This week’s post is a continuation of last week’s post  where we covered the first step in the five-step marketing research process. If you haven’t already read through that post, make sure you do before continuing.

Once you’ve identified the research question at hand, it’s time to move on to the next step in the process: designing your study.

It’s important to be strategic when building your study. Taking this approach when designing the study will make sure you gather the data that you will need to answer the research question you worked so hard to identify. Tackling this next step with this mindset will ensure you don’t end up with data that’s not useful.

You can develop a strong study by keeping the following sentence in mind:

Conduct a(n) ____________ among __________ to learn about __________ as measured by __________.

Filling in this sentence will help guide your study design and ensure it’s focused on answering the question you previously identified.

For our example this week, we’ll work with our client, X University, who is interested in introducing a new master’s program if it will help them retain a larger portion of their undergraduate constituency as they go into graduate school.

The first blank is your research tool. Will you conduct a survey, focus group or interviews? For our purposes, we’ll proceed with a survey for ease of dissemination and its ability to collect a high number of responses.

Once you’ve decided on a survey tool, your next blank is your research audience. Our client is interested to learn how likely they are to retain their undergraduate constituents if they introduce a new master’s program. With this information, we can narrow our audience down to X University undergraduate seniors.

Your next blank will be the main idea of the research. We know we’re looking to gauge X University’s undergraduate seniors’ likeliness to return to X University through this new graduate program, so this is our next bit of information.

The final piece to this word puzzle is the type of questions you will ask. It can be difficult to solicit engagement from students if there is no incentive tied to your study and people are more likely to participate if the study is easy to complete. We can gauge likelihood on a scale from one to five where one is extremely likely, and one is not likely at all.

Here’s our final statement: Conduct a survey among X University’s undergraduate seniors to learn about their likeliness to re-enroll at X University for graduate school if a new master’s program is introduced as measured by a scale of one to five, where one is extremely likely, and one is not likely at all.

Going through this exercise will help make sure you don’t solicit information you don’t need. People value their time. If you’re lucky enough to gain their feedback, it’s important we make sure we’re asking questions that will help us uncover meaningful insights.

I look forward to learning about ways you, as marketers in higher education, have applied this principle in different scenarios. Let me know your experience in the comments and don’t forget to sign up for our newsletter  before you go!

Integrated marketing communications (IMC) is a tool used by marketers to build a brand over time. In IMC, different tactics are deployed across different platforms/mediums. However, used effectively, IMC can also be a great tool to move customers through a customer journey. 

A customer journey typically has four steps, as illustrated below.

For marketers in higher education, IMC can help acquire new students and maintain or increase application rates by exposing constituents to the brand. Before moving forward, it’s extremely important to understand the audience you’re trying to reach. For our example, we’ll focus on high school seniors’ parents. Research has shown that parents are highly influential when students choose their college/university. One study by Noel-Levitz, Inc. found that “The increasing level of parental involvement has been fueled in part by a surge in parental use of e-communications…” 

Ideally, your content will be so engaging and informative that it will serve as a catalyst for word-of-mouth marketing. IMC is your opportunity to entice the audience to follow your brand. What better way to facilitate parents to follow our school than by persuading them to advise their children to apply and become a member of our community.

Using IMC, we could also gain awareness and create need recognition of our institution by placing ads on Facebook and Instagram. Content that could work here would convey all of the opportunities that could arise from the parent’s child attending our school. Creating engaging content can easily entice the audience to interact with our boosted posts, which would lead them to the admissions landing page. 

A carefully constructed landing page will include all of the important information a parent may want to know about a college/university. This is where you should highlight all of the reasons your school is better than the rest. This same landing page should include a link to begin an admission. The goal here is to make it as easy as possible, while leveraging multiple tactics across multiple platforms/mediums to get the results we want. 

Once the application is submitted, your purchase is made. Congratulations! Your call-to-action has been completed. Your IMC strategy isn’t done yet, though. There’s still one more step in the customer journey. 

