always want to evaluate the data you receive in the context of your marketing campaigns, your spending, your recent optimizations, and market trends.

Daily, you’ll want to capture page views so that you can view your trend line over weeks and months and also capture any spikes that may be related to campaigns. Be sure that you’re examining your total page views, unique visitors, and new visitors. You’ll also want to review the data on how people came to your site – organically (through search-optimized content), or through paid media, email campaigns, digital marketing, referrals, or direct links.

Functionality

Just like you might tidy up your house before inviting your friends over for a dinner party, the same applies to your website. Although this may seem obvious, it’s not always a step that schools take before launching a large campaign or creating an email flow that links to your site. It’s a good practice to review your site’s functionality reports at least monthly to ensure there aren’t major 404 errors or problems with load time that could be easily fixed by cleaning up backlinks or reducing photo sizes.

If you need help determining how well your website is optimized to help you meet enrollment goals, or need assistance with SEO, GPRS can help. We have worked with over 60 colleges and universities and have insights into site functionality and how to leverage your site’s data and analytics to ensure peak performance. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | September 29th, 2022

Leveraging storytelling to enhance your school’s digital online presence

Lately, it may seem as if the term “storytelling” is everywhere. Influencers are using it to showcase their glamorous lives while selling products, and brands are using it to create a connection with potential customers. So how can your school make the most of this marketing tactic to boost your content’s value?

In a recent blog post, we discussed using your school’s blog to tell your story and increase traffic. Here, we’ll dive into why storytelling is relevant in higher education and different ways to use it (beyond your blog) to highlight your school’s key differentiators.

Defining storytelling

Storytelling in marketing quite simply means developing a deeper connection with your audience. A recent Forbes article outlines three reasons that marketers should prioritize storytelling:

Stories unite humans through authenticity and relatability.
Storytelling is a powerful tool that enables brands to teach and prospects to learn through shared experiences.
Stories can cut through the clutter and engage consumers in a fragmented world.

When you are considering utilizing this method, you can think of it as using stories to help prospects see themselves at your school while connecting their personal and professional journey to your program’s offerings.

Who can be a storyteller?

When creating your strategy, be sure to select the right representatives of your brand so they can accurately convey your key messages. Although anyone can be a storyteller, it’s important to lean on your marketing and admissions department to identify what stories need to be told and by whom. Your greatest impact can be found with authentic, original content that conveys realistic perspectives and often vulnerability.

Here are a few methods to incorporate storytelling into your marketing strategy:

Student stories – these can either be formal write-ups or pieces of content created directly by students discussing what it’s like to participate in classes and clubs and be part of your school’s community.
Faculty stories – these can chronicle a class project, discuss recent research or highlight a philanthropic venture.
Alumni stories – these can showcase success stories as told by alumni themselves.
Other content creators – try tapping your admissions or marketing team members to create stories as they are likely in tune with what prospects are looking for.

How to showcase your stories

Regardless of what story you’re telling, or who you’re using to communicate your key messages, there are multiple ways to showcase your final product. You can post them on your website, utilize them in social media or include them on your blog. You can also include snippets in email campaigns and marketing materials. Additionally, don’t forget about the value of video storytelling for its emotional connection and relatability.

If you need help determining how to create rich content and utilize stories to enhance your school’s online presence, GPRS can help. We have worked with over 60 graduate schools and have insights into program branding and how competitive schools are using digital advertising to position themselves in the market. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | September 15th, 2022

What do updated search algorithms mean for your school’s content?

What impact do Google search algorithm updates have on your school’s online presence? The answer is, “it depends” on how unique, credible and relevant your existing content is and how you plan to enhance it in the near future. Recently, Google announced that it would be launching a search algorithms update, enabling people to find high-quality content. The Google Helpful Content Update will include new ranking improvements that aim to reduce low-quality, duplicate or unoriginal content presented in search engine results pages (SERPs) and give users more credible and original information. It also aims to focus on “people-first” content and encourage content creators to put more time and effort into creating usable content for their customers.

In a recent blog, we discussed how content marketing can create a robust online experience for your school. Content formats include your website, SEO, email marketing, social posts, videos, podcasts, infographics, blogs, online panel discussions, and webinars, to name a few.

These elements all work together to showcase your school and reinforce your value proposition in order to engage prospects who are in the searching phase of their journey. Carefully created and curated content can collect leads and guide them through the funnel toward becoming seated students.

