Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | February 21st, 2020

Writing keyword rich content that increases search results — and sounds great too

Constant updates to Google’s search algorithm are being made. But it doesn’t do you any good to obsess over them – just know that the goal is to improve the user experience, not stress you out. If your school is working with a skilled digital agency, you can rely on them to optimize your campaigns and content. If you are looking to DIY, the simplest way you can take advantage of all of what Google and other search platforms have to offer is to set your website up for success with keyword-rich content.

When keywords are done right, you can boost the quantity and quality of organic (non-paid) traffic to your site:

Your position on the first search page (top 5) will get 70% more clicks than the second page.
51% of traffic to most sites comes from organic search.

Why does keyword-rich content matter?

It sounds simple, but the more keywords you have on your site that correspond to what people are searching for, and that you’re relevant for, the more traffic you will receive. Although a cornerstone to any good digital strategy is paid search, there’s no way to know exactly how much your competitor schools are spending. The best way to boost your search volume organically is to update your site with the words that matter most.

How do I find out what the best keywords are?

When it comes down to it, you know your prospective students the best. Think like they think, interview current students, scour your competitors’ sites, do countless google searches and use related searches to brainstorm. Think like a student considering a degree:

Is an MBA worth it?
EMBA in California
Executive MBA ROI
Is an online degree right for me?
When is the best time for an MBA?
How much does an MBA cost?
Global EMBA program

Although you may have highly attractive program benefits you want people to know about, these may not always translate to popular search terms. This doesn’t mean that you wouldn’t want to include features like “Canadian immersion” or “Doing business in Asia” on your site – it just means that you will benefit more from the real questions students are asking. Keep in mind that although you’ll want plenty of broad words like your degree name, it is unlikely that you will rank for them so finding your niche and including 3 word phrases will help.

Tips on finding relevant keywords:

You can use tools like SEMRush and Google Keyword Planner to find out what people are searching for.
You can hire an agency to do an audit and make recommendations for you.
Know that keywords are not always just words – they can be phrases or questions too.

How do I write keyword-rich content?

As a general rule of thumb, Google looks for keywords in your opening and closing paragraphs and no more than 5 times per page. This goes for blogs as well. But weaving them in can be difficult – be careful not to just write sentences that stack word after word. Here are some tips:

Start with your homepage – this is the most visited site on your page and you want the most important keywords to appear here. This is a great place to include phrases and questions.
Write your content first, thinking more about your message and prospective student’s mindset than keywords.
Once you’re happy with your message, go back in and identify places where you can insert keywords that make sense and don’t distract.

As you are looking for ways to increase traffic to your site using SEO, take a look at your keyword strategy. GPRS can give you access to successful methods and copywriting tips to make your site stand out to search engines.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | February 7th, 2020

Ramp up for recruiting season. Try new event types, go local and keep the lines of communication open.

A room full of prospects at your upcoming admissions events is your objective. Start with an event strategy that will register with your future students and help you stand out from the competition during recruiting season.

As you finalize your plans and budget for the upcoming recruiting season, here are some tips to customize your communications and maximize your event attendance with the right leads.

Make your event unique – and market it that way

Yes, your prospects, regardless of their age or career stage, want to know the benefits of earning an advanced degree. But more importantly, they are looking to experience your school. That includes everything from professor interaction to meals during class days and what your building looks like. Giving your prospects a glimpse of “a day in the life” can go a long way in helping them make their decision. It also ensures they are a good fit for the program.

When you’re planning your events, try thinking outside the classroom. Plan a short walk around the building or grounds, cater snacks or lunch from a local restaurant or include a faculty meet and greet. If your program is online, try showing a video of a virtual class or including a student panel. Although you may be tempted to spend your limited valuable time promoting your degree (which is also important), try adding a unique element that will entice your prospects. Give them a feel for your school’s culture and help you stand out from the competition.

Try feeder events

Your prospects are busy. Whether they’re completing undergrad, shifting careers or climbing the corporate ladder, their time is limited. And as they’re deciding their next steps, they may not have the availability to attend lengthy events at multiple schools. Giving your prospects options for how they experience your school can make a huge difference. You want them to attend a ½ day admissions event or weekend workshop – but often that’s not the first entry point.

If you give your prospective students the opportunity to preview your school by attending a webinar, an informal lunch or a cocktail hour, you are more likely to push them further down the funnel. Talk to them about their career goals, determine what their ambitions are and then invite them to take the next step.

