Best Practices in International Student Engagement: From Inquiry to Enrollment

Mike Elms, Hotcourses CEONAFSA Conference 2014

29th May 2014

Hotcourses overview

• Since 1996 • Ultimate search• 13 languages• 15 million visits• Webclicks, inquiries

Applications and Enrolments

Back then…

1997/98 2012/13

481,000

819,644International Students

San Diego 2030

2030

Back to reality - Agenda

Part 1: Student Survey - What do they want to hear from you?

Part 2: Mystery Shopper Exercise Results - How are universities currently meeting these expectations (or not)?

Why are inquiries important?

72%of all students would always enquire before applying to a university.

Taking a closer look...92% of Latin American students & 89% of Brazilian students said ‘Yes’.

Yes

No

Maybe

Can't say

The inquiry funnel – optimized500 QUALITY INQUIRIES/LEADS

250 APPLICATIONS

100 STUDENTS *2.5 applications per student

50 FINAL OFFERS

40 ENROLLED

So, how do you make those inquiries convert?

1. Respond quicklyAlmost all students expect a response within 48 hours.

Abroad Malaysia Singapore Brazil Latin America Middle EastThailand

India China0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

Within 24 hours24-48 hoursWithin 7 daysWithin 2 weeksMore than 2 weeks

Latin America is the exception, 38% se-lecting 'Within 7 days'

* Abroad = Students using Hotcourses Abroad

Competitive advantage

Students from Abroad, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, India and China indicated that if they had to choose between two similar universities, they would apply to/enroll with the one that responded

fastest!

Abroad

Malaysi

a

Singa

poreBraz

il

Latin Ameri

ca

Middle

East

Vietnam

Russia

Thail

and

IndiaChina

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

YesNoCan't say

So, how do you make those inquiries stand out?

2. Customize your responseAlmost all countries expect a personalized or customized response (i.e. One written by an actual

individual) over an automated, templated response.

Abroad Malaysia Singapore Brazil Latin America Middle East Vietnam Russia Thailand India China0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Personalised responseTemplated responseCan't say

Brazil the exception, 67% selecting 'Templated response'

Taking a closer look...This includes 95% of Singapore students and 90% of Vietnamese and Chinese students.

Easy ways to personalize

Abroad Malaysia Singapore Brazil Latin America

Middle East

Vietnam Russia Thailand India China0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Individual (named) member of staffDepartment EitherCan't say

3. Sign it from an individual

Abroad, Malaysia, Singapore, Brazil, Vietnam and India all prefer a response signed from a specific individual staff member (whom they can continue the chain of communication with).

Additionally more than half of all students said they’d prefer all ongoing communications to be with the same person

Preferred Modes of Communication

88% of all students selected email as one of their preferred

modes of communication.

More than half of Malaysian and Latin American students

also selected phone to respond by.

83% of all students expected email responses to be in their

own language (including 92% of Latin America students and 89% of Russian and Thai students).

Over half of all students (54%) expected phone responses in

their own language, while 57% of Russian students expected

video chat in Russian.

Keep in touch

88% would be happy to receive

further emails with additional content (e.g. Latest news from your campus)

HOWEVER, these should only be once a week (although Middle Eastern and Thai students who would be happy to receive these more than once a week)

Plus, this is your chance to acquire them as social media followers!

81% of all students would

follow a university they’re enquiring to on social media too.

What actually happens?

Varies by country

Australian and UK universities (70% each) had the best overall response rate as far as universities actually responding to inquiries.

Australia

Malaysia

Singapore

NZ

UK

US

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

% who responded

Were the responses customized?Of those responses received, Singapore (100%) and Malaysia (88%) had the best rate when it came to producing those all-important customized responses.

Australia

Malaysia

Singapore

NZ

UK

US

0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Templated %Customised %

Speed…

Australia

Malaysia

Singapore

NZ

UK

US

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

% Responses within 24 hours

New Zealand responded quickest with 80% of responses sent in under 24 hours.

*None of the Singaporean universities responded in under 24 hours.

The Good Responses: Saamir

Name: Saamir AbdullahFrom: TurkeyEnquired to: Royal Agricultural University (UK)Interested in: Agriculture BSc (Hons)Seeking: Admissions and English language requirements for a specific course

Inquiry:‘Hi, Please can you let me know what are the English Requirements for this course along with other admissions details?’

The Good Responses: Aaron

Name: Aaron JoseFrom: BrazilEnquired to: Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis (USA)Interested in: GeologySeeking: Further information about a specific subject area

Inquiry:‘Hi, I am interested in completing my degree in Geology. What are my options? What are the degrees you offer relating to this?’

PLUS: In addition to a confirmation of inquiry being received, a further email sent to student to make aware of possible delay to response due to term break.

The Good Responses: Malik

Name: Malik AyeshaFrom: QatarEnquired to: University of Nottingham – Malaysia (Malaysia)Interested in: International Communication BA (Hons)Seeking: Further information about a specific course and career opportunities post-graduation

Inquiry:‘Hi, Please can you give me more details about this course. Also information about the career opportunities post completion of this degree.’

PLUS: In addition to response answering query completely and further information about English support offered by the university, university also set up a private chat session for further interactions with the student with access to information specifically for them.

The Good Responses: Mike

Name: MikeFrom: USAEnquired to: University of East Anglia (UK)Interested in: Film and media studiesSeeking: General information about UEA

The not-so-good responses: DivyaName: Divya NatrajanFrom: MalaysiaCountry of institution enquired to: AmericaInterested in: Arts & Philosophy BA (Hons)Seeking: Further information about a specific subject area

Inquiry:‘Hi, Could you please provide me with some for information regarding the Arts and Philosophy course that is offered at your University?’

The not-so-good responses: DivyaName: Divya NatrajanFrom: MalaysiaCountry of institution enquired to: UKInterested in: American History MA (Hons)Seeking: Further information about a specific subject area

The not-so-good responses: Aaron

Name: Aaron JoseFrom: BrazilCountry of institution enquired to: UKInterested in: English and Italian Literature BA (Hons)Seeking: Further information about a specific subject area

Inquiry: ‘Hi, Could please send me some more information regarding the course English and Italian Literature BA (Hons).’

In fact...In every response we received, universities left it to the student to get back in touch and continue the chain of communication (i.e. no plans to follow up themselves).

Is this good enough?

Learning from other sectors:

Who they are: Auto motors companyWhat we did: Requested a test drive

via websiteFrequency of responses: 7 over 28 daysTypes of responses: Phone (voicemail

when unanswered), print information pack via post and email

What we can learn:• Be persistent and frequent in your

responses when you don’t hear from students

• Provide information about similar courses you offer

• Use different forms of communication to increase chances of making a connection

Hotcourses Initial Inquiry-Handling

What we provide:Following up with enquiring students via email, telephone and Skype to sort the strongest leads, and forwarding these on to the university.

Case study: Kansas State University

Preferred method of communication:77% indicated email, while almost ¼ said phone or Skype.

How students respond:•1st email – 20% respond•2nd email – Additional 5% respond• 3rd contact (phone call) – Additional 10% respond

Lesson: Keep engaging students on a consistent time frame.

If you have any questions, get in touch:mike.elms@hotcourses.com

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