Get 2020 vision for your January planning sessions
As you enter into your inevitable January planning sessions determined to find ways to innovate and prepare for the upcoming recruiting push, consider these top marketing trends and opportunities for your school.
Video
As you scroll through your feed, you may notice more and more videos. Whether they are animated, organic videos shot with a GoPro or professionally done snippets, video is now king in social media marketing. And many websites are even using video as a way to replace longer content narratives. Video is becoming imperative in higher ed because of the personal scale connection required for large buying decisions like a degree.
The opportunity: Find ways to integrate video into your marketing strategy, vary your content and don’t sacrifice production quality.
Influencer Marketing
In the past, you may have thought of an influencer as a celebrity or a high-profile executive. But on Facebook and Instagram, anyone can be an influencer. And social feeds are cluttered with people telling you what to buy, do and even think. Sometimes it can be hard to determine if what you are seeing is an ad, an endorsement or simply someone giving a recommendation for a product they like. Influencer marketing can be extremely lucrative, but also risky because of the personal implications. It is less controlled because it is tied to someone’s personal opinions. On the other hand, if an influencer has sway with your target, it could be a solid strategy. Just be sure to select well.
The opportunity: Think of influencers in a non-traditional way. Could an alum or professor be an influencer?
Blogs
The evolution of the blog in recent years has rendered it one of the single most important ways to boost your organic website viewership. When written well, with abundant and well-placed keywords and search terms, blogs can create well-qualified traffic to your website. Their value also extends into thought leadership and general education. Adding a blog or re-imagining your current blog can pay dividends.
The opportunity: Research trends in education each month and write about them using the top keywords. Recency is key so be sure to capitalize on what’s trending while also relating it to your school and website content.
SEO
Writing keyword-rich content is no longer an option. SEO can give your website higher rankings on search engines that can translate directly into more traffic. If you are unsure about how to get started, a qualified firm can help you conduct an audit of your current site and give you recommendations for improvement.
The opportunity: Research keywords to find out what is trending in competitive searches. Incorporate those words into your website content and increase your organic traffic.
If you’re looking for ways to innovate in your upcoming strategy sessions, GPRS can help you keep up on the digital marketing trends and customize your communication for your prospects.