The rewards of creating content

Creating content is hard work – it takes marketing dollars and time for people to create. But if it’s done right, your content can then turn around and do work for you. It’s almost as if you’re creating a machine (content) and then automating it to go out into the world and find your next class. And many types of content marketing can actually be less expensive (in the long run) than paid digital advertising because it doesn’t need to be refreshed or monitored as often. Once it’s created, the momentum builds as it gains more and more viewers and enhances your site with rich SEO gains.

How search algorithms work

This brings us to how the Google search algorithms affect your school. Every time Google updates its algorithm (which can be quite often), it is in the interest of the user. Google wants its searchers to be rewarded with what they are seeking quickly and accurately. This most recent update aims to connect users with sites that have deep, relevant content. Content that is unique and not duplicated anywhere else. Therefore, if your school’s site is short, to the point, and favors bullet points, you’re going to lose out. If your site includes editorial content that goes deep into a topic, original storytelling pieces, and a rich media experience, you’re in luck.

How does this change how you create content? Here are a few tips:

Ensure your content is unique to your school and originally created
Gather credible facts that can be specifically associated with your school’s programs
Include compelling storytelling elements that are tied to search termsv
Include a variety of content types

So, how do you optimize search?

It’s impossible for a marketing or admissions professional to keep up with Google’s continuously shifting algorithms and digital marketing trends. It can help to partner with a specialized digital marketing firm that understands the intricacies of content marketing and tracks trends to ensure your strategy is up to date and performing at its maximum capacity.

If you need help determining how to create rich content for your school’s online presence, GPRS can help. We have worked with over 150 graduate programs and have insights into content and SEO best practices, and how competitive schools are using these tools to position themselves in the market. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | August 30th, 2022

Video content: What’s the right mix for your digital advertising strategy?

So, you’ve thought about using video content in your school’s digital advertising strategy, but you’re not sure how to get started. What’s the right length? How can you use videos on social media? In a past article, we covered embracing the video advertising trend. Here we go into more detail on how to do it for your school.

TYPES OF VIDEO

Short-form video

A short-form video is ideally less than 90 seconds. The content is designed to quickly convey top-level points or address a question. It will include a call to action that is clear and drives your prospect to learn more, ultimately landing them in your CRM for future communications. You can use these for simple tasks like showing a facility, explaining a program track or introducing clubs or activities. You can also use willing faculty members to give a class synopsis or explain the benefits of a capstone project. Although 90 seconds may not seem like enough time, there’s a lot you can do visually to convey your message so you don’t have to talk quickly or condense your script. Another option for short-form videos is to break up an existing long-form video into 30-90 second snippets so you can utilize them separately within your digital advertising campaign.

Long-form video

A long-form video is ideally less than 5 minutes. The content is designed to provide a deep dive into a topic that needs more explaining. For example, you may choose to cover your MBA specializations, differentiate your Executive MBA tracks or create a tutorial on your admissions process. These videos may also provide space for you to roundup alumni success stories or provide a window into the type of students that attend your program. Regardless of the topic you choose, be sure to create visual interest by varying your backgrounds and infusing other digital media like photos or drone footage. Five minutes is a long time for viewers to dedicate so you want to be sure you are holding the attention of your prospective students.

Recorded events

In addition to creating strategic video content that aligns to your marketing pillars, you can richen your YouTube channel by adding recorded webinars with admissions staff, sample classes with faculty or program staff discussing frequently asked questions. Although you may not promote these videos via social channels or as part of your digital advertising, creating a library of useful tools can increase your credibility and serve as a resource for prospects.

TOPIC IDEAS

If you’re thinking about getting started with video, or you need to expand your short- or long-form video offerings, here are some ideas to help you with the brainstorming process. Try either scripted or unscripted videos on the following topics.

General campus tours
Facilities tours done by students
FAQs based on top search terms for your school
Student/alumni success stories
Get to know the faculty/staff
About the program

QUICK TIPS TO LEVERAGE VIDEO:

Load all videos onto your YouTube channel with proper tagging so you can leverage SEO.
Categorize your channel by what your users are looking for, i.e. general school info like campus tours, program, faculty, student testimonials, success stories, etc.
Create a plan to disseminate your videos as part of your larger digital marketing strategy. For example, choose a topic to focus on each month and push out themed content across all social channels. Link to videos within your digital ads. Prominently place your videos on the website with corresponding topics so they are easily searchable and appear relevant.
Ensure your videos have a clear CTA that will drive prospects to take action.

