isp proposal
TRANSCRIPT
Mission Statement
We strive to provide our clients with the highest quality of business advice. Crystal Ball
Consultants focuses on providing the correct resources and technological advances for our
clients’ businesses to be successful. By delivering superior business advice we are able to help
our clients succeed in the professional world.
Executive Summary
Analysis of Needs
Through various meetings, Crystal Ball Consulting uncovered the primary desire of the
Adult Studies Program is to increase enrollment. The two underlying requirements for achieving
this are: more effective marketing strategies and non-traditional class formats. The Adult Studies
Program has a great start, but Crystal Ball Consulting wants to take you to the next level of
success in an effort to help the program’s enrollment grow exponentially. After conducting a
SWOT analysis we have determined various starting points for improvements.
Solutions
Crystal Ball Consultants recommend technological advances combined with current
software systems to increase the effectiveness of the program. Also, we are recommending a new
direction for marketing, in an effort to reach more prospective students. The final item that
Crystal Ball Consultants proposes is to adapt more progressive classes. Moving away from the
traditional classroom and moving towards hybrid/online classes will give greater flexibility to
schedules, and provide additional incentive for them to participate in your program.
Software
In order to successfully use Customer Relation Marketing (CRM) it is important to
understand the components of the software you are using. The Adult Studies Program is
currently using Constant Contacts, which is an e-mail marketing program that allows you to
track e-mails sent, opened, and forwarded, choose from many of their templates, and
automatically send e-mails to customers without having to manually input information. But why
stop there? Constant Contacts is very limited in terms of marketing and does not allow for much
customization or targeted marketing. This is where Hobsons Radius comes into the picture! The
application features of Hobsons Radius are:
• Student Relationship Management
• Application and Admissions Management
• Prospect and Enrolled Student Communications
• Reporting and Analytics
Hobsons Radius is a CRM that does what Constant Contacts does and more. The
implementation of this software within the Adult Studies Program will lead to an increase in
effectiveness of tracking prospects, targeting specific demographics, which will ultimately lead
to an increase in enrollment.
The switch to Hobson Radius will be seamless. The Admissions office at Virginia
Wesleyan College already uses Hobsons Radius. Therefore, the Adult Studies Program simply
has to obtain the school’s code to use the software for no additional costs! Another factor in
creating a smooth transition is that Hobsons Radius offers consultants and expert analysts who
are available every step of the way. They also offer training services; Hobson will send out
representatives to work hand in hand with you throughout the duration of your transition to their
software.
Maintaining a personalized approach is important to the Adult Studies Program, and with
Hobsons Radius, you are able to do this. It gives you the ability to create and maintain deeper
connections with features such as:
• Case Management
• Event Planning
• Online Inquiry Management Tools
Hobsons Radius provides the ability to build dynamic, multi-step outreach campaigns that will
accompany your planned online marketing campaign. Its easy-to-use features and reporting
capabilities help you manage every process involved with admissions. Even if a person does not
end up enrolling immediately, Hobsons Radius allows you to stay in contact with these
individuals. This allows you to develop and build a deeper relationship and ultimately gain their
enrollment. Hobsons Radius offers certain features that no other CRM has to offer. These
features include the ability to connect with prospects through multiple channels such as email
and live chat. (Additional information can be found in Appendix I page I-III).
Virginia Wesleyan College is unique and each division faces separate challenges.
Hobsons Radius was built to adapt and configure to your varying needs as they evolve. However,
having a program with all these great features is only half of the battle. It is important to have the
knowledge to understand the program and be able to use it proficiently to develop processes and
strategies to be successful. The consultants at Hobsons Radius have many years of experience in
higher education admissions and student success; they would help make the Adult Studies
Program’s goals a reality. Hobsons Radius admission management allows for exceptional control
and detailed tracking. This is possible through the following features:
• Application Management
• Digital Application Review and Decision Management
• Personalized Student Portal
A new application management system allows you to create and manage new applications and
hold all applicant information in a uniform place. This creates a better experience for all those
involved. Are you tired of reviewing countless applications? Well now you don’t have to! With
Hobsons Radius you can place customized workflows specific to Virginia Wesleyan College and
make reviewing applications easier than they have ever been in the past. Continuing with the
easy to use and incorporation of information, it will now be possible to include application and
financial aid tracking all in one personalized student portal that is unique to each applicant.
