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Universities have to market themselves differently than they did in the past due to the ever-changing nature of modern technology. These fifteen innovative and best higher-education marketing strategies are incredibly effective for universities trying to increase enrollment. Pay close attention to these strategies that will be used in marketing for universities:
1. Video Advertisements Are Far More Effective than Written Ads
It is estimated that 65% of the population learns better by seeing images than by reading words. This makes video higher education marketing incredibly effective. While universities often post video advertisements on their website, many universities post them on YouTube and other third-party websites.
2. Universities Are Paying Close Attention to Their Website’s Search Rankings
High search rankings increase traffic on all websites, and there are many different types of strategies that universities are implementing to increase their search rankings. This makes SEO one of the most critical trends in higher education marketing for universities. It’s estimated that 93% of people use a search engine to begin surfing the web.
- Attention to Keywords: Keywords are the backbone of every search engine optimization campaign, so keyword research and strategic integration of the target keywords are crucial to impacting rankings.
- Meta Descriptions: Meta descriptions are 300 characters and are the descriptions that are visible in the search results. They attract enrollees to universities by creating an enticing description of the university website that shows up in the search results.
- Quality Content: While university websites have always been known for featuring well-written content, universities sometimes hire content writers who specialize in online marketing to ensure that their site ranks well on search engines.
3. Email Marketing Is Not Dead
While some people have neglected email marketing and even claimed it is unnecessary nowadays, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Because of its importance in the modern era, numerous universities have begun using the strategy.
There are several strategies that universities use to market themselves by email. Often, university newsletters are sent to subscribers. On average, more than two percent of promotional emails are read.
4. Lectures Are an Excellent Marketing Tool in Marketing for Colleges
Many university lecturers discuss topics appealing to prospective enrollees interested in various subjects. One way to encourage more people to view these lectures is to livestream them. This can allow thousands or even millions of people to view the university’s events, and it is a powerful way to attract new customers. Well-known universities, such as Oxford, use this strategy.
5. Let Prospective Enrollees Speak with Employees of the University Online
Many university websites have live chat features, allowing you to speak with a university representative in real-time. Universities can use live chat features to answer visitors’ questions after returning home from their school visit. Some live chat features even allow someone interested in the university to video chat with a school representative.
6. Web Content Personalization Improves Marketing for Colleges
There are many ways that web content can be designed for the needs of a specific individual, and many universities have been keeping this in mind when they design their website. These are some ways that content on university websites can be tailored to an individual:
- Existing data from a website can be analyzed to create search suggestions.
- Content for email marketing can be designed using information gathered from analyzing the activity of people on the university website.
Often, universities implement a personalization pyramid. These are the levels of the personalization pyramid:
- Optimization: Search engine optimization is a key component of the personalization pyramid.
- Segmentation: Content on a university website must be divided into multiple sections designed for individual viewers’ needs.
- One-to-One Personalization: Artificial intelligence ensures that content is directly relevant to what an individual user is looking for.
7. High-profile Endorsements Are One of the Most Effective Ways to Promote a University Website
Many colleges have famous alumni who benefited greatly from what they learned in college. Colleges often talk about famous graduates on television and in online advertisements. This is likely to be especially important due to the unfortunate fact that rising tuition is expected to be among the better-known higher education trends among the general public; prospective students need to be able to see that their degrees are likely to lead to tangible benefits.
8. Blogs Are a Much More Powerful Online Marketing Tool Than Many People Think
Some blogs see a lot of traffic, and posts on these websites can be powerful advertising tools for universities. While there are many ways that universities can market themselves on blogs, here are some examples of ways that blog posts can effectively increase enrollment:
- Guest Posts: It’s easy for universities to make guest posts on high-traffic blogs. Due to the prestige of many universities, it is easy for them to get guest posts accepted by blogs. In some cases, guest posts on blogs include video advertisements.
- Backlinks to the University’s Page: Backlinks can be included in guest posts on blogs and other high-profile websites. Not only can a backlink drive traffic to the university’s website, but it can also help to improve the website’s search rankings.
9. Great Apps Can Make Your University More Popular
In addition to creating mobile-friendly websites, many universities are designing apps to help people who use mobile devices access the website. The apps have features that may not be found on the website’s version designed for laptops or desktops. University apps often include high-quality graphics. Apps created by universities to help mobile users access the university website can frequently be downloaded on the university website itself. Still, they also are usually available for download on third-party websites. Some examples of third-party websites where the apps can be found are the iTunes store and Google Play. Studies estimate that people have an average of 26 apps on their phones.