Your Higher Education Marketing Tactics May Need An Upgrade

In Higher Education marketing, experience counts for a lot but so does keeping up

with the latest marketing techniques that target the college demographic. With a large percentage of students now online, being able to reach them and connect with them is even more critical. Competition is fierce and University Admissions Offices need to differentiate themselves from the competition. Playing into a niche market is often effective. Are you a Christian University? Do you offer unique programs? Do you have a special member of staff to highlight? All of these allow you to share your story with prospective students with the intention of making that connection.

Each college and university wants to attract and enroll the best qualifited students, but budgets are tight, students have access to information in countless ways, and social media is transforming how potential students interact with the institutions and each other. Higher Education Marketing Consultants with years of experience stress that marketing for higher education is a moving target. It has been suggested that it "reinvents itself almost annually". We are inclined to agree.

A couple of trends stand out.

Utilize the power of peers. Prospective students often feel more connected to current students who they see as being like them. Figure out a good way to use that to your advantage. Create the opportunity for current students to blog about their college experiences. A video blogger can provide the visuals that potential students can use to begin their selection process.

Create an environment that encourages authority figures to reach out. Again, it's about making a connection but this connection is one who prospective students can look up to. These can be a series of success stories from alumni, guest blog posts, dynamic faculty speakers on YouTube and even your current students who are known influencers.

If you choose to use the services of a higher education marketing firm, look for a firm that understands the ever changing landscape of higher education. A firm specializing in higher education marketing should be more in tune with how prospective students are finding information, what kind of information they want, and how to best package that information for the demographic. They should be willing to spend time getting to know your institution, to better identify the unique value that you bring to the higher education field.

Marketing for higher education isn't limited to the online arena; traditional marketing practices still apply and statistics show that a combination of online and offline are the most effective tools to have in your arsenal. The SMART (Sales Management and Academic Recruitment Training) training workshop is a great way to learn the latest higher education marketing techniques especially suited to maximizing the effectiveness of your recruiters. These on-Campus Training Events are a great way to motivate and educate your admissions team, giving you the inspiration and tools to be able to make that connection and to identify those influencers who will contribute to your overall marketing effort.

by: Duncan Imhoff

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