Better communication with current and potential students is also an area where Hobsons
Radius excels. The marketing capabilities surpass that of Constant Contacts; it is easy to have
targeted campaigns based on constituent segments. Because of this, it is possible to geo-fence
certain areas and create advertisements for certain demographics. As mentioned earlier, the live
chat functionality allows you to build deeper connections with the current and future students
with the ability to answer questions immediately as they come in. This is something that you
could have the work-study students manage. It is simple to monitor and many of the questions
asked would be frequently answered questions, which already have generalized answers.
Communication plans can be automated with Hobsons Radius, which helps target outreach
activities and allow constant dialogue with future students.
Through the capabilities of Hobsons Radius, sending out email blasts will be easier than
ever before. You will have the capabilities of utilizing lists of recent graduates from community
colleges like Tidewater Community College and Thomas Nelson Community College. After an
interview with President Scott Miller, he mentioned that every December Tidewater Community
College sends a list of their recent graduates to Virginia Wesleyan College allowing information
to be available to start marketing to prospective graduates. As of this year, Thomas Nelson
Community College agreed to do the same thing. Having these opportunities will increase the
effectiveness of marketing campaigns towards prospective students because the recent graduates
from these community colleges are the ones that are currently and actively pursuing a degree.
With the features of Hobsons Radius tracking these prospects and figuring out the effectiveness
of your promotional campaigns will be seamless. This will lead to an increase in awareness of
the benefits of your program and an increase in enrollment.
The most important part of this software is the reporting and analytics. Importing
information will not be a problem with Hobsons Radius because it is made compatible with
already existing systems at Virginia Wesleyan. This means that all of the information stored in
Datatel will be able to be transferred over and used more efficiently through Hobsons Radius.
This software will also enable each staff member to customize their dashboard to display
information that is most pertinent to their daily tasks and their role within the Adult Studies
Program. Marketing will be a huge part of the program moving forward and it is important to see
what works and what does not. Radius’ campaign analytics function allows you to see results
from every campaign on an individual basis. It will allow you to see the results and get feedback
so that you can fine-tune your marketing strategy. If you want to see specific results you can
create custom reports that show the detailed outcomes and the recruitment yield. Segmentation of
future prospects is also possible by using data retrieved from across Hobsons Radius, and it will
let you provide more personalized, targeted messages. These features make you aware when a
specific marketing campaign does not work to the degree you hoped. This creates the ability to
find the most effective ways to reach prospective students.
Hobsons Radius has been proven to work at schools across the nation, specifically,
Spartanburg Methodist College and Hope College. These two higher education institutions had
similar goals as the Adult Studies Program and, shortly after implementing Hobsons Radius their
goals became a reality. The case studies on these colleges can be found in Appendix I, pages iv-
vii. In addition, President Miller informed Crystal Ball consulting that twelve of fifteen peer
colleges successfully use Hobsons Radius.
Hardware
We do not suggest any additional hardware nor any changes to your existing hardware.
What you have in place in sufficient. The college supplies you with the necessary equipment in
order to be successful. It would be a waste of our time and yours to suggest new hardware and
more expensive equipment when, in all actuality, an increase in effective marketing and efficient
use of the software we are suggesting will allow you to reach your goals. In place of replacing or
adding hardware, money budgeted for this can be spent on training sessions for Hobsons Radius.
Thus helping the Adult Studies Program fully understand the capabilities of the software. With a
training professional on site, your entire staff will develop a deeper understanding on how to
reach and track more prospects.
Security
The Adult Studies Program has a comprehensive network security program through the
Virginia Wesleyan College network. To attach to any Virginia Wesleyan network there are a few
steps to go through which are included in Appendix II.
This multi-step process ensures that any devices, wireless or wired, are virus free and
have up to date programs. By having a strict set of parameters for joining the network (such as
those listed above) it is much easier to monitor the devices that are connected. This helps prevent
loss, theft, or corruption of data on any of the college’s computers, including those of the Adult
Studies Program. The IT department at Virginia Wesleyan College also monitors all information
coming into the network in an effort to prevent malicious activity.
