enrollment marketing management€¦ · ©2016 education dynamics 3 …attract and transform a...

©2016 EducationDynamics

BEST PRACTICES IN

ENROLLMENT MARKETING MANAGEMENT

11 Ways to Convert Prospective Students into Enrollments

©2016 Education Dynamics 2

Attracting and enrolling students in online programs has become a competitive game, requiring strategy, skill,

and persistence. Those who have been playing the game for a while have figured out many of the obstacles to avoid and the best practices to apply—although some have learned the hard way, primarily from their own

mistakes and misconceptions. These strategies extend throughout the lifecycle of the student acquisition

process, from lead generation (i.e. garnering initial interest), through closing the deal and enrolling a student.

This paper is designed to share the knowledge and experience gained from veterans in the field of online student acquisition through the eyes and ears of EducationDynamics, one of the pioneers in online marketing

services for the postsecondary market. The information presented in this paper was gathered by tracking the

behavior of prospective students from EducationDynamics’ premier student resources.

ARE YOU COMPETING FOR

STUDENTS?

In short, yes! In the past, most students used

fairly well-known and straight-forward criteria

for selecting schools. Geography was among the

most important considerations. Others included

curriculum, prestige of the school, and cost. While

many of those criteria remain today, in the world of

distance education, universities must recognize that

the criteria students use to evaluate their options

has evolved. For example, geography—while still

important—is no longer as significant a consideration as it was in the past since virtual classrooms obviate

its necessity. And to the working adult, a convenient,

flexible classroom schedule offered by one college or university may ultimately have more value than

the prestige of another institution she or he might

otherwise attend.

Additionally, the “marketing cycle” (i.e. the time

span that starts when an individual decides they

want to continue their education and ends when

they enroll in a school) is far more compressed in

the online education arena, with most successful

schools reporting a lead-to-enrollment timeframe

of 40 to 60 days or less. What does this mean for

colleges and universities? Consider that the average

prospective student requests information from

about four higher education institutions before

making a decision. The university with the most

aggressive marketing program will have contacted

the individual, sent her or him information,

answered any questions, walked the person through

an application, and possibly enrolled him or her

before the least aggressive college has made initial

contact.

So what methods are the most successful

institutions using to obtain the most qualified leads? When they receive a lead, how do these

institutions respond to the lead—in what format

and frequency? These are some of the questions

that will be addressed in this paper. It will concisely

and practically provide some proven best practices

that will help those just getting started as well as

those who have been marketing for a while but are

still looking for a competitive edge.

INTRODUCTION


…attract and

transform a

prospective

student, or

“lead,” into

an enrolled

student.

“

“

OBJECTIVES

This paper may be used as a reference to industry best practices in

enrollment marketing management. This is defined as management of the process that is undertaken to attract and transform a prospective student,

or “lead,” into an enrolled student.

After reading this document, you’ll better understand:

• How to qualify and prioritize a lead

• Effective communication procedures and practices

• Success factors during the application process

• Other factors affecting conversion rates of inquiries into enrollments

• Examples of enrollment management strategies in practice

Note: For the purposes of this paper, “a

lead,” or inquiry, is any individual who has

requested more information from your

institution by providing detailed contact

information. Leads may be purchased

outright, or obtained as a result of offline marketing efforts, paid search campaigns, directory listings, banner advertising,

prospects visiting your school’s website,

etc. The important point is that all direct

marketing campaigns, if implemented

properly, will ultimately result in a “lead,”

though as you will learn, all leads are not

created equal. Accordingly, this paper

assumes that your school has an active

lead generation program in place.

It is important to keep in mind that this is a compendium of best practices from the institutions with which

EducationDynamics has had the pleasure to work with and from research EducationDynamics has conducted.

These recommendations must be considered in the context of your own institution’s processes, procedures,

needs, and resource limitations.

OVERVIEW OF THE PROCESS

Prospective students follow a fairly standard progression

as they move towards enrollment: general interest in

online education, research/discovery of postsecondary

institutions and programs, decision to apply to one or more

schools, and decision to enroll in a program. At any point

along this progression, a prospective student interested in

your programs can fall off and become an enrollment at another institution. Understanding each of these phases

and the importance of effective enrollment management during this process is a key element to the success of your

efforts. This paper addresses the steps and processes applicable to recruitment beginning at the stage where a

prospective student has requested information from your

institution, though as the reader will see, it also addresses

strategies to ensure the “right” individuals are requesting

information.