Go local

Based on your geography, and brand strength, your school may draw students from up to 300 miles away. Show them that attending your school is attainable by connecting with them in their area. Host informational lunches or dinners in different cities where you believe your prospects live. Use geotargeted digital advertising to drive event registrations. Follow up with prospects via email and texts based on filters in your CRM. Do what you can to show up and meet them on their turf.

Encourage attendance after registration

Event registrations do not guarantee attendance. In fact, it’s possible that 20-50% of your attendees may not show up. To stay connected with them, show them you care. Call or text them to encourage them to come. Email them using personal subject lines and even use your personal email to touch base. If you don’t have the resources to follow up with everyone individually, use an outbound call center or automated texting. And don’t forget the power of your CRM to send timely messages.

As you finalize plans for recruiting season, consider partnering with a firm with a proven track record in higher ed. GPRS can give you access to successful formulas, methods and media choices to build a solid campaign aimed at your target student. Using our proven Digital Blueprint, we can hone in on qualified candidates and deliver the right communication and messaging that will encourage them to take action.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | January 29th, 2020

Using CRM to support nurture and re-engagement strategies

The beauty of most CRM (Customer Relationship Management) platforms is that they give your school the ability to automatically connect with your prospects, over a set period of time via email, with limited manual labor involved. Using these tools can help you nurture your leads so they feel cared for, and give them the information they need to take action. Here are some creative ways on how to use CRM data to keep engagement high and re-energize prospects that may have fallen off the radar.

Nurturing leads

In a recent blog, we talked about managing your relationships with prospective students using different email communications tracks, content and frequency. When you have a communications roadmap, you can set your CRM to send filtered emails to certain prospects based on their demographics and stage of application. This takes the manual work out of sending emails and saves you time. Once you’ve completed the upfront work, it’s important to not just “set it and forget it.” The true value of using a CRM to nurture leads really comes in the next critical step after the emails are sent. Tracking, measuring and analyzing your data is key so you can act on your findings for better results.

A CRM gives you all of the data you need to make decisions on how to nurture your leads:

Engagement level – How often are prospects opening your emails? If you see a drop with 2X a week, but a surge with 1X a month, you can adjust your frequency to find a happy medium.
Best (and worst) performing subject lines – Which lines or themes are the most popular? If subject lines with questions and calls to action have high open rates, consider using these more often.
Clicks within the email – What are the most popular links and CTAs? If you notice videos and buttons with CTAs have higher click rates, be sure to use these consistently and creatively.
Filters – What filters are working the best? Based on certain segments that respond the best, try to adjust your strategy to maximize the engaged prospects.

Re-engaging leads

Even with the most sophisticated marketing strategy, it is possible for some leads to go radio silent. In a recent blog, we talked about how to re-energize stagnant leads by customizing content, auditing your communications mix and varying your calls to action. The key with stagnant leads is that you can only re-engage them if you know why they stopped interacting in the first place. And a CRM gives you all of the data you need to find out why your leads stopped engaging so you can develop a plan to get them back on board:

If certain groups aren’t opening emails about application deadlines, they may need more information before they’re ready to take the next step. Try addressing their barriers.
If your leads are opening your emails but not clicking, try varying your calls to action and including different ways for them to interact like viewing a video, or linking up with you on social.
With inactive leads that haven’t interacted in six months to a year, you can create a re-engagement campaign using an enticing offer to spur action. Some examples include access to a value-added webinar or exclusive event, or even a personal invitation.

If you need more ideas on how to use your CRM, nurture your business schools leads through your system or re-engage leads that have stopped interacting, contact GPRS today. We can help you choose a CRM, help you learn how you use your existing data and set up a plan for capturing actionable information that you can use to turn your leads into seated students.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | January 23rd, 2020

Get 2020 vision for your January planning sessions

As you enter into your inevitable January planning sessions determined to find ways to innovate and prepare for the upcoming recruiting push, consider these top marketing trends and opportunities for your school.

Video

As you scroll through your feed, you may notice more and more videos. Whether they are animated, organic videos shot with a GoPro or professionally done snippets, video is now king in social media marketing. And many websites are even using video as a way to replace longer content narratives. Video is becoming imperative in higher ed because of the personal scale connection required for large buying decisions like a degree.

The opportunity: Find ways to integrate video into your marketing strategy, vary your content and don’t sacrifice production quality.