Further, the internal security network is split into two sections: administration and
students. Administration level requires credentials to have access which means it is a closed
system. By only allowing specific individuals access to this server there is little to no risk
associated with this side of the server. On to the more vulnerable section: students/general
access. Many more people have regular access to this server, which creates a higher risk
environment. However, to add to the security of the network there are internal scans of any
shared drive (H-drive). This means that no files will stay on the student server that are not
thoroughly scanned and pass all requirements. Additionally, Southern Association of Colleges
and Schools (SACS), visited our school to review our accreditation and we passed. One of their
requirements is to ensure that the school’s network is secure, keeps data safe, and is up to date
with all anti-virus protection. Finally, we have talked to an esteemed faculty member of the
Business Department at Virginia Wesleyan College to gauge his level of confidence in our
network. He has worked at many other schools of varying sizes, business models, and degrees of
prestige, and we are confident in his level of expertise. His response when asked about the
security was as follows, “I have worked with many schools programs and had a variety of
problems with them. However, Virginia Wesleyan’s network is secure, and has been secure for
over a decade since I started my career here.” The measures stated above, paired with this
statement of confidence, allows Crystal Ball Consultant to feel confident in the expertise of
Virginia Wesleyan’s IT department.
Marketing Outreach Survey & Suggestions
We conducted a survey to get to know the Adult Studies population better. We asked
general questions about their work schedule, outside responsibilities, any tuition assistance they
are receiving, and what they would like to see change in the Adult Studies Program. The survey
questions can be found in Appendix III pages i-iii. Also, prior studies conducted on non-
traditional students support our findings; we have included the findings of one such study in
Appendix III page iv-vi.
Hybrid/Online Courses
According to enrolled students who completed the survey, 100% of them feel the need to
have online/hybrid courses offered. Most of the adult studies students work full time and the
classes offered to adult studies students at Virginia Wesleyan don’t fit their schedules. It would
be beneficial to them to have the opportunity to do their coursework online and meet once
biweekly to go over certain things. If online and/or hybrid classes are offered, it would fulfill
two other desires Adult Studies students have. These concerns include having a wider variety of
classes and degree programs offered.
One of the common concerns about offering online and hybrid courses is associated
costs. However, this issue is completely mitigated by using Blackboard and Google Hangouts.
Blackboard is already provided by the college and offers easy submission of assignments, a
plagiarism checker, and forums for discussions. It also offers professors the ability to grade and
comment on assignments.
Google Hangouts is a simple, and free, way to conduct a class meeting. Professors simply
set a time and students can sign in to Google Hangouts anywhere there is internet connection. Up
to 10 people can be involved with a video call, and up to 150 people can send/receive group
messages. In addition to Google Hangouts, the new Greer Environmental Sciences Center will
offer new technologies to the campus, making it easier than ever to conduct online and/or hybrid
classes.
In addition, President Miller informed Crystal Ball Consulting that the college is working
towards online degree programs and platforms for offering online and hybrid courses. He said
the college will be utilizing an outside vendor to these facilitate these changes. The company will
pay the costs up front and recoup the money throughout the contract term. Additionally, the
company will teach the faculty how to transition their courses into an online format and use all of
the tools. The college has looked into many different companies and narrowed their choices
down to two, and will be making the final decision shortly.
Social Events
Another popular opinion with Adult Studies students is that they would like to feel like a
part of the Virginia Wesleyan College community. More than half of the students who completed
the survey said that they would enjoy having social events for Adult Studies students.
It is important to understand the needs and wants of this significant portion of Virginia
Wesleyan and understand that non-traditional students are going to need non-traditional
programs. We recommend establishing a board of Adult Studies students that would be able to
host social events in conjunction with the WAC, SAC, or other on campus organizations. These
events would be designed by Adult Studies students for Adult Studies students. In addition, this
board could act as a forum for any questions or concerns that Adult Studies students may have
throughout the semester.
Traditional Advertising
Radio
According to interviews with ASP team members, the radio campaign launched in
August 2015 yielded a return on investment in terms of both calling attention to, and building
awareness of the ASP’s available programs and resources. More importantly, it compelled
listeners to contact the college, creating active leads and potential new students. We believe it is
in Virginia Wesleyan's best interest to build on this previous achievement by continuing to
utilize radio's reach to 25-54 year old adults.
