Students don’t always make their college or university decisions right away. Many ponder the decision for months, comparing and contrasting different schools until they finally decide which one makes the most sense for them. In order to boost enrollment, you must keep prospective students’ interest as long as possible. Follow these inbound marketing tips to continue engaging prospective students month after month.
1. Leverage CRM Software to Better Understand the Market
CRM (customer relationship management) software isn’t just for retailers and e-commerce business owners. It’s also a powerful tool for higher education marketing. It helps you analyze prospective students’ activities and engagement so you can provide them with the content they want.
You can use a CRM software to keep track of prospects’ contact information, understand individual prospect’s behavior, and collect an analyze data about how prospects interact with your content. Since it’s all stored and displayed in one place, you have easier access to the data you need.
2. Ask Students to Give Their Opinions
Most students have strong opinions — and they love to share them. Surveys allow you to invite opinions from all prospective students. This shows that you care what they think and what they want; simultaneously, it provides you with valuable insight into how your prospects make their decisions.
Make sure you tailor surveys to each specific prospect based on their personal information, such as their ages, academic interests, and demographics. You can glean this information from your CRM software program or from other data analytics you’ve collected.
3. Pay Attention to Conversations on Social Media
Since students spend a considerable amount of time on the Internet (and, more specifically, on social media), you’ll want to keep your finger on the pulse of social platforms. Pay attention to what students say about your school and how they interact with your online presence.
A social media monitoring program will automate this process. You probably can’t sit at the computer 24 hours a day and search hashtag after keyword in search of data. A computer program eliminates the need for manual tracking.
4. Make Your Content Smarter
Sure, content is still king, but the best content is adaptive and flexible. That’s where smart content comes in. Smart content changes based on the user so that each prospect sees the content that is most relevant to him or her.
Your CRM tool is a great way to master this process. You’ll use the data you collect to serve up engaging content that aligns with the individual student’s place in the buying — or college searching — cycle. This will help you increase enrollment and improve your school’s reputation.
Higher education marketing depends on your ability to keep prospective students engaged. If their interest wanes, your enrollment numbers could too. If you’re interested in boosting your higher education marketing results, contact us to discuss your specific needs.