If you need help determining how to use video content in your school’s digital advertising strategy, GPRS can help. We have worked with over 60 schools and have insights into program branding and how competitive schools are using digital advertising to position themselves in the market. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | August 10th, 2022

Highlighting career services in your marketing

The recent GMAC corporate recruiters survey states that 92 percent of corporate recruiters and 95 percent of staffing firms expect to hire MBA graduates this year. What’s more, 87 percent of corporate recruiters say they are either confident or highly confident in business schools to prepare students for success in their organization.

This is great news for students, and even better news for business schools. With the market holding a place for them, they can be assured that their investment will pay off. But even though availability is high, the success of your students is based on them selecting the right match for them. Allowing them the opportunities to explore their options while in school and ultimately select a firm that is the right fit for them requires coaching and guidance. If your school offers career services, now is the time to highlight the process so it can help prospects understand how you’ll help them compete and forge their unique career path.

Employment and internship report

Consider pulling together data for the past 2-3 years that showcases the industries, firms and titles of students hired from your school. You can include metrics such as internship offers, job offers post-graduation, salary, firms, locations and job types. This gives a well-rounded view of the results of your program as it relates to the end goal – a job that will recoup their investment and pay dividends for the future.

Employer testimonials

If you work with loyal employers or recruiting firms that have routinely hired your students, consider asking them to give a testimonial. Hearing from an employer what types of attributes your graduates display will inspire and encourage prospects who are considering your program.

Alumni profiles

Utilizing alumni with impressive career successes can be one of the biggest sellers of your program. In past blogs, we’ve discussed using alumni profiles to tell your story. To highlight your career services, ensure that your story shows the guidance they received from your career coaches along their journey. Also be sure to showcase how well networking can work.

Career coaches

Hearing from the career coaches themselves can be important for prospects considering your program. To give your coaches a forum to communicate their approaches, you can try a blog on interview tips, a brochure outlining the process and even a dedicated portion of your website to outline how prospects can construct a career plan.

Career paths

While some students seek out business school with a defined career goal in mind, many are looking to create a new path. Perhaps your prospects like their industry but want to shift their functional role. Others may want to shift careers completely, or get promoted into a new area of their company. Career pathing is perhaps one of the most intriguing elements of business school as students find new interests and explore their strengths. Be sure that you are communicating how you will help guide them on their journey to give them confidence to select your school.

If you need help determining how to highlight your program’s strengths, like career services, in your marketing – GPRS can help. We have worked with over 150 programs and have insights into program branding and how competitive schools are using digital advertising to position themselves in the market. Contact us today to start the conversation.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | July 28th, 2022

Why a competitive analysis matters

A competitive analysis takes time. Here’s why it’s time well spent for not only your marketing department, but also for your admissions and program teams.

In general, it’s a good practice to keep an eye on what your competitors are doing year-round. But a full competitive analysis every 2-3 years can help you dig deep to compare marketing tactics and program adjustments and enhancements so you don’t miss something major and accidentally lose prospects to competitors that are innovating and changing the game.

Competitors to examine:

You can often begin by breaking down your competitive landscape into three areas:

Aspirational competitors: Schools that don’t draw from the same prospect pool as you, but are seen as best in class and that your prospects will compare you to when gathering data.
Regional competitors: Schools that may not seem like direct competitors due to program type, quality, or cost, but can end up pulling students away from you due to proximity.
Real competitors: This is the set of competitors that your prospects are currently considering and may select over your program.

For marketing and admissions

For marketing and admissions, a competitive analysis can help examine:

Best practices: How are your competitors advertising? What does their website convey and how does their user experience compare to yours?
Event types: What do recruiting events look like now — are they in-person, virtual, short meet and greets, luncheons, etc.
New marketing platforms and tactics: Are your competitors trying new social platforms, employing advertising on higher ed sites, or partnering to sponsor local events?
Admissions requirements: Who’s requiring admissions tests, employment history, GPA, etc.

For program directors

Examining how programs are changing and shifting to meet the demands of the market is invaluable. Although it is not likely that your program will make an immediate shift based on something a competitor is doing, it’s important to keep tabs on them so you can answer your prospects’ questions and position your school uniquely in the market.

You’ll want to examine metrics such as:

What specializations are being added
Student experiences like international trips, clubs
Professional development
Career counseling
Faculty shifts

If you need help in defining your competitors, what areas to examine, and what metrics to track, GPRS can help. We have worked with over 60 schools and have insights into program enhancements, program branding, and how competitive schools are using digital advertising to position themselves in the market. Contact us today to start the conversation.