We can help reassure the customer that their decision to purchase (or apply for admission) was a good one by immediately following up with an automated email that includes essential information/links to the next steps in the application process. 

In this example, we’ve employed different tactics across different platforms/mediums to help us get the result we wanted. The omission of an IMC approach in achieving a goal could be detrimental to your efforts. There are different channels, use the right ones at the right time.

Have you used IMC to facilitate a customer’s journey? Are there any tips I may have missed that you’ve learned in your career? Let us know in the comments!

Remember to sign up for our newsletter before you go!

Over the course of the next few weeks, we’ll be reviewing the five-step process of marketing research. Each week we’ll dive into the components of each step and how they can apply to marketing for higher education. Buckle in and remember to sign up for our newsletter to receive regular marketing tips for marketers in higher education.

Step 1: Identify a Research Need

I know, it almost seems too obvious. You’re not wrong, but this simple step is arguably the most crucial in the entire process. There are five questions you should ask potential clients/colleagues to ensure there is a true research need. 

1. What is your research question?

Again, I know- obvious. However, this question forces the client/colleague to identify a specific need for research. Reasons can be planned, like an introduction of a new degree program, or the launching of a new service for students; or unplanned, like a dip in graduation or enrollment rates. 

Before moving on to the next step in the process, you should know what the client/colleague’s key concern is, what decision needs to be made and how it will be made.

2. What is your action standard?

Action standard is basically market research lingo for the criteria that will determine the decision. You could ask “Will this information lead you to shut down (or not shut down) a degree program?” Your goal here is to learn if obtaining the information you will provide could lead to a different decision.

3. Is the information you need accessible in-house or through a third party?

We’re in higher education. There is a high likelihood that the information you need for your research may already exist somewhere within the organization. This is where you put on your comfortable shoes and make a few visits to find out. It could be that what you’re researching is a faculty member’s area of focus.

Most of our workplaces have libraries within a few minutes’ walk (aren’t you glad you wore those comfortable shoes?). If you don’t feel like a walk, there’s always online resources like our friend Google. 

4. When do you need this information?

You need time to be able to conduct meaningful research. Unfortunately, sometimes we can’t do meaningful work in the timeline provided and it’s important we be upfront about that. 

If applications are down for the fall and we’re 1 week away from the first day of the semester, it may be too late to conduct in-depth research. We want to be able to have enough time to be able to provide information that will help administrators effectively pivot on a strategy. 

5. Is the research project cost-effective?

A general rule of thumb, projects should generally cost less than the benefits its information will provide? Will the information you can provide be worth the possible increase in student retention that could result from it? Depends on the price of tuition. 

Have you employed these questions in a real-life situation? Have you had to turn down research project requests? How was that response received? Do you have any advice on a great way to say no? Let us know in the comments!

I’ll see you next week, when we’ll discuss the second step in our five-step process that is marketing research.  

Defining a narrow target audience is key to executing an effective marketing plan. It’s necessary to understand the folks we are marketing to create an effective marketing campaign that helps us achieve goals. The most effective way to achieve this is by narrowing a target audience down to a buyer persona. This buyer persona will serve as the average person to whom you are marketing. The importance of a buyer person also applies in the higher education industry. Like any industry, the buyer persona will change depending on the message a university and/or college is trying to communicate.

Some buyer personas a marketer in higher education may deem appropriate are: the typical high school student researching colleges, their parents, and students completing associate’s degrees who may be looking to transfer to a new school to finish their education. It usually helps to name these personas so, for the sake of this article, we’ll call them Martha, Robert, and Luz, respectively.

When researching building your buyer persona(s) it is important to do the demographic and psychographic research on the audience to build effective messages. You would not market to Martha the same way you market to Robert or even Luz. Each buyer persona exists so that you, as a marketer, can then more effectively market to them. For example, Martha is most likely in her teens while her parent, Robert, is much older. The ideas, messages, and modes of communication we’ll use for each of them are very different. For example, we may market different aspects of an educational experience to different buyer personas.