There are over 1.2 million listeners in the metro area who are 18 or older and over
669,000 of those listeners are between the ages of 25-54 (see the Virginia Wesleyan radio
schedule/Tapscan, in Appendix IV, page xii). Based on an August 2015 Nielsen PPM (Personal
People Meter) Hampton Roads survey, over 93% of the population tunes in to radio each week
(data can be found in Appendix IV, page vi). Radio is an effective advertising medium for
several reasons:
• Targeted: Radio’s diversity of programming affords advertisers niche channels to zero in
on narrow target groups.
• Immediacy: Consumers vary in their stages of the purchase cycle – on-going radio ads
allow your product or brand to be front and center when people are ready to buy, even
during off seasons.
• Loyalty: People spend more time listening to information on the radio each day than they
do reading newspapers or getting news online.
Engaging: Listeners feel an emotional connection with their preferred radio
stations…Radio is a “call-to-action” medium.
• Intimacy: Radio ads are always front and center to engage the listener – ads are not
obscured by competitors or buried on the back page.
• Synergy: Adding Radio increases recall of TV, newspaper, internet ads and is proven to
drive consumers to advertisers’ web sites.
• Frequency: Exposing consumers to ad messages multiple times greatly increases the
likelihood of eliciting an active response.
• Creative Flexibility: Radio specializes in “theater of the mind.” The medium stimulates
emotion-filled images and recall within the listener. Used correctly, voices, music, and
sound effects can greatly improve recall of previously viewed images and messages.
• Cost Effective: Radio production costs less than TV and print. Radio is less expensive to
buy than most major media, allowing advertisers to afford maximum reach and effective
frequency.
For an advertising message to be effective it must be compelling. Because no single message
will be effective in motivating all listeners, it is advisable to establish a "mix" of two or more
messages into rotation. This allows us to bring more selling points to the table while reducing the
amount of "burn" that occurs when listeners are exposed to the same (single) message repeatedly.
We recommend 2 types of spots to be aired:
• Traditional / Announcer-based (the type run in the summer of 2015)
• Testimonial / Announcer call-to-action
Produced correctly, testimonial spots are extremely effective vehicles for delivering a compelling
message and call-to-action. Our plan is to produce these types of ads using portions of existing
testimonial audio previously collected and edited for web presentation by Earworks Media in
Virginia Beach.
Producing your own radio spots will establish Virginia Wesleyan College’s Adult Studies
Program as having an "in-house" agency, as opposed to having spots produced by a radio station.
This provides two distinct advantages: 1) The Adult Studies Program is entitled to a 15% percent
agency discount off the gross cost of the advertising schedule, and 2) It gives you the ability to
make use of the spots on any radio station without paying additional talent fees.
Utilizing the script and copy points from the previous campaign as a starting point, we
worked with Blabbermouth Audio Productions and Voice Talent Warehouse to develop a new
“sample” commercial that points out the same advantages of the Adult Studies Program.
Building on the previous theme, "continue your life story," the new script makes use of radio's
ability to connect with our target on an emotional level. The phrases "push your dream forward”
and "reach your dream" are included for this purpose.
The previous call-to-action required listeners to remember either Virginia Wesleyan
College's website or phone number. Rather than asking listeners to recall what amounts to
random digits and acronyms, we have secured a web domain that is easy to remember and
doubles as a call-to-action. Used as a tagline in the sample commercial, BringYourDream.com
has been set up to redirect users to the VWC ASP home page. In addition to this custom domain
providing a simple to remember phrase, it also affords you the ability to track traffic to the
existing website utilizing Google Analytics or similar performance tracking software. The
domain was purchased for a one-year period, which expires on October 30, 2016. At that time
the Adult Studies Program may renew the domain.
