DAVID VS. GOLIATH

Paul Vaccaro, Claudia Pouravelis, Jenene RomanucciRegis College –Weston, MA

Overcoming Graduate Recruiting Challenges at Small Colleges

David vs. GOLIATH•Climate of Graduate Higher Education:

…in the US…in Massachusetts…at Small Colleges

•Regis College’s Challenges

•Taking on Goliath: ▫ Customer Service & Personal Student Experience▫ Meeting the Needs of Industry▫ Graduate Program Marketing at Small Schools▫ Fostering a Institutional Wide Commitment to

Graduate Education and Graduate Students

Impacting Factors on Graduate Higher Education

•Decreasing Undergraduate Enrollment Nationally & in New England▫ 18-24 year olds graduating in New England peaked in 1998

and decreasing through 2002 (College Board, 2011)

•Growth in enrollment lies with graduate education▫ Over 6 million adult students enrolled in Undergraduate

and Graduate Higher Education more than total student enrollment in 1968

Impacting Factors on Graduate Higher Education

“Higher education is a competitive and

continually changing market, in which colleges

compete for students, faculty, research grants, athletic titles, revenue,

rankings, and prestige…and must take risks to

remain competitive with their peers.”

- Newman, Courtier, and Scurry (2004)

“IS IT JUST ME , CLAUDIA, OR IS THE COMPETITION GETTING MORE FIERCE THESE DAYS?”

Life in Graduate Admission

The number of Massachusetts Universities and Colleges

Offering Graduate Programs???...

73!

Regis College Graduate Department

2004 2011• 5 Graduate Degrees; 3

Certificates

• Indistinct graduate programs & ambiguous marketing message

• 200 students

• 2 Staff Members!▫ (100

students/counselor)

• 14 Graduate Degrees; 12 Certificates

• Clear graduate specific brand with distinct & industry focused programs

• 1000+ students

• 3 Staff members!▫ (333+

students/counselor)

Regis College Graduate Program Growth (by

registrations)

2003-2004 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-20112500

2700

2900

3100

3300

3500

3700

3900

4100

4300

2674

3059

33253290

35653574

3775

4072

Academic Year

Regis

trati

ons

Commitment to Customer Service & Student Centered Approach

•Personal Approach to Students▫ All inquiries receive a personalized response, rather than an

automated response▫ Inquiries are immediately connected with a Program

Director▫ All students given a “one-stop shop” approach▫ Follow up with individuals who have taken time off

•Program Specific Assignments▫ Specific counselor assignments based on program of

application with staff cross trained in each program

•Know the Applicant Beyond the Application▫ Each student is interviewed by either an Admission staff

member or faculty member, depending on the program

Commitment to Customer Service & Student Centered Approach

• Increasing the Ease of Application▫ GRE waived with ‘B’ or better in first two classes▫ Application fee waiver for Information Session attendees

•Two Course Option▫ Allows students to “test” classes prior to committing to

most programs, as well as waive the GRE

•Applicant/Student Networking opportunities▫ ‘Come to Class’ events allow applicants to sit in on a

Regis course – no cost marketing!▫ Program specific networking events with prospects,

current students, alumni, and faculty

Attention to Industry Needs

Certificates:- Health Informatics- Clinical Research Management- Gerontology- Integrative Health

Degrees:- Part-time BS in Nursing- MS in Biomedical Sciences- MS in Health Administration

Program specific recruitment events:

- Program specific info sessions- Come to Class Events

- Sponsoring/exhibiting at program

specific conferences/events

Marketing Graduate Programs at Small Schools

“THE SCHOOL JUST INCREASED PAUL’S ENROLLMENT GOAL BY 30 STUDENTS AND DECREASED HIS BUDGET BY 10%.”

Life in Gra duate Admission

Marketing Mix: 4 P’s

• Promotional Mix

▫Advertising

▫Direct Mail

▫Personal Selling

▫Sales Promotion

▫Publicity

Commitment to a Brand Identity

BRANDING: “The process for identifying the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers that differentiate them from those of other sellers.” - American Marketing Association

▫What is your niche?▫Do you have buy-in from the institution?▫Understanding of achieving a broader reach,

through the use of mass media in messaging

“I THINK OUR BRANDING IS WORKING, JENENE. WE’RE DEFINITELY STANDING OUT IN A CROWD NOW..”

Commitment to a Brand Identity

Life in Graduate Admission

Branding vs. Targeted Promotion

•TARGETED PROMOTION: Involves breaking a market into segments and then concentrating your efforts on one or a few of those segments.

▫What are you specifically promoting?▫Selected Reach▫Employs very targeted mediums in messaging

Branding vs. Targeted Promotion

Regis College Strategy:

• Mass media advertising is primarily used to promote brand awareness in the marketplace.

• Targeted promotional activities are used to increase interest and enrollment for specific programs.