It is safe to assume that Martha, being fresh from high school, is not only interested in academics, but life at a college and/or university. It’s important that we market the whole university experience to Martha. However, her father, Robert, is likely more interested in the value of the education being offered and the opportunities that will become available for Martha after completing her degree. Luz is also likely more interested in finding a university and/or college that makes the most of her current credit load.

Although the overall theme and feel for the messages may be similar, the messages themselves would be customized for each buyer persona. Developing strong buyer personas will ensure that we are making the most of the information available about our target audience and solidify the methods by which, and what, we choose to communicate to each.  

Building effective marketing plans is essential in any industry. One of the first steps, and arguably the most important, in an effective marketing plan for higher education is a determining a specific target audience. Having a strong target audience or buyer persona is critical to developing effective campaigns. We can only be as effective as our understanding of how our audience gets their information.

Assuming that institutions of higher education are targeting high school students, it’s important that we go to where they are. In the case of this example, we know that high school students spend a large amount of time on social media, so that’s a good place to start. Too many institutions, though, perceive social media to be an overarching channel for marketing communications. It’s essential that marketers dive deeper and determine which social media platforms are most effective.

If we’re trying to reach the high school students directly (and not their parents), it would make more sense to advertise on the social media platforms that are most popular with that age group: Snapchat and TikTok. Many institutions in higher education often forget these important platforms and focus more on Facebook and Instagram, where the demographic is older than our target audience.

While parents of high school students may be highly influential in the student’s choice of college/university, it’s essential that marketers meet them where they are to create brand affinity. We need to utilize the platforms that they’re on to generate interest and build affinity early on so that the student wants to go to our college/university. We are more likely to recruit if the interest comes directly from the student rather than as a directive from their parent(s).

Building a well-defined brand is crucial to the success of any organization. This, too, is pivotal in building brand affinity. The ideal goal of brand affinity is to have consumers so passionate about your brand that even if (for whatever reason) the product you’re selling is out of their reach. The easiest way to illustrate this idea is luxury fashion companies. Many people cannot afford to buy from Coach, Louis Vuitton, or Gucci, but will go through inexplicable trials and tribulations to purchase just the cheapest item available just so they can identify with the brand. This scenario is not unique to luxury fashion, though. We see the same situation play out in an industry where what’s being sold isn’t even tangible – higher education.

For the sake of proximity, we will use the University of Miami (UM) as a successful example. In Miami, when football season arrives, everyone is suddenly a Miami Hurricane. Why? UM has done a great job in building a brand that everyone wants to be associated with. Come game day, whether folks went to UM or not, droves of people don their UM gear and head out for the game. You can’t tell a UM fan that they are not part of the hurricane family. If you’ve ever been to UM football game, you’ve likely heard, from the depths of the student section, that iconic line from Mean Girls: “she doesn’t even go here!”

This opens the conversation to another topic, also associated with branding. What matters most when building a brand in higher education? In the case of UM, although they have the academic rankings to back it up, their primary lure for enrollment is football and the experience of being at UM games. Tailgating and experiencing UM football games is at the core of what UM sells. Does this then mean that sports team rankings can outweigh the importance of educational value in higher education?

This proves that marketers in higher education need to be sure to market all aspects of a university and/or college experience. Marketers in this industry have the undaunting task of turning the intangible – an education – into something tangible. Marketing the college experience could be an appropriate tactic when marketing to a large, undefined audience. For some marketers in higher education, especially at younger universities with teams that aren’t as established, this could prove to be a real challenge. 

Defining a narrow target audience is key to executing an effective marketing plan. It’s necessary to understand the folks we are marketing to create an effective marketing campaign that helps us achieve goals. The most effective way to achieve this is by narrowing a target audience down to a buyer persona. This buyer persona will serve as the average person to whom you are marketing. The importance of a buyer person also applies in the higher education industry. Like any industry, the buyer persona will change depending on the message a university and/or college is trying to communicate.

Some buyer personas a marketer in higher education may deem appropriate are: the typical high school student researching colleges, their parents, and students completing associate’s degrees who may be looking to transfer to a new school to finish their education. It usually helps to name these personas so, for the sake of this article, we’ll call them Martha, Robert, and Luz, respectively. 

