Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | August 30th, 2021

With less people taking the GMAT, what is happening to the top of your funnel?

The GMAT was once seen as the gold standard in higher ed — a way to predict success of prospects in an MBA program, a determinant of quantitative skills and a judge of work ethic. And because of the test’s reputation and its status as a key gatekeeper for prospective students, many schools have been using GMAT test registrants to populate their databases for years. Due to the pandemic and recent market shifts, the GMAT is on the decline, and along with it, its ripe list of registrants. So what can schools do that have relied on this test for so long?

The GMAT is on the decline

In today’s market, there are several reasons why GMAT is on the decline, according to a recent article in Poets & Quants:

Fewer schools than ever before are requiring it, due to the upheaval the pandemic has caused on test-taking in general.
The GMAT is losing market share to the GRE; where tests are required, the GRE is quickly growing in popularity as its at-home version had a smoother rollout during the pandemic. It’s also less expensive.
Currently more than two-thirds of B-schools in the U.S. now offer some form of waiver. And of the top 50 programs, 32 now offer applicants a path to avoid taking a test all together. That number is growing as the pandemic stretches on.
Schools that previously required the GMAT and waived it during the last admissions cycle are having trouble justifying a return to stringent test requirements.

So what is this doing to the top of the funnel?

Quantity

Schools that relied heavily on purchasing GMAT registrant names to populate their databases and mailing lists are seeing less availability of qualified leads. Although fewer test takers don’t necessarily equal less interested prospects, it is a disturbing trend in higher ed that marketing and admissions departments across the country haven’t yet figured out.

If your school falls in this category, here are a few potential solutions:

Expand your name purchase strategy to include competitor tests like the GRE.
Develop and expand your lead generation campaigns to target those who frequent admissions sites like Poets + Quants and rankings websites.

Quality

Schools that previously relied on a minimum GMAT score to determine candidate viability may be having trouble gauging prospects’ qualifications. There are many schools that have devised specific formulas to predict students’ success in the program based on certain quantitative scores, especially for programs with a heavy finance and accounting curriculum. In addition, other schools see the GMAT as being extremely rigorous and use it as a way to gauge prospects’ commitment to studying for the test and potential work ethic that will help them succeed in the program.

If your school is struggling with finding ways to gauge lead quality due to the GMAT decline, here are a few potential solutions:

Develop a new set of criteria to establish a baseline of requirements.
Determine a new way to gauge commitment, like a test developed by internal faculty.
Review the success of the students admitted in the past admissions cycle against the students’ performance from the previous 2-3 years. Determine what differences there were.
Find a way to bring perceived lagging students up to speed with a class prior to being admitted or starting the program.

There are many ways that schools can overcome the shifts that have been caused by the pandemic, but it can be extremely difficult to overcome these challenges, especially when you are in the midst of constant change and a static recruiting cycle.

If your school needs help identifying ways to increase the quantity and quality of your leads, even with the declining GMAT test taker numbers, GPRS can help. Our team has worked with many schools to develop solutions to increase lead activity and grow enrollment. Start the conversation today.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | August 18th, 2021

What higher ed can learn from luxury brand marketing

If you’ve ever purchased an expensive watch, the latest handbag or designer shoes, you hope that the quality is worth the cost. Regardless of your motive for buying a luxury brand – a desire for buying the best, or the ability to show others you have refined taste, the reality remains the same – you were willing to pay a lot of money for something you hope delivers value.

An advanced degree is similar in many ways – and often costs even more than that bag, scarf or piece of jewelry you’ve been eyeing. Let’s take a look at the similarities between luxury brands and higher ed, and what schools can learn from how the big brands do it.

Marketing for luxury goods

Advertising for luxury goods and brands tend to focus on opulence, quality and the happiness you will feel when you interact with their brand. They want to inspire confidence in customers that they will elevate their status by using their product. They do this by:

Using elevated words like timeless, performance, prestige and elite
Using imagery that conveys luxury
Employing prestigious spokespeople, celebrities and clients
Implying scarcity, as in, it’s hard to obtain, find or fit into
Implying a mystique – what’s in the secret sauce?