The previous campaign aired on two Sinclair stations: WNIS (a news/talk) and WNOB
(Bob FM). For this new campaign, we recommend using 3 Entercom Communications radio
stations: WNVZ (Z-104), WWDE (2WD), and WPTE (94.9 The Point). The combined Nielsen
ratings for these 3 stations outrank the 2 stations WNIS and WNOB, as indicated in the 2014
Nielsen Ratings. Furthermore, Entercom has a total of 4 stations in this market. As a cluster,
those stations reach more adults ages 25-54 than any other radio group in the market. The
October 2015 Nielsen ratings shown in the table found in Appendix IV, pages iv-v demonstrate
that Entercom’s 4 stations reach more than twice the number of listeners in the metro area,
providing better value and a higher probability of return on investment for the ASP. (The
references for 2014 Nielsen rankings including a breakdown of ratings for individual stations
are included in Appendix IV on pages iii. Further information on individual stations can be
found on pages vii-ix.)
We recommend two campaigns, one promoting the spring semester, and another for fall.
The spring schedule using the 3 Entercom stations will be broken into 2 phases:
• PHASE 1: 11/30/15 - 12/20/15
• PHASE 2: 01/03/15 - 01/11/15
Phase 1 allows time for listeners to register and apply for financial aid options. Phase 2 runs
about a week prior to the close of registration, creating a sense of urgency for which radio is so
well suited.
The proposed radio schedule is included in Appendix IV, pages x-xi. The schedule
provides for 279 spots spread among the 3 radio stations, covering 7 days a week, 6:00 am to
midnight, including the crucial morning and evening commutes. (A glossary of Nielsen
terminology and definitions referred to within this schedule can be found in Appendix IV, pages
i-ii.)
We propose employing a similar schedule for the fall semester, to run during July and
August. For that schedule we suggest running the spot used for the spring, while adding an
additional student testimonial spot to the rotation. As previously mentioned, audio from the
testimonials currently available online will be revised and edited to create the new spot.
The domain BringYourDream.com has an annual cost of $12.99, and can be renewed
annually. The cost of producing new radio spots will be $500 for each of 2 commercials, which
includes talent fees for a 13 week run. Should the ASP choose to re-run any ad, the only
additional cost would be an additional $125 per spot to renew the talent fee for an additional 13
weeks. The 15% agency discount applied to a $10,410.00 schedule (as proposed) is $1561.50,
enough to cover the cost of production plus an additional $561.50 which can be returned to the
ASP marketing budget or used to buy additional airtime. The cost for the spring semester
schedule, after discount, would be $8848.50, in line with the cost of the spot used during summer
2015. Total cost for one year, including use of the domain, production of 2 radio spots, and
airtime in the spring and summer radio campaigns would be approximately $18,834.99.
Airport Advertisements
Given the amount of traffic that goes through the Norfolk International Airport, we
believe it is a great opportunity to attract adult students. The average frequent flyer in this area
uses the airport between six and eight times per year. Many adults travel for work and, therefore,
advertising in the airport provides great marketing opportunity for the Adult Studies Program. It
is one of the more costly options for advertising, but the Adult Studies Program could see a great
return on investment. The monthly impression for an advertisement in Norfolk International
Airport is 770,605 according to the marketing director’s study. The annual number of
impressions is close to 10 million.
The specific placement we recommend for the advertisement would be on the airport’s
LCD screens that are strategically placed above the baggage claim. These are ten second spots
that rotate through ten different screens. This is a location where most travelers convene and
typically have to wait for their baggage to appear. While waiting for their baggage, they are
static. This location would have a greater impression than an ad located where many people
simply walk right past it without reading it. The average dwell time for this location is 17-25
minutes and targets arriving guests as well as ‘meeters and greeters’. This location has screens on
both sides of each belt and is enhanced with ad-stacking capabilities. The options for advertising
contracts range from 1-5 years; the longer the contract is with the airport, the cheaper the price
per month. We are recommending a 1-year contract that costs $875 per month, or $10,500 a year.
Pending the success of the initial advertisement, we would then recommend a 5-year contract in
an effort to obtain a discounted price. (Costs associated with other locations as well as other
contract lengths can be found in Appendix IV, pages xiv-xvi).
Another option we would recommend considering would be to combine advertising
efforts at the airport with the Marketing and Communications department. Virginia Wesleyan
College is already advertised at the airport and, in an effort to mitigate some of the costs, the
Adult Studies Program could look into simply adding information about the Adult Studies
Program into the preexisting ad.