THE QUALIFICATION PROCESS

Generating leads is the first step in the enrollment process. The number of leads a university generates is often a function of the budget and enrollment goals. But having a large number of leads to pursue, even at a

low unit cost-per-lead, is not necessarily the optimal method of achieving enrollments. The reason? The cost

of following up with a lead is often as high as, or higher than, the cost of acquiring the lead.

NOT ALL LEADS ARE CREATED

EQUAL

Aside from institutional factors (e.g. your program

type, cost, and some of the other factors discussed

above), the quality of a lead is often determined

by factors not connected to the institution or its

programs.

The quality of a lead is typically driven by the

combination of a) the mindset of the individual

and b) the process the individual followed prior

to inquiring. Through prospective student activity,

EducationDynamics has developed the Lead Source

Quality Matrix (below) to help communicate this

concept. On the horizontal or “Traffic Source” axis, a spectrum exists, ranging from what we deem

“Active Users,” (those who are actively seeking

information about online education) to “Passive

Users” (those who were not necessarily looking for

online education opportunities, but were perhaps

not averse to considering them). Often the source

of your leads is a strong determinant of where a user

falls on this axis. For example, if your institution

were to buy a mailing list of names, it is unlikely

that most of these “leads” were actively seeking

information.

On the other hand, someone who was actively

looking would tend to be more highly qualified. For example, this person might have done a Google

search for “Accredited Online Degrees” as a first step in their process.

+-

+

-

PASSIVE USERSINFORMED LEADS

PASSIVE USERSUNINFORMED LEADS

ACTIVE USERSINFORMED LEADS

ACTIVE USERSUNINFORMED LEADS

US

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EX

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E A

XIS

TRAFFIC SOURCE AXIS

Push Based Media

Passive Traffic

Deep Info

Provided

Multiple

Schools

Direct M

ktg.

Sales Funnel

Deprived

of Info

Active Traffic

PullBasedMedia


The vertical, or “User Experience Axis,” describes

the type and depth of information a person

received before inquiring. When users receive less

information, they are more inclined to inquire

because they have many unanswered questions.

However, this will often result in a higher volume

of less qualified leads. We refer to these as “Uninformed Leads.” For example, if a Master’s in

Civil Engineering program requires an individual to

have a PE license, individuals who are informed of

this requirement and realize that they do not meet

it will not waste your time or theirs by inquiring.

Additionally, when prospective students are given

more choices, they will ultimately make a more

informed decision. For example, a lead looking

for a Criminal Justice degree who viewed only two

programs would make a less informed decision than

one who viewed 12 programs. We refer to these as

“Informed Leads.” This relates to the forthcoming

Best Practice #1: an educated prospective student

is a more qualified prospective student.

So why don’t all colleges and universities exclusively

generate “Active Users/Informed Leads?” Well,

they probably would if they could. However, the

universe of these leads is somewhat limited, and

the competition for them is fierce. As a result, they typically require higher cost-per-lead payouts to

obtain and even then are not always available in the

quantity desired. Some higher education institutions

have addressed this by focusing improvements on

their enrollment management process, essentially

allowing them to cost-effectively work leads that fall into other categories. This being said, very

few institutions have been able to find success in working the “Passive/Uninformed” leads regularly.

Marketers are cautioned to avoid leads in this

category. There are many of these available, and

they are very inexpensive, but the back-end costs

are extremely high.

…when prospective

students are given

more choices, they will

ultimately make a more

informed decision.

“ “


BEST PRACTICE #1: SEEK ‘EDUCATED’ PROSPECTS

If your prospective students have little or no information provided to them before inquiring, they are more

likely to request information to gather more details. On the surface, this may seem like a good method to

generate interest. The unfortunate consequence of this is that you may end up paying for leads that are not

well qualified and that will ultimately convert into enrollments at an unacceptably low rate. By ensuring that your prospective students have sufficiently educated themselves about your institution and programs before inquiring about them, you are taking the most important step in qualification. Here are just a few ways to do this:

• At the minimum, make sure that any vendor from which you acquire leads, regardless of the media, has

advertised your institution and programs specifically by name and to a targeted audience. Prospective students who are interested in “general information about online education,” for example, are usually

not well qualified.

