Insights on Admissions Marketing

So...have your chickens hatched?

Welcome to summer.  A time to relax and reflect upon the recruitment year that was, as well as the recruitment year that is just around the corner...right?

Wrong.

So, what are you doing to stay connected with your prospective students over the summer and ensure you don't face the regret of "summer melt" this fall?  According to the latest E-Expectations Survey results, an area you need to keep in mind is popular social networking sites.

While we are still compiling data and results, early information points to an increasing acceptance of college and university pages within sites such as MySpace and Facebook.  (I won't reveal the results here, but I would encourage you to attend the JT "Technology in Student Recruitment" conference this summer for the full report and a wealth of information.)

What should you keep in mind if you start to look creating a presence in these areas?  Here are a few tips:

1.  Don't be who you aren't.

You aren't a high school senior anymore.  Get over it and act your age.  Don't try to talk the lingo.  Don't try to be cooler than you are.  Just provide a forum for students to meet you, meet each other, share some information and have their questions answered.  Prospects know you don't understand the environment as well as they do.  It's ok.  Just be yourself.

2.  Makes sure your web site does the heavy lifting.

Allow your page to share basic information and background, but make sure to drive students to your web site or other resources as much as possible.  Use social networking as a tool that lets you set the hook.  How you work with them and communicate with them after you have set the hook will determine if you can reel them in or not.  (Can you tell I am from Minnesota?)

3.  Don't get too "friendly".

The nature (maybe even the goal) of most social networking sites is to establish a network of friends.  Not friends in the traditional sense...but rather a collection of miscellaneous individuals that may or may not know one another outside the electronic realm.  Resist the temptation to reach out and build your own little group of friends.  Let them find you...and if they want to be your friend...treat them with the same respect you would any student that comes to campus to visit.

And by all means, check it out.  See what you can do.  Go where your prospects are and stop making them come to you.

Social Networking...Part Deux

Because I said I would, more on social networking.

I just wrapped up a small presentation to a group of High School counselors earlier today.  The presentation was on Web 2.0 communications technologies that students use and how some colleges and universities also use them to reach prospects.  The conversation was excellent and I cannot thank TCRAR for the opportunity.

But the question came up-as it often does-about using these tools because of the opportunities for abuse and negative comments.  That got me thinking about two items, one a comment and one a question.

The comment:  If a student desires to criticize your university, your academic programs or anything about you...they have millions of venues in which to do so on line.  From "Campus Confidential" to "Rate a Prof" or their own personal web page or MySpace, students will find a way to make their opinions known.  Why shouldn't it be in a venue where at the very least, you are aware?

The question is this though....I hear this comment often, but very rarely do I actually see/experience the abuse everyone is afraid of!  Certainly, this information exists on "Campus Confidential", but when your entire site is dedicated to criticism (and some praise) of Higher Education that is to be expected...(especially if you can post anonymously....).  However, on the many AdmissionsGenie sites we maintain for our clients, there are so few issues that I would say the problem is nearly non-existent and when it does occur, it is never to the level that individuals fear so severely.

Is it just me?  If you have an example of a PROSPECTIVE student that misbehaved in an outlandish fashion via your website to the point that you considered shutting a solution down, I would be very interested in hearing your story.

MySpace and Facebook and Xanga...oh My!

Social Networking.....

For those of us that haven't grown up in a world where computers and the Internet permeate every corner of our lives, those two words can sound very intimidating.  But, should they be?

And for those that think it is just a fad and will go away...I invite you to check out sites like Club Penguin and Disney XD.  I cannot even get on my computer at home because my kids are online all the time!

Even for those of you that know NOTHING about MySpace, Facebook and the many other social networking tools available, with very little effort they can help you keep prospects connected and drive information about events and your university, all while costing you nothing other than your efforts!  I have long advised AdmissionsGenie clients to at least establish a presence in both areas that redirects students to their admissions homepage and helps drive traffic.

But, what is the real value of social networking?  I am going to try and share some thoughts about that over the next few days, but as an introduction thought I would point you to some recent research on the topic.

Fred Stutzman is a PhD candidate at UNC and maintains a blog all about social networking, technology and information.  He recently release an extensive report on social networking.  While the majority of the report is more specific to marketing its role in social networks, there are certainly lessons to be learned for admissions professionals as well.

Social networking isn't going anywhere.  It will only continue to grow and evolve, just like the Internet that has allowed it to exist.  Embrace the tools and use them to your advantage.  I will have more on how to do this and examples that I have found in coming posts.

The Power of Recognition

Everyone likes to feel special.....

It doesn't matter who you are, it doesn't matter where you are from, we all like recognition.  We like to be noticed.  We like people to care.  We all have just a little ego.  Seth Godin touched on this recently, putting it in the context of business and marketing.  As a consumer of a product or service, how can a business make you feel like a person?  How can you be made to feel special?  What is the business value of that?

And while this is certainly true for the world of business, it also pertains to the world of admissions. Personalization of the admissions process, on a consistent on-going basis can make all the difference when engaging a prospect.

Obviously, you know a student's name prior to calling them or when they come to your campus.  But, what about when they are on your web site?  How about the mailings you send?  The capability exists to allow you to personalize every touch point you provide a student, based on interests, academics or simply their name. 

On the web, you can create environments that are responsive student and provide  them the information they need at the point they need it.  Millennial students are used to this type of on-line experience and increasingly they are seeing it as an expectation of your outreach to them.

So, ask yourself, are you creating a connection?  Or are you running an assembly line?

Virginia Tech and the power of community

If you spend any time on Facebook, you have likely seen the following image in the last 24 hours. 

In the aftermath of the most tragic day of violence ever on a university campus, the Internet community is reaching out to VT.  Just one forum, "All Our Prayers are Going out to Virginia Tech" already has over 5,500 members is just over 36 hours.  Many institutions are displaying their school logo along with the image above as an expression of sympathy and solidarity.

As with so many tragedies, we cannot fathom how this can happen, but it is comforting to know that we can be there to support one another.