Business Cards
After examining the Adult Studies Program’s prior business cards, we believe there is too
much text on such a small card. Although the current business card is an improvement from the
one before in that there is less text. We believe there is still room for improvement in an effort to
modernize and further simplify the business card. We recommend adding a QR code to the
business card that will link to the Adult Studies website.
We have designed a new business card that can be found in Appendix IV, page xvii.
Another option would be to simply update the current card to include the QR code. We would
recommend putting the QR code on the back of the card where it restates “Adult Studies
Program” in a blue box. We have included the existing business card in Appendix IV on page
xvii and have indicted with a black arrow where we recommend putting the QR code. This is a
good place for the QR code because it is in the upper part of the card and the existing writing to
the right could remain. Also, “Adult Studies Program” is already stated on the front of the card
and therefore not necessary on the back of the card as well.
Internet Advertising
Internet marketing in the form of online/social media marketing cannot be
underestimated. According to Pew Research Center, 52% of adults online use two or more forms
of social media. An estimated half of internet-using adults, who ranged from 18 to 29, use
Instagram and Facebook, which opens many possibilities to reaching out to adults online. The
study also showed that 31% of all online seniors use Facebook. There are studies that reflect a
growing trend of online presence from adults on social media, which in turn makes Internet
advertising beneficial. Additional statistics on social media use can be found in Appendix IV,
pages xx-xxi.
Facebook is a social media website that can be used as a main webpage for a business
and a promotional platform. The Adult Studies Program at Virginia Wesleyan has a Facebook
page, however, it is underutilized at this time. Facebook offers a variety of advertising
opportunities, which are explained below.
With the use of Facebook advertising options, you can target a very specific audience.
Facebook advertising is extremely useful because of its accessibility from anywhere with mobile
devices. This means that your advertising and promotional functions are more likely to be seen.
Ads on Facebook are cheaper than that of other platforms, so for minimal costs you receive
maximum coverage! You have the ability to fine-tune the advertisements, budget, and the
audience who will receive them. Facebook advertisements automatically provide a link to your
page as well as an option to like it. Additionally, there is an option to create a call to action on
the advertisement as well. These calls to action can include “Get Directions”, “Call Now”,
“Learn More”, or “Send Message.” Examples of advertising possibilities on Facebook can be
found in Appendix IV, pages xxii-xxiv.
Not only does Facebook offer promotional services in the form of ads, but businesses
can also promote themselves ‘organically’ by posting on their ‘wall’ for friends and followers to
see. Through Facebook, you can track quantitative information such as how many people view a
particular post, as well as how many likes and shares the post gets. Also, Facebook provides
analytics to monitor how well the page itself is performing which can be separated from paid
advertising. For examples of these analytics please refer to Appendix IV, pages xxvi-xxx. The
organic promotion aspect of Facebook is free and can be used in conjunction with other social
media outlets such as Twitter and Instagram.
Instagram is another social media outlet that can help promote business with the use of
image posts. Unlike Facebook, on Instagram the emphasis is predominantly on images rather
than text. Instagram is an ideal application for any business that wants to add an aesthetically
pleasing visual image to help promote themselves. Businesses do have the option to add captions
to posts to give more insight and depth into the pictures. Instagram is an important way for the
Adult Studies Program to communicate with enrolled students and potential students because it
helps the business present their products and services to someone visually. It is not only a way
for businesses to help visualize what it is they can provide to students, but it can also help with
promotional advertising by posting advertisements for upcoming events, using banners, all of
which that can be done for free when a Adult Studies Program creates a profile. In addition,
Instagram and Facebook can easily be linked together, even if the Adult Studies Program does
not utilize Hootsuite.
Twitter is a social media outlet that makes use of ‘tweets’ that allow users to post quick
snippets of whatever it is they choose. This is beneficial to the Adult Studies Program, as it will
allow you to keep your ‘followers’ (potential and enrolled students) to be kept in the loop about
upcoming deadlines, events, etc. Twitter is not limited only to text posts, but can also post
images, and is perfect for using in conjunction with Facebook and Instagram.
LinkedIn provides a feature specifically for schools, University Page, which offers
opportunities for personalization and emphasis on the aspects of the school that are most
important to its administrators. LinkedIn University Pages allows colleges and schools to link to
notable alumni to attract prospective students that want to follow similar career paths to the
alumni. It also allows the school to post recent images of the school, for those students who want
to get a visual of what the school looks like.
