When someone decides that they want to take the next step and further their education, it’s a pretty big deal.
There is a major issue a lot of universities are facing when it comes to reaching out to new prospective students. Marketing methods have changed for each university.
They have to start the process of finding the school that’s right for them. What university has the program I need? What university can I afford? Where am I going to get the best overall experience? There are so many questions and so many universities to choose from, how does a student even know where to start? There has to be a way for the universities to draw in the students that they are looking for. When it comes to making connections to students, here’s what universities should do to stand out.
Know their audience. Each university most likely has a target audience that they are trying to reach and recruit. Universities need to do their research in order to know exactly who they want to target and what information they will need in order to target this audience. Any marketing strategy begins with creating your buyer personas. These are your potential customers, or in this case, potential students. Know who your ideal prospects are and figure out how you are going to reach them. This means providing them with information that you believe they would find interesting, helpful, or informative.
Use evergreen content. Evergreen content is content that is going to remain relevant even past its publication. It is content that will always remain relevant and timely. So in the case of universities, they can probably rest assured that topics like financial aid information, resume writing tips, and guides to finding the right career path will always remain relevant to their target audience. While you may have some content that is real time, most of your content should be able to transcend time.
Use real time content. Real time content can mean more than one thing. First of all, there probably will be certain news stories or articles that are relevant to a university. In this case, universities should share this information, while it is relevant, with their audience. The second meaning of real time content is sharing content that comes directly from the university, such as photos and videos. Photos and videos of a real life experience with real life people are going to get a university way more views than anything else. Universities should be snapping photos of homecoming, football games, or simply photos of everyday things that occur on campus. A university will attract more students if the students can actually see what they have to offer.
Share their knowledge. Sharing knowledge is a part of sharing evergreen content. A university should share what they know about their “business.” The ins and the outs of the college world. Typically, universities should consider what questions they are most commonly asked, and answer those through their content. Prospective students will be attracted to a university that is helping them out and giving them answers without them even asking for the information.
Share their successes. One of the first things that a potential buyer looks at before choosing a company is probably the reviews that past customers have given. Someone else’s opinion of a company or a product weighs heavily on our decision. Just as with a business, students are going to look for “reviews” of a university. The best way a university can get this information out there is by creating and sharing success stories. Universities should keep in contact with current students and alumni in order to share with their target audience what an education from their university has done for others.
So if you’re part of a university marketing team, you may be wondering where to begin. Here’s some steps to get started on reaching your target audience.
- As mentioned above, in order to reach your target audience you will want to create your buyer personas; the ideal prospective students that you would like to reach. You can create your buyer personas by going to https://makemypersona.com/. Here you will find a guide that will take you step-by-step through the process of creating your own personalized buyer personas.
- You will want to make sure that you have a Facebook account or sign up for a Facebook account. Facebook is where you will reach a large portion of your audience. With this platform, you can build many relationships and hopefully, turn those relationships into students or referrals.
- Aside from Facebook, you will want to have a Twitter account. Twitter is the platform in which you can become a thought leader in your field. You can share the knowledge that you have about your industry. This includes not only your own content, but sharing the content of other thought leaders in your field. Prospective students will begin to recognize you as a relevant and knowledgeable contact in your field.
- Video is becoming the most popular way to reach the audience that you are targeting. This is why it is extremely important to get a YouTube channel to market your university. YouTube is where you can share information and the real time material. You can show prospective students what your university is all about, including everyday life on campus.
- The final platform to fully stock your marketing campaign is LinkedIn. This platform will give you the ability to connect with students, prospective students, and other professionals. LinkedIn tends to be a more formal platform than the others, but does its job just as well. It is important to be on all platforms so that you can reach every possible audience.
If universities want to reach the right students, content is going to be key to their marketing plan. Prospective students are looking for helpful information, reassurance that others have experienced success, and comfort in knowing that they know the “real” university. A university needs to let its audience see its true colors; its values, its beliefs, its campus life, and its people. Students want to know that they are getting the real deal when they invest in a university and in their future.
Comments