In addition, there are some things they don’t do, like:

Mentioning price
Telling you where to find/buy it
Stating the value you’ll receive (as it’s implied)

As far as the channels they use:

Avoid casting a wide net and instead focus on channels that allow targeting of specific demographics.
Rely on word of mouth and personal recommendation.
Extend their customer service beyond the purchase with nurturing, personal care.

Using luxury brand marketing strategies and tactics for higher ed

While you may not use every advertising technique listed above, schools can:

Focus communications on where the degree will take you, the elevated circles it will place you in and the performance aspect of the new skills you will obtain.
Use imagery that conveys your brand. If you can’t swing a custom photo shoot, opt for campus shots and tight criteria on stock images.
Highlight prestigious alumni, faculty or current students as representatives of your programs.
Emphasize selectivity while remaining open to a diverse set of students.
Imply there’s a secret recipe to the success of your graduates without divulging the ingredients.

Like luxury brands, schools should avoid:

Mentioning price, ‘deals’ or words like ‘less-expensive’ or ‘cheap’
Limiting campus visits to scheduled appointments – instead encourage prospects to explore the campus on their own to get a feel for the atmosphere
Pushing too hard on the value you will receive for the money as this may concern some prospects and cause them to do in-depth price comparison

As far as channels go, schools can take a page out of the luxury good playbook and:

Target certain demographics for specific programs and do research on what channels your ideal student uses
Rely heavily on alumni referral
Provide nurturing, personal outreach to as many prospects as possible

Although there are many similarities between luxury goods and the higher ed industry, it’s clear that an advanced degree will take you much farther on your journey than a pair of designer shoes. Highlighting the benefits of your degree, showcasing successful alumni and targeting your advertising in both channel and communication type can go a long way.

If you need help customizing your marketing strategy and communications plan to appeal to your prospects, GPRS can help. Our team has worked with a wide range of schools to develop solutions to increase lead activity and grow enrollment. Start the conversation today.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | July 30th, 2021

Is your funnel too top-heavy?

Did you ever think it would be a problem if you had too many leads? If you have generated a large number of leads but your enrollments haven’t caught up, your funnel may be top-heavy. But don’t despair — there are ways to dislodge your stalled leads, move them through the process and refill your funnel with qualified prospects for the next round. Find out what could be causing the backup and some solutions for ensuring an easier flow as you ramp up for your next recruiting cycle.

Is your funnel full of leads that aren’t qualified?

If the leads in your funnel are not qualified leads, this means that they’ve expressed interest in your school, but that they are either not ready to move past the interest stage, or they do not fit the profile for your program. This disconnect could be the product of a marketing campaign that is either targeted too broadly (in demographics or geography) or lacks clear communication and calls to action.

Solution: If you have a tracking system or CRM that can identify the marketing campaign that generated a batch of unresponsive leads, it might be worth looking at the data to determine ways to alter your messaging or media mix. You may also consider developing personas for your ideal student. Personas will help you customize your communications to appeal to students who will be successful in your program.

Is your funnel experiencing a backup due to lagging yield activities?

For a lead to move to the next stage of the funnel, it takes a coordinated effort between marketing and admissions. An automated email communications flow can do some of the work. When it is paired with outreach from the recruiting team and a personal engagement strategy, your qualified prospects may be more inclined to respond and become active.

Solution: Ensure your marketing and recruiting team are aligned on a seamless pull-through communications strategy. In addition, be sure your front-line recruiters and program staff are equipped with the resources they need to respond immediately to inquiries. Some schools try hiring a firm to handle incoming and outgoing messaging, implement a more sophisticated lead tracking system, or develop a process flow for following up with leads.

Are your leads engaging or have they stalled out?

It is possible that some leads in your funnel are not active because they have put their decision-making on hold. You might be wondering if they’ve decided to pursue another program/school/path and forgot to let you know. Or it could be that they are still considering your program, but it’s just not the right time.

Solution: Chances are that if a lead has stalled, there is a barrier to blame. Try launching a re-engagement campaign that includes authentic messaging, addresses common barriers, and assures your prospects you’re available to talk. You can also evaluate your current communications with a creative eye. If you’re seeing some engagement, i.e. they opened the email but didn’t click, consider what you’re asking them to do. Are you requesting that they start an application before they’ve attended an event? Would they prefer to connect on the phone first? Try being flexible and varying your calls to action and see what happens.

Do you have a clear conversion strategy?