The Adult Studies Program can utilize this feature on LinkedIn to give examples of what
alumni in the past have done. LinkedIn will also be able to give a level of prestige to the college
and its programs as Adult Studies will be able to show the success of Virginia Wesleyan
graduates. It also helps display top companies employing the specific school’s alumni, which
again is important for displaying success from the colleges. This is important for Adult Studies
as they also have to take care of transfer students as well. Transfer students are looking to
transfer due to either wanting to further their education for success after going to a school such
as TCC, or looking to transfer from another school.
When compared to Facebook and Twitter, which are more casually social platforms,
LinkedIn users are more focused on news and information that relates to careers and professional
concerns. LinkedIn can be compared to a more formal form of Facebook as Adult Studies can
allow students from past and present to comment and show support for the program. This is
important to have that difference because potential students can be more responsive to business
and career information, especially adults, for Adult Studies. LinkedIn also provides a feature
called Targeted Status Updates, which does the following:
• Enables companies to tailor content for specific audiences, making it easier than ever for members to
receive important information about the companies they follow
• Define your audience based on company size, industry, function, seniority, and geography
• After your content has been live for 24 hours, you will have access to impression and engagement
metrics. Allows to analyze what works
• Follower Statistics, where you’ll find more insights about your followers’ demographics, updates, and
other engagement metrics.
• According to a study conducted by LinkedIn, 67 percent of members follow a company to gain
industry insights and 61 percent for company news.
• 106 percent increase in engagement after using this feature in its daily communication with followers
Hootsuite
We recommend Hootsuite as a way to manage the social media applications mentioned
above. Hootsuite provides management capabilities that allow businesses to run their social
media accounts in a time-efficient manner. Hootsuite allows users to post to all of their social
media simultaneously. This allows you to focus your energy on other things pertinent to the
Adult Studies Program’s success, such as in-person customer service, which was something you
stressed throughout the consultation process.
One of the biggest benefits of using Hootsuite is there is no need to worry about
installation of software! Simply access the Hootsuite webpage to manage your accounts.
Hootsuite has built-in security measures to ensure the safety of your social media accounts. Also,
Hootsuite has technical support and training for users. This is beneficial to ensure everyone has
the basic know-how and is capable of using the application.
Hootsuite has many additional features in their pro version which are listed below:
• You can track who new followers are, which helps track potential students
• You can add additional apps
• Hootsuite will analyze followers and give suggestions on the best time to post on the social
media applications
• “Autoschedule” capabilities which are automated posts (you can set the number of posts per
day)
• There are privacy options to regulate what can/cannot be viewed by the public
• The ability to show who is following the accounts, which is beneficial for establishing levels
of interest in potential students
• Training is offered to help you get acclimated to using social media
• You can hide old posts to ‘de-clutter’ the page
At this time we are recommending the free version of Hootsuite, however, the pro version
is $9.99 a month. The pro version would be necessary if you were to add additional accounts
other than Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and/or if you are interested in additional monitoring
capabilities. The free version offers two-day training for the software but does not have the same
extensive features as the pro version. We would recommend upgrading to the pro version after
fully utilizing and understanding the free version and trying the 30-day free trial of the pro
version. The pricing and different offerings can be found in Appendix IV, pages xxxi-xxxii.
Virtual College Fairs
In a meeting with Dr. Seiler, we mentioned attending a college fair that is occurs at the
Virginia Beach Convention Center in an effort to attract students. We now recommend
expanding upon this idea and participating in virtual college fairs. These take the traditional
college fairs into the ‘cyber’ world, which can dramatically increase your audience.
Similar to the usual ‘brick and mortar’ type conventions, virtual college fairs are designed
to emulate live events, up to and including the presence of event halls, college booths, and
opportunities to attend various speaker sessions. Prospective students can visit colleges of
interest and interact with admissions personnel as well as other students. Participants may ask
questions through video chat or instant messaging a college. Some colleges also offer virtual
tours of their campuses. (Please see Appendix IV, page xix for an example of a college’s online
booth).
