Marketing to prospective college students is not the same as marketing to other audiences. Education marketing is often a different ball game entirely, requiring a different and often creative approach. Here are some tips that you may not have considered when marketing to college students, whether you are part of an in-house marketing team at a college, or have clients in the education field who need help with marketing to prospective college students.
The purpose of marketing a college is to reach and engage with prospective students. Student recruitment means everything to a college, and educational institutions need enough students to stay afloat. But it’s often more than just a numbers game. Colleges also want students of the right caliber and quality to suit the programs and courses they have on offer. So marketing is not just about successfully reaching enough students of the right age group, it’s also about engaging with the ones who would be a good fit for the college.
This can be done in a number of ways, but often requires thinking outside the box. Traditional marketing methods may not work as well with this audience, so it’s important to be creative and come up with new and innovative ways to reach them.
Some things to consider when marketing to prospective college students:
- What are the demographics of your target audience?
- What is the best way to reach them?
- What are their needs and wants?
- How can you stand out from the competition?
When marketing to prospective college students, it’s important to consider the needs and wants of your target audience. What are they looking for in a college? What would make them want to attend your college over another? Answering these questions can help you to develop a marketing strategy that will appeal to your target audience and improve your chances of successfully recruiting them.
Here are some things you may not have considered when marketing to prospective college students.
Use Data
To craft a successful approach to marketing to this group, you need to look at as much data as you can get your hands on to find out about your target audience. This includes information about students you have successfully recruited in the past, and the students recruited by your competitors. Look at things like age, gender, location, interests, and needs. But dig deeper as well. What are they truly motivated by? Is it a course that is accredited in their field of interest, or is it having clubs and societies they can join to feel at home at their college of choice?
All of this data can help you to develop a more targeted approach to marketing. Find out this information from data you hold on file and focus groups. Even consider a college admissions analytics venture so you can find out how your college really stands up against others in all sorts of criteria. Data might not sound very creative at first glance, but it can hold the key to a successful marketing strategy.
Think About Cutting Through The Noise
This demographic is inundated with messages from all angles, so you’ll need to take a different approach than you would with other age groups. Don’t just do the same marketing that other colleges do, just because everyone else does it. Yes, you might need to have a presence on all the social media channels students are on for the sake of your brand, but consider ways that you can reach students that will cut through all the messages they’re bombarded with all the time.
For example, think of creative messages you can post on social media channels, alongside some offline marketing too. Events at high schools or having a stand at a festival that students of high school age are attending could have a great impact. Branded giveaways can be a good way to catch attention too. Eco coffee cups or reusable water bottles are useful and can carry your branding wherever the prospective student goes.
College Student Ambassadors
Many colleges think of working with influencers who are targeting the right demographic, but what about working with the students you already have? You probably have a treasure trove of talented, interesting and fun students already attending your college, so do a bit of work to get to know them. You might find some great brand ambassadors who can help you to market your college to prospective students in a way that is more relatable and authentic. If you apply these personalities to an original marketing campaign, you may be onto a winner. Think about working with them on videos, or find out about their extracurricular talents, and create content based on their personalities and interests.
If you work with students, you’ll need to pay them for their time. This makes it a great opportunity for these students to earn a little money on the side too, and helps with the internal brand image of your college. This is important for prospective students, as they want to see that your college is a fun and supportive environment with a great community feeling.
Marketing to prospective college students doesn’t have to be difficult. Keep your target audience in mind and consider some creative ways to reach them. And don’t forget to use the data you have at your disposal to help inform your decisions. With a bit of thought and planning, you can craft a marketing strategy that will help you to reach your target students and achieve your college’s goals.