In any other sales funnel, this step is called the closing. The true meaning of conversion can be defined differently depending on the stage of the admission process. Gather your brightest minds and determine what you want a conversion to look like. How you will accomplish your goals at each stage. For example, how will you get leads to click on an email, attend an event, start an application and submit a deposit? Be mindful of each step in the process and determine how you can support each prospective student along their journey. Mapping it out can give you and your team measurable KPIs.

If you need help evaluating the quality of your leads, the effectiveness of your current marketing campaign, or ways to dislodge stalled leads, GPRS can help. Our strategy team has worked with many schools to develop solutions to increase lead activity and grow enrollment. Start the conversation today.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | July 15th, 2021

5 steps for creating an automated email communications strategy

As you plan for the upcoming recruiting year, you’ll want to make sure you have one critical element in place – an automated email communications plan.

First, you’ll want to respond as quickly as possible to a submission or request for information; automating this step can ease the burden on the admissions staff and give your prospects confidence that they can expect good customer service from your program.

After the first contact has been made, it’s up to you to stay “top of mind” and “top of inbox”. Sending consistent messages over a set period of time can allow you to slowly disseminate key information and answer your prospects’ questions so they can make decisions.

Here are five simple steps to creating your automated communications strategy:

Segment your programs

Many marketing and admissions departments are responsible for recruiting for multiple programs at one time. Although it may be tempting to send out blanket emails that include links to all programs, it can actually hinder you being able to communicate critical information. Be sure to create a separate communications flow for each program, or develop sub-groups based on program type. For example, if you have an in-person MBA, hybrid Executive MBA and online Professional MBA program, each should have its own set of emails. However, if you have an online MBA with 3 different concentrations or tracks – it may make sense to start out with one flow and then supplement with additional information as necessary.

Segment your audience

Just as you will have different audiences for each program, you may also be able to break out your audience based on certain criteria. For example you may have one communications flow for all MBA prospects, but within that flow add extra emails for key demographics like women, URM and military.

Aim for a slow, targeted build of information

The way you structure your communications is ultimately up to you, however, we suggest these key areas as a starting point:

Introduction from your program manager or dean
Student life
Program structure
Key program benefits (although these can also be infused into each email)
Program differentiators, such as a client project, internship, international immersion, etc.
Career paths
Support
Inclusion
Call to submit an application

Create a simple format

Your prospects are likely receiving communications from several schools. Make sure your sender is consistent and that your branding is clear. Make key decisions on greetings, intro paragraphs, how you will present information and how you will give your prospects a clear call to action each time. Try to develop a word count max so each email is similar in length.

Create a schedule

Depending on what works best for your program, spread your emails out over a period of weeks or months. You could opt to send one email per week or bi-weekly. Many schools benefit from sending emails on the same day at the same time (for example Tuesdays at 10 a.m.). Your prospects know when to look for information from you. Setting a clear plan ahead of time can minimize panic sending and eliminate jamming up your prospects’ inboxes

It’s important to develop your automated email communications so they can be sent at any point during the year. You will want to avoid any time-stamped information and reserve this for your event and application emails.

With a clear plan, you can develop a robust email communications flow that can yield applications and give your prospects the information they need to make decisions.

GPRS is your communications partner

If you need help developing an integrated automated email communications strategy, GPRS can help. Our team of experienced writers and strategists can develop a plan that works for your team and provide guidance for disseminating your message to your prospects. Start the conversation today.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | June 29th, 2021

Is it time for an enrollment growth diagnostic?

As you are wrapping up one recruiting season and preparing to begin a new one, you may be breathing a sigh of relief. You’ve made it through one of the most difficult times in recent history and regardless of the impact on your bottom line, your team has had many accomplishments. But, is it time for an enrollment growth diagnostic?

How do you know if you’re poised for growth? And are your upcoming enrollment targets attainable? Most importantly, are your tactics sustainable, or is it time to pivot to address new challenges?

Although it may be tempting to stay the course, now is the best time to dive deep into how your marketing and recruiting strategies are working. The results you find can help you determine what to continue, start or stop doing.

Why a diagnostic is important

The goal of a diagnostic is to assess how your programs currently market and recruit so you can increase effectiveness. When you dissect each element of your strategy with an objective viewpoint, the outcome can help you develop a roadmap. That will ultimately lead to continued growth and sustainability.