Using virtual fairs provides an opportunity to interact with more potential students and
reduces those costs associated with travel and providing a live presence at traditional events. The
cost for a school to participate in a virtual college fair is approximately $400, though the price
can vary depending on the company hosting the event.
We have not included the cost of virtual college fairs into the budget because, although
we believe this is a good potential marketing tool, it is very new. Therefore, we recommend
considering virtual college fairs as an option but waiting to see how the market evolves before
participating in a virtual college fair.
Meeting with President Miller
Crystal Ball Consulting wanted to ensure that our recommended portfolio reflected the
needs and desires of not only the Adult Studies Program but the newly-found President as well.
This is to guarantee that we are in line with the current process and overall changes occurring at
Virginia Wesleyan College as a whole. After our meeting with President Miller we were able to
confirm that he approves of our solutions and offered some suggestions that are included below.
Additionally, he signed a letter of approval which is located on the following page.
Concerning our technical solutions President Miller affirmed that Virginia Wesleyan as a
whole is moving towards further utilizing Hobsons Radius throughout various departments.
Additionally, there are many hardware changes coming to Virginia Wesleyan College. Robert
Leitgeb has been hired to become the new Chief Intelligence Officer which is important as
Virginia Wesleyan College will be able to improve their network and continually advance as
time progresses. In combination with Mr. Leitgeb’s experience, the increased hardware and
software capabilities will elevate the Adult Studies Program to a higher level.
President Miller also confirmed that the college is working towards establishing three
graduate programs that would offer additional incentive for adults to attend Virginia Wesleyan
College. These programs would be for Education, Accounting, and Public
Administration/Business.
The marketing capabilities are limited by the traditional advertisement used by the Adult
Studies Program. President Miller confirmed our previous assessment that Virginia Wesleyan
College has excellent brand imaging and brand recognition, but poor advertisement to utilize
these traits. Increasingly using non-traditional advertising such as a social media would greatly
increase the audience who sees ads while keeping to a strict budget.
Finally, President Miller has suggested utilizing Virginia Wesleyan College’s Marketing
and Communication’s department because they have a greater budget. He primarily stated this in
relation to the airport marketing suggestions, as we had previously been led to believe the
existing ads at Norfolk International Airport were through the Admissions department.
Budget
Periodic Costs Item Description Frequency Price Quantity Discount Total Price
Marketing and Advertising Radio spot: developing & producing creative materials Annual $500.00 2 $1,000.00
Radio spot: spring campaign ** Annual
$10,410.00 1
$1,561.50 $8,848.50
Radio spot: fall campaign ** Annual
$10,410.00 1
$1,561.50 $8,848.50 Radio spot: talent fee (re-‐run spring) Annual $125.00 1 $125.00 Domain name Annual $12.99 1 $12.99 Airport Billboards ^^ Monthly $875.00 12 $10,500.00 Social Media Hootsuite Monthly $9.99 12 $119.88 Facebook Monthly $20.00 12 $240.00 CRM and Outreach
Business Cards As needed $10.00 2 @ 500 each $20.00
Hobsons Radius FREE $ -‐-‐-‐ Other Prior ASP Commitments and Needs Career connections event (small) * Annual $578.00 1 $578.00 Career connections event (large) * Annual $524.00 1 $524.00
TOTAL ANNUAL BUDGET
$30,816.87 ** Based on schedule example and can be revised to fit within budget ^^ Recommend partnership with Marketing and Communication Department to reduce costs * Assumes 5% cost increase over 2015
Conclusion
The Adult Studies Program has the potential to grow exponentially with the correct
technological, marketing, and program adjustments. The goal of the Adult Studies Program is to
gain a larger clientele base while maintaining their stellar reputation. Crystal Ball Consulting has
offered this plan of action as a way to effectively accomplish this. Throughout this proposal we
have outlined the changes necessary to improve marketing capabilities and increase enrollment
via non-traditional classes. By contracting with Crystal Ball Consultants, and thereby
implementing our recommended course of action, we will be able to smoothly execute any
necessary changes. This includes any changes to hardware or software as well as training with
the necessary software. Crystal Ball consultants commits to providing the highest level of
customer support throughout this process and after. Thank you for allowing us the chance to take
your business into the future!