Optimizing the Student Recruitment Experience

Carol Gersten, VP Consulting Services, Hobsons Emily Meehan, Senior Consultant, Hobsons

Naviance Summer Institute July 2013

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About Us

! Carol Gersten, Vice President, Consulting Services - Over 20 years of experience in technology across a

variety of industries. - Expertise in strategic consulting, governance and

enterprise implementations. - 5 years with Hobsons

! Emily Meehan, Senior Consultant - Over 12 years of experience in vendor and client-

side technology and marketing agency marketplace. - Expertise in CRM implementation, relationship

marketing measurement. - 3 years with Hobsons

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•  Pre-Implementation Readiness •  Identification of Goals & Objectives

•  Diagnostic of System Utilization •  Best Practices to Maximize ROI

System Optimization

•  Marketing and Communication Plan Strategy •  Data Analysis & Marketing Plan

Marketing Optimization

CRM Assessment

Consulting Areas of Focus

!  Agenda

•  Enrollment Management Situational Overview

•  Technology Approach for Institutions

•  Marketing Approach for Institutions

•  Discussion

What’s Happening Out There?

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! Decline in number of High School Graduates from 2012 -2015.

!  Population Shift to Adult, Graduate, and Non-traditional learners -  Now represents the majority

of enrolled students -  New Challenges!

Source: Ovum White Paper

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Changing Demographics

“College enrollment in the spring-2013 term is down by 2.3 percent compared to Spring 2012.”

— National Student Clearing House. Spring 2013 Enrollment

* * * * *

“More than half the top 20 online schools are experiencing flat or declining [online] enrollment.”

— EDUVENTURES. Online Higher Ed Market Update

! Consumers responding to financial pressures by choosing less expensive options

! Seeking education close to home

! Financial aid and student loans important

! Postponing or seeking community college option

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Consumer Changes in Education Planning

Longmire and Company. (2009). Report on the Impact of Economy on College Enrollment [White paper]. Retrieved from http://www.semworks.net/white-papers.php

! Top 12% of all colleges enroll more than half the student population - 88% of schools compete for

46% of students ! For profit schools on the rise ! MOOC Madness ! Expanding overhead increasing

enrollment pressure

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Competition

!  Stretched Budgets/Resources/Staff

!  Limited Visibility: Lack of Data, Access to Data, Decentralized Data

!  Strained Technical Resources/Support

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From your perspective….

Show of Hands, Please

•  Currently using a CRM?

•  Consider the project complete or live?

•  Think you are operating at full potential?

- ~35% of institutions have implemented CRM technology

- Concentrated in larger schools and in Undergraduate Admissions

BUT - Many unsuccessful - Void of CRM Services in Non-

Traditional and Graduate Offices

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Do You Have the Tools and the Approach to Be Competitive?

Gartner predicts that by 2013 institutions without a CRM will be at a severe competitive disadvantage.

! How Do You Know if You Are At Risk?

We have Identified 6 Red Flags…

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Technology First Approach Don’t Just Throw Technology at the Problem

! No Buy-In ! Configuration

Does Not Meet Needs ! Lack of Training ! Lack of Support

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User Adoption Challenges

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No Plan for Change Management

Gather Requirements & Set Goals

Configure & Consult

Stakeholders

Test & Get buy-In

Train & Onboard

Evaluate & Optimize

Data and Integration Issues

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No Defined Objectives…

Discovery

Listening

Engaging

Reinforcing

Growth

Intelligence

Efficiency Quality

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Leads Projected Incr. Rev. ROMI

Costs

Prospects Total Leads

Overall

GA

Tact

ic DR

Online Adv.

Cha

nnel

/Sou

rce

Referral

Events

Lists

Q310 vs Q4309 Total Trend &

Status Total Trend & Status

14,000 4,000 10,000 tbd

-/+ %

-/+%

-/+%

Application Stats

Actual

Trend & Status

Apps

Goal

Incr. Conv.

300 TBD

%

12%

Engaged Leads

Current +/-

Rep A

Prior

Rep B

Rep C

Lead Distribution

#

Program A

% of Total

Program B

Program C

Program D

Application Data

Program

Total

+/- Prior Mo

Goal

YTD as of 12/10

Avg. Time to Complete App

# Days % Other Metric Other Metric

PROGRAM NAME

15%

Month

…Or Measurement Strategy

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Where Are You Today?

Where Are You in the Magic Quadrant of Technology Success?

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Integration Plan

Executive Support

Defined O

bjectives &

Measurem

ent Plan Gov

erna

nce

Str

uctu

re System

Success

System Failure

!  Technology: Check!

…So now what?

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What’s on your mind? How is my marketing performing?

Do we have a new program needing message & positioning guidance?

Are we employing best practices and marketing tactics?

How can I approach automated communication?

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You Might Need…

Audit of communication

practices

Quick wins Using

Technology

Example approaches for

reaching the right audience

Marketing ROI

Best practices to take

enrollment efforts to the

next level

! Marketing Approach for Institutions

Who Should I Target?

