Spend 62% Less on Your Marketing Budget With Content Marketing As a marketer in higher education, you may struggle with budget constraints that limit your marketing capabilities and outreach to prospective students. These constraints can significantly impact your ability to launch effective marketing campaigns to attract new students to your institution. In the face of these constraints, getting creative and resourceful is crucial, optimizing every dollar for maximum impact.
Here are some ways you can incorporate content marketing into your strategy:
Blogging: Share stories from campus, insights from faculty, student success stories, and educational blog posts related to your school.
Social Media: Use social media platforms to share this content and engage with your audience.
Webinars and Podcasts: Offer free webinars or podcasts hosted by your staff, students or past graduates.
Email Newsletters: Keep your current and future students and past graduates informed with regular email newsletters.
Content marketing is a long-term strategy, and your return on investment will be slower than other methods. Still, when you create evergreen content on your website, it continues to attract and engage your target audience, leading to sustained visibility, increased brand recognition, and a steady stream of prospective students, making it a valuable investment for your long-term marketing goals.
Budget constraints are one challenging issue in higher education marketing. Read the six other challenges you could experience, plus our solutions to fix them here.
Optimize Your Admissions Process with a CRM System
Tracking and organizing student applications for a smooth admissions process is essential. Without the right tools, a college admissions office could experience slow response times, internal miscommunication, and the loss of documentation.
Because of this, higher-ed admissions departments should use customer relationship management software (CRMs) to store, track and update admissions data. Using such software can ensure students don't slip through the cracks and your school handles all admissions decisions promptly and professionally.
Here are some CRM systems we recommend:
ActiveCampaign: This tool merges email marketing, marketing automation, and sales/CRM. Its features, such as segmentation, site tracking, and event tracking, enable better student engagement and understanding of student behaviour.
HubSpot: HubSpot is a comprehensive CRM solution widely used across industries, including higher education. It offers a complete marketing, sales, customer service, and CRM software platform.
Salesforce for Higher Ed: Salesforce offers a tailored solution for higher education institutions. It includes features such as recruitment, student success, advancement, and operations management, all on a single connected campus platform.
With the many challenges that can arise during the admission process, implementing effective strategies can help optimize the process and improve the experience of students and administrators.
Read our recent blog post to learn more about four practices higher education institutions can use to enhance their admissions process.
Increase Enrollment with the Power of Influencer Marketing
As digital marketing tactics evolve, so do higher education institutions' strategies to reach prospective students. One tactic that has gained popularity in recent years is influencer marketing. Influencer marketing relies on endorsements and product mentions from influencers – individuals who have a large following on social media and are considered experts in their field.
But here's the thing, you don't need to look too far to find influencers to promote your institution. By collaborating with current undergraduate students, faculty, student body members, and alums, you can create authentic connections with prospective students and showcase the unique aspects of your school.
Current Students: Encourage students to share their experiences and successes through social media, blog posts, or videos.
Faculty Involvement: Encourage faculty to participate in webinars, write articles, or create video content highlighting their expertise and your school’s unique programs.
Alum Engagement: Develop an alum ambassador program encouraging graduates to share their experiences, attend college fairs, or participate in virtual events to connect with potential students.
Leveraging your students and staff is cost-effective and will build a strong brand for your institution. Like all marketing, it requires planning and execution to be successful.
If you need help, we offer customized, full-service higher education marketing services that will fill your pipeline with quality prospects and applications. You can schedule a free consultation with one of our experts to learn more about our services and how they can help your school grow!
In this blog post, we will explore the world of marketing budgets in higher education, including average spending figures, areas where universities invest the most, critical components included in a marketing budget, and valuable insights on creating an effective budget that aligns with your institution's goals.
In this blog, we will explore common challenges faced in higher education digital marketing and discover seven practical solutions that can help you transform these problems into opportunities for success.
From leveraging the power of social media to university partnerships, we’ll discuss actionable steps you can take to increase your global reach and appeal to students from various cultural backgrounds. Dive into these eleven valuable strategies and discover how you can make your institution stand out to prospective international students!