• Make sure that the publishers or vendors you have hired to collect leads for you adequately represent

your university and your programs. Providing only the name (and/or logo) of your school, or the name of

your program(s) with little other information may provide branding opportunities, but it will likely result

in a higher volume of less qualified leads.

• Be aware that your needs will evolve over time as you learn more about characteristics of a qualified lead. Identifying pre-qualifying factors that contribute to success in conversions is critical. Work

with lead vendors that can meet your initial requirements, and make updates to your programs, lead

collection process, and forms as needed by you.

A somewhat unintuitive exception to the guideline of providing more information is that occasionally, a college

or university may prefer to withhold certain information from a prospective student until she or he becomes

more valuable to them. For example, some higher education institutions whose tuition and fees are far above

the average would prefer not to share this information with prospective students until the prospective student

becomes a lead, because they would like the opportunity to discuss fees in the same context as financial aid opportunities.


BEST PRACTICE #2: CHOOSE

QUALITY OVER QUANTITY

Best practice #1 pertains to how much information

you should ensure the potential student receives

before becoming a lead. Best practice #2 focuses on

how much information your organization needs to

collect as part of the inquiry process. It is important

that you ask sufficient qualifying questions on your inquiry forms to help filter those prospective students that do not meet your institutions’

requirements and qualifications to avoid wasting time on unqualified prospective students. For example, you may wish to reject students

requesting information on master’s programs who

have not yet completed their bachelor’s degree.

Or you may have found that a particular type of

student does not convert to enrollments well (e.g.

international students, students under 20 years of

age, etc.). You can use your inquiry forms to filter these prospective students and ensure that only

more qualified leads move through the process.

That being said, you need to determine the

appropriate number, types, and restrictiveness of

questions on your inquiry form, as every additional

question you add reduces the probability of

someone completing an inquiry form. For example,

you may find that it’s helpful to know the gender of a prospective student, or would like a person’s

home, work, and mobile phone numbers, or even

the individual’s employer. But many prospective

students find they are uncomfortable providing such detailed information prior to initial contact.

Try to limit your inquiry form questions to only

those essential for preliminary screening and

making initial contact with the potential student.

Other information can be obtained during the

follow-up process.

With all this in mind, it is important to realize that

if you are buying inquiries on a cost-per-lead basis,

as you add constraints/filters to your forms, you will probably pay more for each lead. For example,

if you ask a vendor to accept inquiries only from

prospective students aged 23 and over, you may be

asked to pay 15 percent more per lead, as 15 percent

of that vendor’s potential audience will be excluded

from inquiring. Expect that your total aggregate

direct expense for lead acquisition will likely be no

less with higher qualified leads, but that the benefit you will obtain is achieved during the subsequent

enrollment management process, as your “back-

end” requirements will be lower.

EXAMPLE:

You purchase leads from an education search portal. You add questions on your inquiry form that

filter those prospective students who have statistically converted into enrollments at a lower rate. As a result, you receive 50 highly qualified leads at $40/lead, costing $2,000. They enroll at a rate of six percent, or three total enrollments.

You purchase leads from a career site—specifically individuals who have expressed a general interest in education. You have a very simple inquiry form and add no filters or restrictions to your forms. You receive 200 lower quality leads at $10/lead, costing $2,000. They enroll at a rate of 1.5 percent, or three total enrollments.

Both lead marketing efforts yielded an outcome of three enrollments. Should you be indifferent? The answer, in most cases, is no. Example A is preferred by most institutions.

A

B


Why? The lead cost is only one factor associated with creating an enrollment. The cost of applying your

limited resources to these leads must also be considered. Each of these leads requires some level of follow-

up on your part. Other costs incurred include initial and subsequent phone contact, brochure/flash drive preparation and mailing, and two-way email correspondence, among other activities that have direct and

indirect costs. So even though the direct cost associated with acquiring the leads is comparable in Examples

A and B, and the end result (3 enrollments) is the same, the total costs in example B can clearly be far more

expensive.

How much more expensive? Unfortunately, though measurable, many colleges and universities do not

measure accurately or even at all. Keeping an accurate tab on the costs related to acquiring a student is

critical to your decision-making process.

For most institutions with limited resources, it is easy to see why fewer, higher quality leads are a great way to

maximize the efficient use of your internal resources while achieving the highest enrollment rates possible.