What to examine

We recommend auditing your marketing and recruiting targeted at growing enrollment at the top and middle of your funnel.

Top funnel: Start by examining your strategy and audience targeting, move on to tactics such as media mix and creative, and end with evaluating your metrics.
Middle funnel: Look at your conversion process and the platforms you use to yield students such as your CRM and communication touchpoints. You can do a thorough review of the data in your CRM to determine impact.

Depending on your school’s appetite for optimization, you can also evaluate data at the program level. You can look at audience personas and review how your internal teams work together, set goals and gauge success.

What decisions can be made

Once you’ve collected the data, you’re ready to create your roadmap for optimization. This may seem daunting; however, you can follow these general guidelines to help you with the process:

Categorize your findings: Group your findings by what to continue-start-stop doing. From there, you can assign priorities to what enhancements can be done now vs. later.
Form an implementation plan: Detail your next steps from strategic to tactical. Assign timelines, responsible parties and KPIs for periodic check-ins.
Document how you will manage change: It is important to acknowledge that even the best laid plans can morph based on circumstances and changing environments. Find ways to build flexibility into your plan and checkpoints to assess whether any pivots are needed.

The GPRS Enrollment Growth Diagnostic

GPRS is a specialized firm with deep expertise and a singular focus on growing enrollment revenue. Over the past 20 years in working with over 60 colleges and 150 graduate programs, we have identified trends, challenges and successful strategies for filling classes. We believe that growth comes from change and are offering our clients a unique opportunity to gain new objective viewpoints into their successes as well as blind spots that may inhibit progress. When GPRS performs a diagnostic on your program, we’ll dig deep into every aspect of your marketing, recruiting, goals, successes and challenges. We’ll emerge with a roadmap that outlines a sustainable path to success for your program with a solid plan that your team can implement.

If you think an enrollment growth diagnostic might be right for your school, let’s start the conversation today. By the time the next recruiting cycle comes around, you’ll be positioned for success with greater insights and a roadmap to address your challenges.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | June 17th, 2021

Communications as the pandemic winds down

At this point in the pandemic, many may be excited that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. As states are beginning to open up and drop capacity restrictions, schools are thrilled to be planning for a Fall semester that is going to look more normal than it did last year.

Although this news is encouraging, your prospects may still be in a state of limbo, wondering if now is the right time for them to return to school or pursue an advanced degree. They may also have many questions as things are continuing to evolve.

It’s important for your school to address the questions on everyone’s minds – even if your answer is that “it’s a work in progress.” Your prospects need to know that you are thinking about the same things they are — and that you are available to address their concerns. Your admissions staff is the front line in communicating with prospects so arming them with consistent and unified communication strategies is critical.

Address the big questions

A recent article in Higher Ed Times recommends that schools account for questions regarding the pandemic. This not only includes safety measures, but also what to expect for class delivery and even post-graduation opportunities. Although the answers may still be a moving target, it’s important to address things like:

Mask policy
Big group gatherings
Class delivery (in-person, virtual or hybrid)
Professor office hours and interaction
The job market
Return on investment

Over-communicate

Going back to school is a huge decision involving a significant financial investment and many complexities. It can be similar to making a decision about medical care, such as a surgery or treatment plan. And sometimes getting a second (or third opinion) is necessary. The bottom line is: the more information the better.

Your prospects need as much information as possible – especially right now – because things are changing so rapidly, and they may still have a lingering level of uncertainty. Communicating consistently and clearly can help them feel more comfortable with their decision to choose your school. Here are a few strategies you can try:

Develop a landing page that addresses all concerns about campus life. This can be in the form of an FAQ page that you modify as things change. Link to it in a banner at the top of your website so it is easily accessible.
Update your automated communications flow to infuse key information changes in each mailing, email or text.
Launch a social campaign addressing key questions in a concise way.
Host a webinar that includes Q+A with admissions or program managers and then post it online and link to it in communications.
Arm your admissions staff with talking points so that all conversation touchpoints are consistent.

Be available

As people are getting out more and the economy is showing signs of rebounding, your prospects may be both excited about moving forward and uncertain about their future. Their barriers may still include questions about their work life, school for their kids, the job market, financial stability and even how comfortable they are with large groups of people.

