The Higher Ed Marketer

When Brian Kenny tells people he’s the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer for Harvard Business School , they often say, “Why does Harvard need a chief marketing officer?” Yes, Harvard is a historic brand, and that might lead some to believe that it markets itself, but it turns out history can sometimes be a double-edged sword. In this milestone episode — our 50th! — we talk with Brian abou...

The potential for getting roasted by Gen Z is high if you aren’t adapting to the new expectations for higher education. Facebook is in the past—students are looking for more. More community, mental health sensitivity, and customization. How can we provide that? Our guest, Adam Metcalf , Co-Founder at ZeeMee , has the answers. In this episode, he explains why the key to Gen Z is community and how t...

Ever since the internet lowered barriers for fundraising, getting the attention of donors has gotten increasingly harder. Many colleges and universities have responded by making their capital campaigns bigger. However, our guest, Steve Brady , Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology , believes they should get smaller. In this episode, he explains why hig...

Many prospective students don't have the resources to travel across the country and tour all of the colleges and universities that interest them. What if there was a TV show that offered an insider's look at each school—their values, the campus life, the academic opportunities—through the eyes of their students? Alex Boylan , Co-Founder and Executive Producer of The College Tour , a TV series that...

To succeed at higher ed marketing, you need to understand the challenges prospective students face. For example, what hurdles do they need to overcome to attend your school? Often, a major hurdle is the prospect of borrowing money. That’s why offering loan repayment assistance programs, or LRAPs, can make a huge difference with enrollment. Peter Samuelson , President at Ardeo Education Solutions ,...

Sometimes when marketers get all gung-ho about creating work, especially content that looks “professional,” it can blur the authenticity of the message. Members of Gen Z (who have highly sensitive BS filters) can prefer content that’s imperfect. In this episode, we spoke with Nate Jorgensen , Director of Marketing and Communications at the University of Cincinnati - College of Engineering and Appl...

When creating a fundraising plan for your institution, the very first step is developing your fundraising case for support. Bill Stanczykiewicz is the Senior Assistant Dean for External Relations and the Director of the Fundraising School at IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy , which is the world’s only school on philanthropic studies. Needless to say, he’s THE expert on institutional philanth...

Even at a small college, the risk of becoming siloed is high. At a large school with multiple campuses, it’s crucial to emphasize clarity of vision. Without it, employees will go rogue trying to solve the problems in front of them. We speak with Eleanor Berman , Chief Marketing Officer at Indiana University , about her experience with decentralized marketing organizations, solving the $800 million...

It’s hard to imagine, but some universities needed convincing before integrating a school website in the 1990s. Fast forward to today, not only is a school website essential, but requires a superior level of content, keywords, and consistent updates if you hope to differentiate yourself. We speak with Cam Tracy , Web Development Agent at Union University , about his experience building a universit...

With all universities vying for students, creating value through exceptional experiences and differentiated offerings is the only way to stand out. And our guest is here to share exactly how his university has achieved this time and time again. Ethan Braden , Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Purdue University , provides insights on what’s made Purdue so successful as a bran...

It’s no secret: The market for higher education is shrinking. And whether that’s a seminary, graduate school, or a small private college, everyone is looking for ways to pull in more prospective students. One way in this post-pandemic era — hybrid virtual events. From Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary : Joe Emmick , Vice President for Development, and Shane Nichols , Chief Marketing and Com...

There’s always going to be a “next big thing” in higher ed marketing. The important thing to remember is it’s not so much what that next big thing is that matters, it’s how you use it. John Drevs , Associate Vice President of Digital Marketing and Communications at Loyola University Chicago , provides insights on how to keep ahead of the next big thing in this episode. Plus, he explains the ideal...

There are thousands of marketers across a variety of industries that are leveraging big data to promote products and services, almost in real-time. But in higher ed marketing circles, many marketers are still wary of it. In many cases, a knowledge gap exists—they simply don’t know how it works. They have questions ranging from how big data is collected to the legalities and ethics surrounding it....

Prospective students aren’t as responsive to websites, emails, and mailers as they used to be. These days, younger generations are looking more towards peer-to-peer input when making decisions about their college journey. That’s one reason why Biola University started tapping into the power of influencer marketing. In this episode, Lee Wilhite , Vice President at Biola University, discusses how th...

There’s a degree of simplicity to enrollment marketing in the undergraduate world. The schools have the luxury of buying lists to recruit students. When it comes to grad school and seminary enrollment, it isn’t quite so easy. In this episode, we talk with Kevin Bish , VP of Enrollment Management and Student Services at Asbury Theological Seminary , about how to identify mission-fit students who wi...

The good news is that you do not need any coding knowledge at all to create a digital place that students have near-constant access to that also makes them feel connected to the university community. Here’s why you need an app. In this episode, we interview Jamie Giblett , Sales Manager at Digistorm North America , about the many reasons an app plays such a vital role in retaining current students...

When it comes to marketing leadership roles, it pays to speak less and listen more. Anna-Maja Dahlgren , Director of University Marketing at Loma Linda University , has embraced this philosophy throughout her marketing career, which began in healthcare before transitioning to higher ed. It was this commitment to listening that led to a compromise between her and executive leadership. That compromi...

What’s the best way to garner the attention and interest of Gen Z? It’s communicating with them through the channels and mediums that they prefer. Right now, that’s one-to-one video communication. In fact, the schools that have adopted one-to-one video communications are seeing up to 10 times more engagement from that channel than from their email campaigns. In this episode, we sit down with Zach...

Students don’t actually want technology to replace all human connection. What prospects do want is one-to-one relationships with student ambassadors who will tell them what the institution is really like and help create a sense of belonging even before admission.  In this episode, we interview Diego Fanara , Cofounder & CEO at Unibuddy , about a platform to facilitate peer-to-peer connections...

Higher education is like marriage. Once you’re hitched, if you stop investing in the relationship, you can’t be surprised if it doesn’t last.  Student success needs to be the constant, single focus of higher ed marketers to attract the right-fit students who will both stay and succeed.   In this episode, we interview Nate Simpson , Senior Program Officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation...

Think about your last webinar (or virtual lecture or virtual campus tour). Did you provide captioning? Did you optimize the captioning for Deaf participants? Did you make it clear to all participants that you were providing this service?  Unless all three answers were yes, you need to make your marketing more inclusive.  In this episode, we interview Courtney Cannon , Undergraduate Enrollment and...

Big universities have the luxury of spending $1M per year only on advertising. For smaller universities, that’s close to a tenth of our entire operating budget. But all universities have the exact same access to social media platforms. When a university president starts amplifying stories about the institution, think of it as free advertising that works. In this episode, we interview Walter M. Kim...

A university website is often families’ first look into the university itself. If you haven’t updated your website in three, six, or twelve months, then you aren’t being authentic online. In this episode, we interview Donnell Wiggins , Associate VP for Strategic Enrollment Management & Dean of Admission at University of Dayton , about the importance of the website in communicating both authent...

How do you create upwards of 150 pieces of deliverables for a traditional undergrad campaign designed for enrollment that ranges from direct mail to automation? We wanted to show you behind the curtain, so to speak, at Caylor Solutions by highlighting the leadership team after their stellar accomplishment on a huge, multifaceted project. In this roundtable discussion episode, we chat with Caylor’s...

We all have an internet connection with several high quality cameras within arm’s reach. The only thing keeping us from sending video communications is our human vulnerability. Sending a personalized video message is a way to become more human and more real to the people we are trying to impact and serve. It creates a human-to-human connection far faster and stronger than the substandard, emotiona...