BEST PRACTICE #3: TAKE

ONLY WHAT YOU CAN EAT

Before jumping into lead acquisition, it is critical

to determine what level of marketing activity your

institution has the capacity to handle. How many

enrollments do you want? How many enrollment

counselors do you have? How many prospective

students can those enrollment counselors actually

manage in a day, a week, a month? Are those

enrollment counselors prepared to sell?

In the highly competitive market for students,

enrollment personnel must not only be responsive,

but must be prepared to quickly and easily address

the questions that prospective students may pose.

Today, many institutions respond to a prospective

student the very same day they inquire. The

institution that reaches a lead first has a measurable advantage in converting her or him into a student.

Most colleges and universities experienced in

enrollment management consider a lead to be

“cold” (not worthy of aggressive pursuit) if initial

contact has not been made within seven days of

inquiry. If your organization has, for example, only

two enrollment managers, you should arrange to

generate enough leads to keep them busy. But if

you generate more than they can keep up with, and

you will ultimately have paid for leads that prove

unworkable.

The institution that

reaches a lead first has a measurable advantage in

converting her or him into a

student.

“ “


BEST PRACTICE #4:

UNDERSTAND YOUR

CUSTOMERS AND THEIR

NEEDS

Prospective students interested in online education

are becoming more knowledgeable about the range

and perceived quality of online offerings available. Institutions face a much more discriminating

audience. This more competitive and complex

environment is forcing institutions to pay greater

attention to positioning and differentiation. The important questions to ask yourself are:

• What makes our offering different from the other institutions offering a similar program?

• How much does that point of differentiation matter to the prospective student?

• What is the most effective way to communi-cate our points of differentiation?

• How can we most effectively motivate individ-

uals with factual, yet persuasive information?

To address a particular prospective student’s

needs, it is important to understand their typical

motivations, as well as the factors they tend to

consider when selecting a college or university.

Most prospective students fall into one of four

“camps” of motivation, particularly if they are

adult learners. They tend to be seeking:

• Career advancement

• Career change

• Personal enrichment

• Regulatory or workplace job compliance

Within each of these categories, the factors that

prospective students consider will vary, but usually

include:

• Cost (tuition/books/fees)

• Availability and form of financial aid

• Accreditation

• Schedule flexibility

• Reputation of school

• Number of calendar starts per year

• Curriculum delivery method

• Credit transfer policy

• Requirements for completion

• Required campus attendance

• Ease of process

Tailoring your message to address these

motivations and accentuating areas where your

institution stands out can be instrumental in

attracting qualified leads. Many marketing services companies will help you with your messaging

and assist you with the design of website landing

pages as part of their lead acquisition services,

but when your institution ultimately follows-up

with an inquiry, it is important to determine very

quickly which attributes are most important to

the prospective student, and then address those

specific needs.

BEST PRACTICE #5: CHOOSE

YOUR BATTLES (AND THE

RIGHT WEAPONS)

This practice deals with the concept of prioritizing

leads and employing distinct tactical methods

of following up with them. There are a number

of methods of communicating with prospective

students, and a good communications strategy will

employ one or a combination of several of these.

…it is important to

determine very quickly

which attributes are

most important to the

prospective student, and

then address those specific needs.

“

“


PRIORITIZATION

An important aspect in designing follow-up procedures is

to understand how to internally qualify or rank incoming

inquiries. This is important because depending on the

number of leads you generate, you likely do not want to

apply the same enrollment marketing strategy to all of

your leads. Best practices mandate that higher qualified, or “hot,” leads follow a different path than others.

The manner in which a student has learned about your

higher education institution can be a great predictor as to

where they are in the decision-making process and how

interested they truly are in your institution. Often this

information, along with an initial contact, will help you

properly “bucket” your leads into the appropriate process.

For example, a prospective student that has visited

your website or an education portal and has specifically requested information from your school calls for a more

intense, close-contact response, including phone interaction and possibly the mailing of printed materials.

Contrast this to a list of names your institution may have purchased, none of whom has specific familiarity with or an expressed interest in your programs. These individuals may only merit an introductory email until

further interest is expressed.

FOLLOW-UP CHANNELS

The methods used to communicate with inquiries

fall into four primary categories: telephone,

email, printed material, and “other” methods

including on-site live chat, discussion forums, etc.