Being available at this juncture is extremely important and could be a critical piece to helping them decide on your school or a competitor.

If you happen to miss a call or an email, try to adopt a 24-hour return policy.
Establish automated responses.
Answer questions as quickly as possible or let them know you’re looking into it.
Be honest, open and available to ensure that you don’t lose them.

Although these practices may seem like second nature to any admissions or marketing professional, it’s important to note that stepping it up a notch in the current environment will pay off.

GPRS is your communications partner

Working with a firm that has a deep understanding of the educational landscape can help you determine what types of communications are right for your school. GPRS tracks industry trends and has a long history of helping schools develop strategic enrollment strategies that get results. Start the conversation today.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | May 26th, 2021

Innovation during an uncertain time

Do Something Different sign The past year has been marked by rapid and forced transformation. In some ways, it may seem that education has taken 100 steps forward as opposed to the typical slow-moving approach to change that is a hallmark of the industry. Admissions and marketing staff have cut through the red tape of bureaucracy to find innovative ways of recruiting students and adapted at lightning speed to promote new or altered programs.

Regardless of whether your program has recently seen a slowdown or explosive growth in applicants, you may have a cautious optimism as you develop your recruiting strategy for next year. With limited resources, should you stick with what worked last year or continue to evolve your marketing?

Let’s examine a couple strategies for innovation and how you can weave them into your school’s plan.

Enhancing or improving what has worked

You may have heard the saying, “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.” And to some degree this is true. If something has worked in the past, repeating it just makes sense — especially when resources are limited and you need a measurable ROI. But this past year has taught many that change is constant. Even if you repeat tried-and-true methods, there’s a chance that you’ll yield different results in a different landscape. Examining your metrics and successes through the lens of the current market can help you develop a plan that’s based on consumer insights and grounded in data.

For example, last year when many people shifted to working from home, your prospects became more available online. If you increased your digital marketing and social media spend there’s a chance that you saw increased engagement. But before you lock on the same budget and tactics for the upcoming year, evaluate the percentage of your prospects that are still working virtually. The same goes for events. If you had fantastic results by shifting your events to an online format, is the appetite still there for virtual engagement, or would a hybrid approach work better?

Disrupting the status quo

While the operating models in your school are undergoing massive fundamental shifts, marketing and recruiting have a key seat at the table to drive change. No one knows your students or prospects better, so don’t be afraid to suggest things that are new and different based on what you are hearing and seeing.

Here are some tips:

Don’t rush. Use your consumer insights to inform future decisions while also staying true to your brand.
Set measurable goals. Determine if your activities aim to generate awareness, increase engagement or drive applications.
Maintain your tracking dashboard. Use your benchmark data and remain agile so you can adjust and optimize plans as needed.
Find ways to be a leader. Adopting a trend is one thing, but creating a trend is another.
Do the unexpected. Find ways to create buzz.
Stay relevant. Develop experiences that resonate with your audience, meet their needs and answer their questions.

The pandemic has accelerated your need to re-examine resource allocation, find new ways of communicating and remain agile while adapting to the current market situation. It has provided many with the needed push to make change happen. Armed with this new confidence, you can take a more structured approach to improving your existing strategies and creating new disruptive ones that will allow you to adjust with the market.

GPRS is your innovation partner

Working with a firm that has a deep understanding of the educational landscape can help you determine what types of innovation are right for your school. GPRS tracks industry benchmarks and has a long history of helping schools develop disruptive enrollment strategies that get results. Start the conversation today.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | May 12th, 2021

Metrics matter when you’re making decisions

Is every dollar in your marketing and recruitment budget allocated? During a time when resources are limited – time, money and people – it’s important to focus your efforts on clear measurable strategies and tactics that will give you a solid return on your investment. This doesn’t mean that you can’t try new things; on the contrary, carefully planned innovation may give you that much needed enrollment boost you’re seeking. Just be sure that you’ve outlined a clear path for setting and measuring your success so you can continue to make informed decisions about the future.
Let’s take a look at why metrics matter and how you can use them to optimize your enrollment campaigns.

Identifying metrics

The most common key metrics to gauge marketing campaigns in higher education are leads in the top of the funnel that yield seated students. But there are many other areas in between that you can track that give you a good read on how your campaigns and recruiting strategies are performing.