When researching building your buyer persona(s) it is important to do the demographic and psychographic research on the audience to build effective messages. You would not market to Martha the same way you market to Robert or even Luz. Each buyer persona exists so that you, as a marketer, can then more effectively market to them. For example, Martha is most likely in her teens while her parent, Robert, is much older. The ideas, messages, and modes of communication we’ll use for each of them are very different. For example, we may market different aspects of an educational experience to different buyer personas.

It is safe to assume that Martha, being fresh from high school, is not only interested in academics, but life at a college and/or university. It’s important that we market the whole university experience to Martha. However, her father, Robert, is likely more interested in the value of the education being offered and the opportunities that will become available for Martha after completing her degree. Luz is also likely more interested in finding a university and/or college that makes the most of her current credit load.

Although the overall theme and feel for the messages may be similar, the messages themselves would be customized for each buyer persona. Developing strong buyer personas will ensure that we are making the most of the information available about our target audience and solidify the methods by which, and what, we choose to communicate to each.  

Although virtual reality is still a relatively new technology, the possibilities it provides marketers is unmatched. Virtual reality is unique in that it brings a first-person immersive experience to the target audience. Like every channel, it must be used appropriately, but for marketers, virtual reality has the potential to be the new frontier. Within the scope of marketing for higher education, this new tool can be used in a few different ways at various points of the student experience.

Possibly one of the most effective ways that colleges/universities can implement virtual reality is with virtual campus visits. Campus visits prior to application and acceptance can be a challenge for any student who lives out of state or out of the country. Coupled with the unexpected reality of today with coronavirus, traveling could come with a risk of visiting longer than expected. We live in a reality where options for travel could change overnight, so providing a fully immersive campus visit could help draw more interest at the convenience of the audience. 

Student involvement in in-person events is a very real and present struggle for colleges/universities, also due to the coronavirus pandemic. While some students may still be weary of attending in-person events, virtual reality provides them with the opportunity to get a taste of the experience without being surrounded by others. If done currently, this digital experience could help facilitate the return of on-campus events.

Finally, virtual reality could be used to increase student retention and graduation rates. One way a university/college could use virtual reality to do so is to provide a fully immersive commencement experience. Marketing commencement to seniors and/or at-risk students could provide the push they need to get across the finish line. An immersive virtual experience of commencement helps the student personalize the experience graduating seniors feel (the fanfare, the cheering, the celebrating with friends and loved ones), motivating them to stay on track. While this could be conveyed in another format (photos, videos, etc.) the experience virtual reality provides could be unparalleled.

It is important that marketers in any industry take care to build these experiences strategically. Although virtual reality provides new opportunities, it also provides new challenges. Experiences need to be built and tailored in a way that effectively gets the message we want to convey across. The biggest challenge that virtual reality presents (aside from hardware) is the possibility of other messages being inferred over the message we, as marketers, are trying to convey. With so many details going into a virtual reality experience, it’s easier than ever for a message to get muddled. However, with proper planning, development and deployment, this new tool could provide unmatchable results. 

Higher education is different from most industries in that what it is selling (education) is not something tangible. Here, what marketing communications sells is something more experiential. Ironically, the stronger the brand trust and affinity are, the more tangible the product becomes to the target audience. Marketing communication in higher education is essential in building that brand trust and affinity. Its essentiality could be described as facilitating most of the steps in the communication/sales funnel.

Marketing communications build impressions among the target audience by exposing them to a university/college’s brand. Over many impressions, strong content will help build affinity and trust. As affinity and trust grow, the consumer becomes more likely to click on content and, hopefully, because of that strong brand affinity, will be inclined to provide their contact information. From there it’s that same affinity that’s critical in the target audience’s decision on whether to provide more information, usually through responding to an email. From here, it’s often up to a sales team to take the reins, but even they will have that strong brand affinity, built through robust marketing communications, working in their favor.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus your own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.