Awareness of these communication methods is not

revolutionary, but the efficient and effective use and interactivity of them is a science few have mastered.

In today’s digital age, prospective students want

fast responses as well as the knowledge that they

are perceived as a valuable and unique customer to

the school, not merely a name or number.

Telephone. Many schools that have had success

in generating enrollments will call the prospective

student either immediately after an inquiry

is generated or within the first 24 hours after generation. This is an effective way to welcome the prospective student and acknowledge their need

for customized assistance. It also provides an

opportunity to gauge the interest of the prospective

student, which will dictate her or his classification (hot, warm, cool, not interested) and appropriate

follow-up procedures. Other institutions simply

use the call as a means to introduce themselves,

verify a student’s email and postal address, and

determine if there are any preliminary questions

that need to be answered.

It is often a good idea to prepare scripts for

enrollment personnel, so you can ensure you

gather the appropriate data to make future

interactions meaningful and productive. A classic

mistake that many universities make is to mail an

information packet to the prospective student and

then wait for him or her to take the next step. It is

critical that direct, two-way contact be made with

the individual either before information is sent, or

immediately after, or both.


Email. Successful email follow-up has several components: timeliness of delivery, customization of message,

useful links, effective call to action, and deliverability.

Customization - With email being the least

expensive and easiest form of communication,

institutions that use tools to automate the process

based on known variables (program of interest,

student’s name, inquiry source, etc.) have an

advantage over those who use non-sophisticated

forms of email. Any system you use should be able

to pull information from your lead data and allow

you to customize a response with little manual

effort.

Timeliness - Ideally, an email welcoming the

prospective student by name and providing several

links to help continue researching important

information about the institution and programs is

generated immediately when an inquiry is added to

the database. Then, at a pre-determined interval,

follow-up emails will help sustain a relationship

with that lead. Ideally, this process should be

automated to minimize the amount of internal

resources and time required.

Useful links - Important links to contain in email

communications include: 1) a continually updated

FAQ section of the university’s website, 2) an online

application (for future reference), 3) the university’s

online education section and/or specific programs,

and 4) links to any “community” features such as

blogs and web forums.

Call to Action - Always help prospective students

understand the next steps in the process. At a

minimum, provide them with a phone number they

can call to communicate with a real person if they

have any questions, as well as links to an online

application.

Deliverability - Even the most effective email communication is worthless if it never reaches its

intended recipient. The proliferation of unsolicited

email has resulted in SPAM filtering systems that will often “throw the baby out with the bathwater.”

It is very possible that the emails you send, if not

consistent with legal and proper delivery practices,

will end up in someone’s junk email folder and

never be seen. Worse yet, your email server can

be mistaken as a source of SPAM, affecting all emails sent from it, not just your marketing emails.

There are many resources written on the topic of

building successful email marketing campaigns.

Readers should consult https://www.ftc.gov/

tips-advice/business-center/guidance/can-spam-

act-compliance-guide-business or other widely

available online resources.

Any system you use

should be able to pull

information from your

lead data and allow you

to customize a response

with little manual effort.

“ “


Print. Though it can be costly and slower, some prospective

students desire printed material to review at their leisure.

Indeed, printed materials often have a powerful influence over a prospective student’s decision-making process. However, due

to the high production and labor costs associated with preparing

and shipping printed materials, this form of response should

also be reserved for those leads that have been identified in your process as higher quality or higher probability enrollments. An

alternative for those that are not considered highly qualified, but who still desire printed materials, is to publish your marketing

materials electronically in PDF format and have it available on

the institution’s website. If using this method, email can be sent

along with a link to the PDF document in place of mailed material.

However, do not make the mistake of assuming that a beautiful brochure, in the form of a PDF is a substitute

for printed materials. The fact is, most individuals ultimately print these materials at home, and when they

do, your well-designed color brochure will likely not appear nearly as nice as you intended.

Other methods. There are other methods of follow-up that can help educate a prospective student and

move them closer to the application phase. Online open houses, “webinars” or chat sessions, for example,

are great ways for prospective students to speak directly to professors or admission staff. Typically, a two-to-three percent invitation-to-attendance rate is achieved and should be taken into consideration when

staffing such events as one person can only handle between 15 and 25 students at one time. This method isn’t optimal as a stand-alone option but can be beneficial as an added form of follow-up and information sharing. Much the way “triggers” are used to automate telephone, print and email notification, they can also be used to help your school automate the process of communicating open houses and other similar

activities with prospective students.

