Since our founding, Waybetter has married enrollment marketing strategy to complex technologies. There’s not an enrollment challenge we haven’t seen and overcome. There’s not a higher ed CRM we haven’t taken apart and put back together.
To kick off the new year we are doing something we love to do: sharing knowledge about these two things. And, we know that you’re busy so we’re doing it quickly. Drumroll…
Enrollment Marketing and Slate Quick Hits
THE TOP 5 CHARACTERISTICS OF A SUCCESSFL VP OF ENROLLMENT
- They focus no matter what
- They understand that enrollment is a competition
- They understand that all colleges are regional (or local)
- They understand that inertia is the enemy
- They’re comfortable in the role of Chief Revenue Officer
Want to better understand what we mean by each of these? Read more here.
3 BEST STRATEGIES IMPLEMENTED DURING COVID BUT HERE TO STAY
- True focus on optimal .edu visit page design and content
- Flexible visit options (virtual and in-person—any time)
- More frequent/dynamic student licensing
More clients than ever put money, time, and effort behind their .edu visit page in 2020 and 2021. Some took it a step further and had Waybetter revolutionize the visit page through the use of a Slate non-gated portal. Thanks to the renewed focus on UX improvements, students have a lot more clarity on the visit options available to them. And, lucky for them, there are simply a lot more options now…
Throughout the past 2 years, campuses sharpened their focus on getting students to “visit” no matter what. We saw a lot more creativity and flexibility. Options became diversified between virtual, in-person, individual, group, weekday, weekend, any time, any way and they should stay this way for perpetuity. It’s what’s best for the students.
THE 3 THINGS YOUR APPLICANT AND ACCEPTED STUDENT PORTALS SHOULD HAVE
- Interactive content modules that are 100% customized to each student
- Purpose-driven calls-to-action that change based on enrollment status
- A slick design consistent with your brand and other marketing materials
- Strategic elements to build enthusiasm, student community, and brand affinity
Get in touch to learn more about our Portal Page services.
3 WAYBETTER BLOG POSTS FROM THE ARCHIVE–WORTH THE READ!
- Ways to Get More Out of Your CRM (6 min read)
- Ways to Use Empathy to Enroll Students (5 min read)
- How to Beat Summer Melt (10 min read)
THE 3 THINGS YOU SHOULD BE DOING INTERNALLY IN SLATE EVERY DAY
- Running reports and queries to watch your funnel and spot YOY issues
- Tagging all interactions with students (via Slate BCC to Gateway and other)
- Requiring counselors to monitor territory management reports, lead generation queries, and historical data points
We offer free Slate consultations if you want more advice on how to best leverage it. Just contact us here.
THE TOP SLATE ERRORS WE SEE
- Not having consistent data inputs across sources
- Allowing students to select more than one “major of interest” on the RFI form
- Not using Prospect ID to pre-fill inquiry forms and event registrations
- Not accounting for all years and statuses in comm flows and populations
- Not properly implementing deliverability configurations like DKIM
- Not meeting CAN-SPAM requirements by leaving out a physical mailing address in email templates
There’s a webinar that shares much more detail on the above. View it here.
TOP 5 WAYS TO INCREASE STUDENT ENGAGEMENT IN SLATE
- Optimize the out-of-the-box Slate applicant and admit portals
- Marry Ping and UTM data for comprehensive reporting
- Leverage Ping for print, ads, calling, and lead development
- Set up Voyager and journey mapping
- Utilize populations for more than just campaigns
There you have it! A round-up of some of the things we think are worth knowing. Existing partner? Not an existing partner? Either way, we don’t mind chatting more about these things with you. Just let us know that you want more information.