actics- digital marketing for education industry | Venture Care
Digital marketing in education sector assists universities and institutions
to build their brand and amplifies student recruitment process.
Students
(and their parents) now expect online entry forms and a presence on social
media, and candidate recruitment becoming a year-round activity - and as
digital channels continue to evolve, even established educational suppliers
should be re-evaluating their marketing strategy for education
sectorannually.
1. Consider key timings
Look at when in the year
you can best plan or review your marketing strategy, also allowing time for
implementation. Recommended timings are preparing for the new academic year
in JUNE and getting ready for the new financial year and spring term in
NOVEMBER.
Regardless of your budget, setting aside time at critical
points in the year to work on your marketing strategy will help you generate
demand that leads to fill those spaces. It's also worth remembering to keep
future candidates warm throughout the year. Don't just see candidate
recruitment as a one off 'open day', as competitors will find it all too
easy to creep up and steal prospective students from you when you least
expect it if you're not at the top of your game year round.
2.
Understand (and use!) social media
Prospective students now expect you
have a strong social media presence across key channels, including Facebook,
Twitter and YouTube. Being present on these channels helps you keep your
college front of mind so make sure you're making the most of social
platforms. To make sure you're making the most of the latest channels, check
out our previous blogs including 5 Lessons on Harnessing the Power of
YouTube and Getting to Grips with Twitter Advertising.
3. Become a
'page one' search result on Google
When parents and students are
researching suitable education providers online, it's essential that you're
a top result. As Google is the most popular search engine, Google AdWords is
the most effective way to help drive traffic to your website. There is of
course a huge amount of relevant competition in AdWords, so it's important
you know what you're doing when setting this up! It's also a good idea to
work with someone who is experienced in SEM, otherwise it can become very
expensive.
4. Take a multi-channel approach BUT join it up!
Prospectuses
remain key and still the best place to tell the story of your college /
university, from results to reputation and facilities to extracurricular
activities - but they shouldn't be seen as a document in silo.
Print is
most definitely not dead (especially in the world of education), but make
sure your prospectus is also featured on your digital, social and email
communications as well as any promotional items you give out at events. Keep
your theme joined up throughout to make the most of your investment.
Looking
for a better way to attract aspiring students? Our digital marketing plan
for educational institute
Can help you not only establish a powerful
presence online, but connect with students which are a perfect fit.