Communicating

with a prospective

student at the

right time with

the right message

is a combination

of art and

science.

“

“

Communicating with a prospective student at the right time with the

right message is a combination of art and science. It is helpful to map

out a logical and effective follow-up strategy that can be deployed and tested over time. How will you communicate with a lead in the

first 24 hours? How about during those critical first three-to-seven days? Scheduling which emails, physical mail and calls are going to

be integrated into your follow up campaign upfront will make your

enrollment managers much more effective.

As you implement that schedule, it is important to test various

combinations of outreach to determine which provides the best

return on investment. Does a postcard on the third day increase your

enrollments by any margin? These are the kinds of questions you will

want to ask yourself (and answer through analysis) as you proceed. There

are companies that offer tested and proven communications programs, EducationDynamics’ own Student Acquisition Solutions team provides

software that monitors, manages, and measures prospective students’

levels of engagement throughout the enrollment process to increase

conversion.


BEST PRACTICE #6:

MAKE IMPORTANT RESOURCES AVAILABLE ONLINE

THE APPLICATION

Making an online application available improves

the chances of moving an inquiry to the next stage

of the enrollment process. In some cases, your call

counselors may be able to walk the prospective

student through an application on the first call.

Remember that getting a prospective student to

an application is not the last step. Make sure the

applicant successfully fills out the application and respond to them as soon as possible.

With outsourced applications or an in-house

system that does not help prospective students

through sticking points, your application

completion rate will not be as high as it could

be. Any issues a prospective student has while

completing the application can be turned into

relationship-building exercises. Deploy a “smart”

online application, which allows you to monitor

your prospects’ progress and help when necessary.

For example, a good online application system

will notify a counselor whenever an application

has been started and then abandoned prior to

completion. Apropos to this, make sure you provide

a mechanism that allows the prospect to fill out some of the application, and then come back

later to complete it if necessary. This is especially

important if you are using a long application.

Once the application is complete, a quick review

and determination (accept/reject) on your end is

a key factor in enrolling the student. Depending

on the program, it’s likely that the prospective

student might complete applications at multiple

institutions. All other factors being equal, the

college or university that provides the fastest

turn-around stands a better chance of enrolling a

prospective student.

OTHER RESOURCES

Making other resources available online also improves your chances of converting a prospective student.

Organizations implementing best practices in this area will make resources available including applications

for financial aid, credit transfer requests, and even course directories and syllabi. The resources that help the prospective student understand the experience are important, as well are the resources that will help the

prospective student move through the decision-making and enrollment process quickly and efficiently.


BEST PRACTICE # 7: USE YOUR WEBSITE TO SUPPORT YOUR

MARKETING EFFORTS

Many universities have difficulty leveraging their websites for direct marketing purposes. This

usually happens for one or more reasons:

• The marketing staff does not have control over the website or its content

• The university’s website is extensive, sup-

porting a wide range of constituents, includ-

ing prospective students, existing students,

alumni, and others

• The programs being marketed, as well as

relevant resources, are scattered (e.g., across

departmental websites or sub-pages) and

more than likely lack consistency in messag-

ing and information.

It is for this reason that many marketing

departments choose not to send paid traffic (for example, paid search engine traffic) to their institution’s websites. There are simply too many

opportunities for a prospect to get “lost.”

Notwithstanding the above, an institution’s

website can be used to support the marketing

function, primarily if its use is advocated after a

lead has been generated.

Once an enrollment counselor has made direct

contact with a prospective student and obtained

an understanding of the prospective student’s

specific needs, the counselor can refer her or him to individual pages on the site that are of precise

help, including information about a program,

information on financial aid, information on credit transfer, or student blogs and discussion forums.

A prospective student trying to find these items on your website unassisted may have difficulty. But with the help of your admissions staff, it becomes a breeze. Also, you do not have to worry about

the student getting distracted or lost because you

have already established contact.

BEST PRACTICE # 8: CLOSE THE LOOP

Inevitably some of your leads will convert into

enrollments, and others won’t. No marketing

channel or process will convert 100 percent of your

leads into enrollments. But by carefully examining

the characteristics of those that do convert, you

can optimize your recruitment program, placing

more effort and budget into areas that have proven successful. One of the easiest analyses

you can perform is a review of the performance of

your lead sources. For example, you may employ

several unique marketing channels to generate

inquiries, and several vendors within each channel.

