Higher Ed Marketing Lab

Just back from this year's Collegiate Information and Visitor Services Association (CIVSA) conference, Jeff Kallay joins the show to share what he heard and what campus visit professionals across the country are really struggling with right now. We talk about everything from declining visit volume and rising no-show rates to the challenge of rebuilding student ambassador programs and why some virt...

HEML host Jarrett Smith explores the essential elements of strategy. Learn how strategy differs from activities like planning and big-picture thinking, why strategy doesn't begin with goals, the importance of selective over-performance, and how to recognize a true strategy over something that merely sounds strategic.

Jaime Hunt, a veteran higher ed marketing leader, consultant, speaker, and author, joins the show to talk about the principles of empathy-driven leadership she outlines in her new book, Heart Over Hype.  Jaime and Jarrett discuss: Common misconceptions about empathy and why it's not about simply being nice How psychological safety directly impacts a team's ability to generate innovative ideas What...

Alex Grodnik joins the pod to discuss storytelling, podcasting, and how universities can create one-of-a-kind content that captivates audiences.

Host Jarrett Smith dives into the pervasive issue of 'blah blah content' on college and university websites. He identifies two main types of ineffective content: generic content that lacks creative punch and institutionally centric content that fails to meet user needs. He offers practical solutions for identifying and eliminating blah blah content, emphasizing the importance of a student-centric...

Ryan Brown, EVP and Co-Head of 160over90, joins the show to talk about fostering more effective relationships between institutions and the agency partners they hire.  Ryan and Jarrett discuss: How an institution's culture can help or hinder agency partnerships Tips for finding great partners through RFPs What it takes to bring breakthrough creative work to life, and  How to foster a strong, collab...

W. Kent Barnds and Jeff Kallay join the show to discuss important behavioral shifts in how prospective students approach college visits and implications for the year ahead. Along the way they explore why it's time to treat campus visits as yield events, ways to integrate digital and physical experiences, and the importance of providing more value than students can find on social media.

Enrollment management veteran, Laurie Koehler, joins Jarrett to talk about the challenges facing enrollment management and key ways the practice needs to evolve.   They discuss: -How the practice of enrollment management has evolved over the last two decades -Why enrollment strategy can't be separated from institutional strategy -Five ways we need to improve how we attract, retain, and develop the...

The challenges facing small private colleges are very real—but they're not the whole story. In this episode, we talk to Scott Novak, former CEO of Underscore and Chief Development Officer at Carnegie, about how small colleges across the nation are adapting to enrollment trends and industry changes. Explore Scott's latest project: The Small College Movement

We recently conducted a nationwide survey to understand how college-bound students factor politics into their decision. We packaged it all up into a report, Politics and College Choice: How Students' Political Views Influence Where They Enroll —and our results were informative and surprising. Today, Jarrett sits down with our research partner, Grant De Roo, to share three insights from the researc...

Jarrett sits down with author Ben Guttmann to discuss practical ways to simplify your marketing communication strategies. An expert on simplicity, Guttmann explains why simplicity is essential if you want to reach and move audiences—and shares plenty of tips and tactics you can use immediately to craft simpler, more effective communications.  Read Ben Guttmann's book, Simply Put: Why Clear Message...

Student recruitment can only happen if you sell your institution well. But because higher ed typically avoids the word "sales" like the plague, admissions counselors miss out on key skills they need to succeed. In this episode, Jarrett sits down with higher ed consultant Chris Lewis to discuss how your admissions team can embrace sales during student recruitment—and steps you can take to do so.

Explore the "Performance Marketing Trap" with Jarrett as he discusses the pitfalls colleges experience when they over-rely on so-called performance marketing channels to advertise. Learn why brand marketing is crucial for long-term success and get actionable steps you can take to create a more balanced strategy. 

TikTok is the platform of choice for many of today's prospective students, but consistently executing relevant and engaging content is a challenge many colleges and universities are still trying to overcome.  In this episode, you'll hear from Morgan Goodwill, social media manager and producer at Flagler College, and someone who has seemingly cracked the code on TikTok content.  We discuss: Details...

Geoff Baird, CEO of EnrollML, shares pragmatic insights on how to evolve enrollment management. Discover how understanding market share, addressing foundational weaknesses, and leveraging data and technology can transform student recruitment higher education.

Analytics expert Chris Sietsema of Teach to Fish Digital gives us an update on the current state of Google Analytics 4 (GA4). We discuss some of the most important differences between Universal Analytics and GA4, and some of the ways the switch to GA4 has already impacted higher ed marketers. We wrap up with some of Chris's favorite GA4 resources.

We talk with Rod Guajardo, Senior Director for Integrated Media Communications at the University of Georgia about how the university has been using Reddit to reach new audiences with science and research content.

Many institutions include brand building in their strategic plans, but making those aspirations and reality is often challenging. Brand development expert, Jennifer Holland, argues the best way to build an enduring brand is to create strong alignment between organizational, marketing, and people strategies. We discuss: the vital importance of having deep internal buy-in on what your brand stands f...

The campus visit is a make-or-break moment for traditional undergrads, but as campuses have emerged from the pandemic, the return to campus tours has been anything but business as usual. In this episode, we talk with leading campus visit consultant, Jeff Kallay, about the current state of the campus visit and what's on his mind for the road ahead.  We discuss:  How pandemic fatigue has impacted st...

Diversity, equity, and inclusion is top of mind for many higher ed marketers, but figuring out the practical side of applying DEI concepts to the actual creative work marketing teams produce is often easier said than done. In this episode, we'll hear from two marketing leaders at the University of St. Thomas - Minnesota who have a unique perspective on how to make it less intimidating and more act...

Marketing leaders at the University of Texas-San Antonio share how innovations they made during COVID ended up transforming the way their university's decentralized marketing teams work.

We talk with Dr. Chuck Bamford about crafting smart competitive strategies to differentiate your school in a crowded marketplace. 

In the fourth and final episode of our VP Summer Series, we talk with Kevin Kropf, EVP of Enrollment at Drury University, about generational theory and managing teams that span multiple generations.

In part three of our VP Summer Series, we talk with Brad Pochard, AVP for Enrollment and Dean of Admissions at Furman University, about building collaborative relationships with colleagues across the campus.