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Analyze, Segment and Execute

Understand students’ demographic,

psychographic, lifestyle trains, and marketing habits !

Data Segmentation

Marketing Communications

Plan

Data Analysis

Quantitative and Qualitative

completed by team of data analysts on

current or prospective students!

Focus your communication efforts

with well defined tactics and

recommended touch points!

Targeted Analytic Platform

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This is a strategy grid of segments plotted according to how closely they match our criteria (people who enrolled in Undergraduate or Associates degrees in computer-

related fields) and how large of a sample size they represent. Segments resting in the upper right quadrant are considered to be ideal targets as they index higher than 100

and are part of a large sample size.

% Comp: Amount of targets within each group of segments; Left of line = smaller sample Right of line = larger sample

Index: An indication of likelihood to enroll Above line = good target Below line = bad target

Segments: Groups of population who possess like demographic and behavioral traits

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Bringing To Life Top Tier Prospects

Tier 1 Current Student – Segment 3 “Midlife Success”

Age: 44 HH Income: $122,000 Children: Yes Neighborhood: Greater City Suburbs Cost of Living: Low Marital Status: Single, Never Married Life Stage: Mid-level Management Other: Homeowner

Listens to Hot Adult Contemporary 7 days a week

Very likely to have shopped online more than 3 times in the last week

In the last month has visited LinkedIn, Amazon.com, YouTube, CNN, ESPN.com, Weather.com, and several coupon sites more than 6 times.

In the last 30 days has done online research for education programs and considers his internet info-gathering to be ‘Far Above Average’.

Segment 3: 3.98% of US HH Pop

~4.6M US HH

Psychographic & Behavioral

Ideal Channels

Multiple touch points

Internet; e-mail; print; radio.

Sample Messaging

Must show value to investment.

Must sell them on future career opportunities

Target Audience Profiles

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! Marketing Approach for Institutions

How Should I Reach My Target Audience?

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Our Approach

Events/WOM

Display Advertising

Paid Search

Social Media

Marketing

Email Marketing

GRE/ TOEFL

Partner Network

Drive Interest to Conversion

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! Positioning - No scrolling down

! Links off the page - Don’t let them leave BEFORE the fill out the form!

! Length - What’s the right balance?

! Fields - What’s the minimum amount of information you can

ask without losing them? ! Call To Action

Convert Leads with Landing Page Best Practices

Coordinate Lead Cultivation Efforts

INQUIRY RESPONSE DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 4 DAY 15 DAY 25 ONGOING

• Email auto response

• Personal email from counselor

• Calls: continue over 8 days until contact

• Print: Viewbook/letter

• Email: Engage with us!

• Email Drip: Events/Engage

• Email Drip: Ongoing every 30 days

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! Communication Plans ! Fixed Date Communications ! Rolling Date Communications ! Behavior Based Communications ! Automation ! Variety of messages and calls to action

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Identify the Type of Communication Needed

!  Is there campus-wide visibility into all communication? Is there overlap? ! Are there clear calls to action? ! Are your messages personalized? !  Is your message being received? ! Are you responding to your audience - Explicit communications - Implicit behaviors

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Manage Your Message

! Measuring Performance

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Leads Projected Incr. Rev. ROMI

Costs

Prospects Total Leads

Overall

GA

Tact

ic DR

Online Adv.

Cha

nnel

/Sou

rce

Referral

Events

Lists

Q310 vs Q4309 Total Trend &

Status Total Trend & Status

14,000 4,000 10,000 tbd

-/+ %

-/+%

-/+%

Application Stats

Actual

Trend & Status

Apps

Goal

Incr. Conv.

300 TBD

%

12%

Engaged Leads

Current +/-

Rep A

Prior

Rep B

Rep C

Lead Distribution

#

Program A

% of Total

Program B

Program C

Program D

Application Data

Program

Total

+/- Prior Mo

Goal

YTD as of 12/10

Avg. Time to Complete App

# Days % Other Metric Other Metric

PROGRAM NAME

15%

Month

Measurement is Key

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Technology ROI: Two Sides of Measurement

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Qualitative

• Governance Model

•  Process Improvements

•  Being accessible and relevant to all stakeholders

Quantitative

• Capturing all interactions

• Reporting •  Pervasive

System Adoption • Change

Management

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Qualitative

• Brand Awareness

• Relevant and responsive

• Accessible to students

Quantitative

• # Qualified Leads

• Feedback from counselors

• CPC/CPO/CPL • Data analytics

Marketing ROI: Two Sides of Measurement

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Plan for Continuous Management

Gather Requirements & Set Goals

Configure & Consult

Stakeholders

Test & Get buy-In

Train & Onboard

Evaluate & Optimize

1)  Do I have the tools to help me accomplish my enrollment goals?

2)  Am I implementing and managing the tools with enough people, planning and process to be successful?

3)  Do I know who the right prospective students are for my program/institution?

4)  Do I know how I can reach my prospective students?

5)  Can I observe the results of my efforts and modify accordingly?

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Key Success Factors for Successful Student Recruitment

Thank You!

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