These may include paid search engines, email,

display advertising, and cost-per-lead marketing.

By comparing the enrollment rate and cost-per-

channel, you can determine an average cost-per-

enrollment for each channel and vendor. Then,

you can optimize and allocate more budget

where your cost per enrollment is lowest, and

less budget where cost per enrollment is highest.

The two simple examples below demonstrate this

approach:

“ ...you can optimize and

allocate more budget

where your cost per

enrollment is lowest, and

less budget where cost per

enrollment is highest.

“


Assume:• 1,000 paid search clicks to your website at a cost of $4 per click

• 10% of these clicks become leads (100 leads)

• 6% of these leads ultimately become enrollments (6 enrollments)

Totals:Total Cost: 1,000 clicks x $4 = $4,000Total Enrollments: 6

Cost Per Enrollment: $4,000/6 = $667.00

Assume:• 50 leads generated at a cost of $40 per lead

• 8% of these leads ultimately become enrollments (12 enrollments)

Totals:Total Cost: 150 leads x $40 = $6,000Total Enrollments: 12

EXAMPLE 1:

PAID SEARCH

CHANNEL

Cost Per Enrollment: $6,000/12 = $500

As you can see, by calculating a cost per enrollment, you can compare two distinctly different marketing channels, as well as multiple vendors within a channel. In truth, the more accurate analysis is a little more

involved, as you must consider indirect costs as well which may include campaign setup and follow-up

costs (mailing, phone, etc.). Nevertheless, one can easily see how a relative comparison of marketing

channels can be used to optimize a recruiting effort.

EXAMPLE 2:

COST-PER-

LEAD CHANNEL

BEST PRACTICE # 9: CONSIDER

THE OTHER FACTORS AFFECTING

CONVERSION RATES

Despite your best efforts in enrollment marketing management, there are often factors you have less control over that contribute to

any one institution’s success rate in building enrollments. Although

many of these may be outside of the enrollment manager’s control,

it is important to note them here, as knowledge of these may be

beneficial. Among the most significant are:

• The type and uniqueness of programs being offered

• University factors (branding/awareness, tuition rates, delivery

format, loan or finance options, quality of instructors, speed of application approval, program start dates, accreditation)

• The competitive strategy of other institutions


TYPE AND UNIQUENESS OF PROGRAMS OFFERED

The type of program offered can impact conversion rates due to the number of higher education institutions offering similar programs. Put simply, more “popular” programs (e.g. an online M.B.A.) tend to be offered by more colleges and universities. This leads to a dilution of students applying to available programs. We have found that institutions that offer programs in new areas where even limited demand exists, or target highly-specialized concentrations within popular programs (e.g. an Information Systems

Degree with a concentration in Internet Security), will have less competition for potential students, thus

increasing the likelihood of higher conversions. Universities should consistently evaluate their programs

and consider the deployment of unique programs and specializations.

INSTITUTION FACTORS

Institution factors are those that are specific to each college and university, which the enrollment manager seldom has any way of influencing. However, if any of these factors work in your institution’s favor, a good marketing or enrollment manager can use them to differentiate your institution to a prospective student.

Brand Recognition - Universities with higher

brand recognition will tend to attract more

interest at a lower cost than institutions with

less brand awareness. Prospective students may

convert to enrollments at a higher rate at a well-

known institution, because a level of implicit trust

exists thanks to brand awareness. Remember

that often, brand recognition has been achieved

at a very high cost over a long period of time,

and this cost can’t easily be allocated on a per-

student basis.

Tuition and Fees - Another important factor is

the price of your program versus other competing

colleges and universities. From an enrollment

management perspective, it is worth taking the

time to research your competitors and be able

to explain to prospective students why your

programs might cost more (e.g. state of the art

delivery systems, 24-hour access to courseware,

loan and financing options, etc.) and as well make sure that any discussion around tuition

and fees includes information about financial aid availability.

Instructors - Your instructors, their credibility,

and their credentials can play a significant role in influencing leads. Their availability to prospective

students to answer questions as part of the

enrollment process could provide a competitive

advantage to your school.

Accreditation - Accreditation is of critical

importance to many higher education students.