Digital advertising lead generation: In this arena, you’ll want to keep a close eye on cost per click (CPC), cost per lead (CPL), and cost per acquisition (CPA). These show how much you spent to get someone to click, convert into a lead and then turn into a seated student.
Engagement: Tracking the ways that leads are engaging with you and then attributing it to a conversion can give your team key insights. For example, you can track interactions on social media that turn into requests for information. You can also find out what is resonating the most with your audience. Executive students may be more likely to engage with admissions staff through a personal conversations while MBA students may prefer connecting via email or social. Other audiences may gravitate toward texting.
Event attendance: Although events may continue to look different in the near future, you can keep track of the types of events you’re hosting, and which ones yield real conversations and applications. This can help you determine how to spend your time and marketing dollars to promote the events. For example, an online preview day may take tons of time and effort to yield a couple applications vs. an interactive webinar that yields 15 applications.

Tracking your metrics

While your CRM can do a great job of tracking interactions once they’ve entered the system, you’ll also want a dashboard that can keep tabs on how your leads found you and how your advertising is performing against your planned budget. Some key metrics to include are:

Inquiries and enrollments based on marketing campaign, channel and message
Trends based on seasonality, geography and audience segment
Leads broken out by program

When you have this data, you can pivot your plan in real-time to increase or decrease your spend in certain areas and ramp up or pull back based on interactions. It is recommended that you use a firm that is skilled in tracking ROI and building dashboards so that you can focus your time and effort on marketing and recruiting.

Evaluating your data and planning for the future

What you do with your data is more important than how you collect it. When you can attribute your key metrics back to leads and seated students, you can identify what worked and what didn’t. And when you have benchmarks that you can track year over year, it allows your team to develop strategies, make important decisions and allocate resources for your next round of recruiting.

GPRS is an extension of your team

If you’re looking for an agency that is well-versed in digital campaign optimizations, GPRS is your partner. Our proprietary campaign optimization system, GP Insights^TM, shows your real-time campaign data and can even display industry benchmarks showing how your peers and competition are trending. Give us a call and we’ll be happy to give you a demo.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | April 29th, 2021

Using your school’s blog to tell your story and increase traffic

If you are looking for ways to increase traffic to your site, boost social media activity and tell your story, blogging could be your answer. Here are three ways you can use a blog to tell your story and make a huge difference in your content game.

Boost SEO

An SEO audit of your school’s website may show that one of the key areas that stores SEO-rich content is your blog (if you have one). Even if you haven’t made efforts to update it consistently, it acts as a housing area for all of the keywords and phrases people search for. Since blogs are more conversational in tone, they often include the real questions people might type into a search bar, like “Is an MBA right for me?” And if your content doesn’t include these types of questions or keywords, now’s a great time to start doing research so you can make those updates.

Without getting too technical, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) means that your site includes the keywords and phrases people search for, which will make it more likely to come up as a top result in search engines. You can either pay to do this through pay-per-click advertising or do it organically – or both. To organically make your site more valuable, you need to have both quantity and quality of content which starts with including keywords and phrases with high search volume. This brings us back to your blog. Before you write your next blog, try doing these things to make sure it is SEO rich and traffic-worthy:

Do a search of keywords and phrases on your topic. You can do this using a free or paid web listening tool, or by digging around in your own site’s google analytics.
Add relevant keywords and phrases throughout the content, while ensuring that the content reads well.

Guest bloggers increase credibility

Although your admissions and marketing team is the frontline in your recruiting process and can definitely be expert bloggers, from time to time, see if you can mix up your authors. Guest bloggers draw a varied crowd and boost the likelihood that your blog will be read and shared more widely, not just by those who frequent your website often. Guest bloggers can also offer a different perspective, objective viewpoint, or even a bit of additional notoriety to your articles. You can try using:

Alumni – High profile alums who are well known in their industry or have an interesting and successful career trajectory are ideal.
Current students – Giving a close-up view of the classroom, student activities or an internship can serve as eyes and ears for prospective students who want to know what daily life looks like.
Faculty – Highlighting faculty research or a particular class in the curriculum can give a window into the high caliber professors you have at your school.

Regardless of who you get to tell your story, make sure they have a story. And always tie their relevancy back to why they are the blog author by adding an intro for context.