Influencer Marketing

In the past, you may have thought of an influencer as a celebrity or a high-profile executive. But on Facebook and Instagram, anyone can be an influencer. And social feeds are cluttered with people telling you what to buy, do and even think. Sometimes it can be hard to determine if what you are seeing is an ad, an endorsement or simply someone giving a recommendation for a product they like. Influencer marketing can be extremely lucrative, but also risky because of the personal implications. It is less controlled because it is tied to someone’s personal opinions. On the other hand, if an influencer has sway with your target, it could be a solid strategy. Just be sure to select well.

The opportunity: Think of influencers in a non-traditional way. Could an alum or professor be an influencer?

Blogs

The evolution of the blog in recent years has rendered it one of the single most important ways to boost your organic website viewership. When written well, with abundant and well-placed keywords and search terms, blogs can create well-qualified traffic to your website. Their value also extends into thought leadership and general education. Adding a blog or re-imagining your current blog can pay dividends.

The opportunity: Research trends in education each month and write about them using the top keywords. Recency is key so be sure to capitalize on what’s trending while also relating it to your school and website content.

SEO

Writing keyword-rich content is no longer an option. SEO can give your website higher rankings on search engines that can translate directly into more traffic. If you are unsure about how to get started, a qualified firm can help you conduct an audit of your current site and give you recommendations for improvement.

The opportunity: Research keywords to find out what is trending in competitive searches. Incorporate those words into your website content and increase your organic traffic.

If you’re looking for ways to innovate in your upcoming strategy sessions, GPRS can help you keep up on the digital marketing trends and customize your communication for your prospects.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | January 15th, 2020

New Year. New Leads.

If your program’s New Year’s Resolution is new leads, better leads or more leads, read this first!

An age-old debate in higher ed is whether to focus on quality or quantity of leads to obtain the right amount of applicants, and ultimately, seated students.

One party may say quantity is more important because it’s all about volumes and ratios. For example, if you need 100 applications, you have a better chance with 1000 leads than with 500.

While another party may focus on quality. For example, if you need 100 applications, 1000 leads won’t do you any good if they aren’t qualified, and you’re better off with 500.

And this doesn’t even begin to cover the budget implications.

So, who’s right? The answer is both. You want more leads, but you want them to be right for your program.

How do you set out on a path to increase your quantity AND quality? Here are a few pointers we’ve gleaned over the past close to 20 years of working with higher ed institutions to grow their enrollment.

Your target matters

Start here. One of the most important pieces of any strategy is developing a detailed description of your target that everyone agrees on. You can create personas, develop a detailed flowchart, or even write it on a Post It note. Key attributes to consider are:

Demographics: age, gender, geography, undergrad institution or advanced degrees, military, etc.
Psychographics: career stage and goals, mindset on advancement, where they spend their time online, what’s important to them, etc.

And once you have your target nailed down, don’t compromise. When you’re developing a marketing strategy, it’s easy to stray away from your primary focus (which is the prospective student) because of a sales call that sounds enticing, or a “deal” on marketing. But when you make compromises to save money, it can end up costing you.

How (and where) you get your leads matters

A qualified firm can help you determine your strategy once you’ve narrowed in on your target. But even if you are doing it yourself, choosing the right platforms is imperative. Otherwise, you may feel like you’re just waving a banner on the side of the road. Some ways to get started in developing your digital marketing strategy are:

Conduct an audit of past performance for certain media your school has used
Do research on where certain demographics are spending their time online
Get in the mindset of your target – think about their barriers, goals, limitations
Buy media through reputable sources

How you nurture your leads matters

Obtaining leads is only 50% (or less) of the equation. Once they’ve entered the funnel, how you communicate with them and nurture them through the final transaction can make more of a difference than how you found them. And sometimes, a lead who was on the fence can be swayed with a carefully crafted nurture strategy like:

Managing your relationships with prospective students using different email communications tracks, content and frequency
Maximizing your CRM
Engaging new leads and re-engaging stagnant leads
Managing the middle of the funnel

Using your budget wisely matters

It is a myth that budgets are the only determining factor for marketing success. A well-placed digital media buy based on a sound strategy and tracking your ROI throughout the campaign can give even the smallest budgets a leg up in competing for leads. And allocating some dollars each year for testing can also give you an advantage as you try new things and innovate your marketing.

If you need more ideas on how to find the right balance of lead quantity and quality, selecting the right digital advertising channels for your target and personalizing communication for your prospects, contact GPRS today. We can help you develop a plan to fit within your strategy and budget.