Many in the education world deem regional

accreditation to be more prestigious than

national accreditation. But most students

don’t know the difference. So if your institution has regional accreditation, it might be worth

providing an explanation of the difference to a prospective student. To those students seeking

other than a higher education degree, including

certificate programs and stand-alone coursework, accreditation may not be as critical.

Calendar - Institutions that offer rolling start dates (many start dates throughout the year)

and quick application approval/denial are often

able to capitalize on prospective students’ initial

enthusiasm and thus convert at a higher rate.

For example, a prospective student who finally decides to take the plunge into furthering his

or her education may be more influenced by a university that has rolling eight-week starts than

one that has only two or three semester starts

per year.


COMPETITIVE STRATEGY OF OTHER SCHOOLS

Even if the programs you offer directly compete with a limited number of schools, success is not guaranteed. Other universities may have more significant budgets allocated to acquiring new students or more effective processes in place for converting leads to enrollments. Other organizations may “tolerate” a higher cost-per-enrollment than your institution, creating further competitive barriers. If your programs

compete with other schools, it is more important than ever that you try to restrict your inquiries to only

the most adequately pre-qualified.

BEST PRACTICE #10:

THE IMPORTANCE OF AN

INQUIRY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Once you have established an effective method of attracting and gathering the quality of prospective

students your institution wants, it is imperative to

track all the components that contribute to successful

enrollment and retention. When looking for the right

service or software that provides transparency into the

cost-per-inquiry, channel performance, enrollment rates

and more, choose one that provides comprehensive

features that allow you to:

• Monitor how current performance is pacing against

pre-established goals.

• Provide accurate, real-time verification and validation of inquiries

• Consolidate data, especially when spanning across

multiple systems

• Create custom parameters that allow you to

identify if a prospective student is an ideal

candidate

Especially for institutions with limited marketing budgets

and internal resources, using one service can help you

eliminate wasted spend and allocate your budget more

efficiently and effectively. EducationDynamics’ own

GlassPanel® provides a unified view of every interaction your institution has with a prospective student, as well as

enrollment performance and several other components

that keep you well-informed of the potency of your

enrollment marketing campaigns.


BEST PRACTICE # 11:

IT’S ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS

It takes a tremendous amount of work—and money—to garner interest in your programs and translate

that interest into an enrolled student. The key is to ensure that you are not welcoming them in the front

door just to have them crawl out the window. It is critical to manage the entire lifecycle of a student

from lead to graduate, particularly an online student who may not have the physical support that comes

with a campus-based education. Throughout the student lifecycle, there are continuous “windows

of vulnerability” that must be overcome. Solid communications efforts can ensure that a lead and a student remain engaged throughout the process. If you have historical retention data for your programs,

evaluate the data to determine points of weakness. For example, most institutions see a student drop-

off rate in the first year. Knowing that will allow you to put together a first-year retention program that monitors and manages student engagement.

Today, there are a tremendous number of communications tools available to build and maintain

relationships with students from online communities, such as Facebook, to regular email correspondences

to blogs that enable students to express and find themselves in your community. Again, these retention tools can be developed by your institution or bought off the shelf from organizations that have spent the time and effort to build proven programs.


The key to successfully matriculating students is having a well devised and precisely executed

enrollment campaign. Your responsiveness, awareness of prospective students’ needs, and the crucial

impressions left at each touch-point with them, can ultimately affect those prospective students’ decisions to apply to and enroll at your institution. Throughout this document, we have outlined best

practices in recruiting used by some of today’s leading educational institutions. Many of these practices

can be applied through the proper planning and execution of marketing (lead generation) campaigns,

combined with a well-planned and timed enrollment management strategy—all of which should be

supported by powerful enabling technologies. Institutions that adopt best practices, and dedicate a

sufficient level of internal resources, can be very successful on their own.

In many cases, colleges and universities do not have the human resources, technology, or know-how

to execute on lead generation and conversion activities effectively. In these cases, outsourcing of key activities may be the best course of action. Fortunately, in response to demand, a wide variety of a la carte

and turnkey service providers exist, including organizations focused on lead generation, outsourced call

centers, and marketing communications services and technologies among others. Whether outsourcing

or building the enrollment management competency on campus, it is critical to take the time to survey

the postsecondary enrollment management landscape to define best practices for your institution and avoid potential pitfalls.

CONCLUSION

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