Blog to tell your story

Your website has been designed to highlight your programs, benefits, outcomes and faculty. It is a formal space for prospects to visit when they can’t visit you in person. But no matter how inviting your website content is, there is no substitute for the informal conversation prospects are seeking. What’s the real story? How will I really feel when I’m on campus. Will I fit in? Will I get the job I’m looking for? Is it worth it?

Use a blog to tell your story, and address these concerns and barriers in an honest way that lends itself better to real conversations.

To focus on your blogging efforts, you can start small. Recruit a couple of guest bloggers and do some keyword research. Try adding one new blog per month and then work up to one per week. Then push anything you write out on your social platforms. Encourage sharing. You might be amazed at how quickly you start to grow your traffic just by telling your story.

GPRS is an extension of your team

If you are looking for ways to add to your digital marketing strategy with blogs, GPRS can help. Enlist a partner that can identify where you need help, offer you solutions and suggest new strategies for setting and achieving your goals. If you’re ready to start the conversation, contact GPRS today.

Insights from the Higher Ed Experts

BY Anthony Campisi | April 15th, 2021

Finally, some good news for higher education

GMAC’s 2021 mba.com Prospective Students Survey Report has reported some great news for higher education. While the pandemic is still a major part of our lives, vaccines and dropping case numbers are giving hope after a year of uncertainty and chaos. What does this mean for the higher education industry, and your programs specifically? As prospective students are emerging from their pandemic hazes, concern about the virus is waning. Prospects are showing more interest in graduate education.

Read on to find out about recently reported trends and advice on how to communicate to your prospects amid these positive shifts in the market.

Women are on board with remote learning

While the pandemic has impacted everyone in different ways, studies show women have been disproportionally affected. While working from home, women often shoulder the additional responsibilities of managing remote learning for their kids. Many woman have put their career aspirations on hold and moved into survival mode. But restrictions are starting to loosen and there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Women are starting to focus on their next steps professionally. They are considering higher education as a means to give them a boost.

According to Sangeet Chowfla, president and CEO of GMAC, “It is especially encouraging to find female candidates seeking advanced business degrees for career advantages despite the unique challenges and barriers they faced due to COVID-19.” But they still need flexibility. While considering graduate programs, many women say they prefer online programs. They consider them to be equivalent to in-person options as it relates to education quality, career opportunities and networking.

So how can you communicate to your female prospects during this time?

Realize prospects are looking to brush up on professional “soft skills.” Highlight your leadership development program and how it can further their skills as leaders.
Focus on how an advanced degree can make them competitive amongst peers, especially when emerging from a career shift or pause.
If your program is online or hybrid, be sure to communicate specifically and simply about the logistics of course delivery, group work, networking and opportunities to interface with client companies. Women want to know what their time commitment will be.
If your program is in-person, take the time to offer personal consultations that facilitate a two-way conversation.

International candidates prefer on-campus learning

One of the main drivers of international students’ ambitions to pursue advanced degrees is the opportunity to work and network outside their own country. According to the GMAC report, amidst the pandemic, over 70 percent of international candidates reported they still plan to continue pursuing an in-person degree experience vs. their domestic counterparts (52%). In addition, the U.S. is a top choice for students from India and Canada. There has been a small drop-off in prospects from China, which could be due to political tension and more business school programs in Asia.

So, how can you communicate to your international students during this time?

Continue to utilize the media and communication strategies you’ve used in the past. Although nothing about the past year has been “status quo,” you can rest assured your international candidates are still interested. They want to hear from you.
Enhance communications about internships, networking and job opportunities. These are the key drivers to their decision making, so be sure to highlight these.
If your program is online, let them know there are still ways to network with their cohort. They can attend recruiting events that can lead to employment opportunities in their country of choice.
If your program is in-person or hybrid, address any concerns regarding travel and living in the U.S. Ensure their comfort level with plans to study abroad.

Although this report only addresses a portion of your prospect pool, the news is encouraging. Demand for graduate education is increasing and now is the time to double down on recruiting efforts.

GPRS is an extension of your team

If you are looking for ways to update your digital marketing strategy to account for shifts in the market, GPRS can help. Enlist a partner that can identify where you need help, offer you solutions and suggest new strategies for setting and achieving your goals. If you’re ready to start the conversation, contact GPRS today.