BrandPromo-

tion47%

TargetedPromo-

tion53%

Allocation of Promotional Expenses

Branding vs. Targeted Promotion

BRANDING TARGETED PROMOTION

Branding Outreach

• Advertising▫ Newspapers

Boston Globe, CNC▫ Internet

Boston.com. Wickedlocal.com▫ Radio▫ Billboard▫ Transit

• Direct Mail (Boston Globe, CNC)

Allocation of Branding Expenses

Direct Mail8%

Advertis-ing92%

Targeted Outreach

• Advertising▫Newspapers (College, Hospital)▫Magazines (discipline-specific)▫ Internet (specialized sites)▫Social Media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter)

•Direct Mail▫GRE Search▫List buys ▫CareerBuilder.com▫E-newsletters

Targeted Outreach (continued)

•Personal Selling

▫On Campus Events Come to a Class Days Admitted Student Days Alumni & Prospect Networking Nights Program-specific Information Sessions

▫Graduate School Fairs/Events/Visits

▫Articulation Agreements/Partnerships

Targeted Outreach (continued)

•Sales Promotion

▫Scholarships▫Graduate Assistantships

•Publicity

▫Program-specific brochures▫Communications Planning

Allocation of Targeted Expenses

With Sales Promotion

Without Sales Promotion

Communications Planning

The ABC’s of Admissions:Always Be

Communicating

Contacts Rule

Infers that a marketer needs to make an average

of x number of contacts with a prospect in order

to close a sale.

The complexity of a product or service and the

amount of investment and financing necessary

by the prospect can influence purchase decisions

and therefore the number of contacts.

Source: IBC Marketing Group

What is “x”?

• “The average number of contacts needed to turn a visitor into a customer is anywhere from 5-8 contacts.” www.affiliateniche.com

• “It takes an average of 7 follow-up contacts to close a sale.”www.marketingaction.com

• 48.2% of all inquires turn into sales for a product or service inquired about. But that doesn’t mean the inquirer will buy from you.

• 81% of sales occur after the fifth contact with a prospect.• 90% of all salespeople give up after the fourth contact.

  Jody Hornor, Power Marketing Without Money

Contacts Rule

Infers that a marketer needs to make an average of x number of contacts with a prospect in order to close a sale.

The complexity of a product or service and the amount of investment and financing necessary by the prospect can influence purchase decisions and therefore the number of contacts.

Source: IBC Marketing Group

The Benefits of Effective Communications

Sequencing

• Cost effectiveness

• Creates synergies between marketing and admission functions

• Contribution to branding

• Allows for personalization to mass audiences

• Opportunity to tell your story

• Impact on yield

Effective Communication Plans

Vary the Message…Vary the Messenger…

Vary the Mode…

Avoid the “bomb” mailing Tell your story through a steady stream of communication

Vary the Message

Addresses hot spots in messaging▫ Why do students enroll at your institution?▫ What do your prospects want to know about?

Student Considerations:

Source: NAGAP

FACTOR FULL-TIME PART-TIME

Program/Curriculum

Essential Very Important

Prestige Very Important Less Important

Faculty Very Important Important

Location/Convenience

Important Essential

Cost/Financial Aid Important Essential

Placement Important Not Important

Vary the Message

Collateral Materials

What can you include in a communications plan?

▫ Admissions-related correspondence▫ Admissions-related publications▫ College publications▫ Electronic publications▫ Public relations hits▫ Post cards▫ College web site

Vary the Messenger

Building Credibility Through Your Spokespeople

Who delivers your messages?

▫ Admissions Office▫ Faculty▫ College leaders▫ Career Services Office▫ Financial Aid Office▫ Current students▫ Alumni

Vary the Mode

How should you communicate with prospects?

• Direct mail

• Email

• Telemarketing

Vary the Mode

“The most powerful tool for marketing, the most powerful tool for branding, the most powerful tool for direct response and the most powerful tool for building customer

relationships turns out to be plain old, ordinary ____.”

Email Marketing by Jim Sternee & Anthony Priori

Vary the Mode

“The most powerful tool for marketing, the most powerful tool for branding, the most powerful tool for direct response and the most powerful tool for building customer

relationships turns out to be plain old, ordinary email.”

Email Marketing by Jim Sternee & Anthony Priori

Vary the ModeAdvantages of Email:• Reduced cost for communication!!!• Increases opportunities for outreach• Targeted & very personal• Allows for more timely, focused messaging• Drives students to web site• Adjust strategy on the fly• Compliments traditional publications

Disadvantages of Email:• Easy to delete• Only as good as your email database• Spam

Vary the Mode

“The most fertile soil Internet marketing lies in that vast land between “yes” and “no”… Getting permission is getting them to say ‘maybe.’ ”

Jerry Shereshewsky, Direct-yahoo

Vary the Mode

Life in Graduate Admission

“WE’RE NOT SPAMMING, JENENE, WE’RE RECRUITING.”

Effective Communication Plans

Other important considerations:

• Always include a call to action

• Personalize, personalize, personalize!

• Present benefits that distinguish you against 2-3 of your competitors

• Allow for prospects to re-qualify interest

• Don’t stop communicating after the application is received

• Include P.S. notes, where possible

Effective Communication Plans

“We are living in an era of increasing competition

for the attention of fragmented audiences, and

leaving communications to chance is an unaffordable risk. The lack of a thoughtfully constructed communications plan is, in this

era, an unaffordable omission. Done well, the payoffs far exceed the costs.”

Phyllis Larsen & Margaret LauremanUniversity of Nebraska-LincolnManaging an Integrated Marketing Communications Process

Commitment from the Top!

Dr. Antoinette Hays, President

July 1, 2011

Fostering a Institutional Wide Commitment to

Graduate Education and Graduate Students

• New student checklist sent to all first time Graduate Students

• Coffee hours during weekend courses

• Food and beverage options geared towards Graduate Students

• Orientations with each new semester

• Wine and Cheese with the President

David – 7, Goliath - 0