The Higher Ed Marketer

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...

Disney is renowned for creating a magical experience for each and every guest. Institutions who focus on creating a unique VIP experience for individuals and families on campus visits will build a meaningful and lasting connection. In this episode, we interview Dr. Tony Turner , Vice President of Enrollment and Marketing at Charleston Southern University , about creating a Disney experience for ca...

The marketing process for higher education is characterized by a substantial level of customer interaction. Omni-channel platforms can help you cut through the clutter by automating many of those brand touches. To tell you more about how to leverage automation and personalization in omni-channel platforms, we invited two experts from Think Patented , Sean Ferguson , Director of Digital Engagement,...

Storytelling is arguably the most powerful form of communication. The art of crafting a story that creates a desire to do something is more straightforward than you’d think. Our guest today uses a five-step process, and you can, too. In this episode, we interview Jim Small , Associate Vice President for Development -- Executive Director, Storytelling & Engagement Team at Notre Dame , about how...

With the shift to online schooling and a decrease in enthusiasm for liberal arts, it’s more important than ever to emphasize how the story told by in-person higher ed impacts a student’s life more than any other learning experience: critical thinking skills that can be used in any profession; a community of students eager to help each other; and a call to storytelling—creating leaders that others...

Marketers know that there’s always something to learn during a transition. Rather than sticking rigidly to the strategy that no longer applies, marketers — especially higher ed marketers — must embrace being reactive and open-minded toward transition. In this episode, we interview Mary Barr , CMO at Ball State University , about leaning into transition: We also chatted with Mary about: - What high...

Generation Z is sitting in your classroom right now. Next up? Generation Alpha — the children of the Millennials. Alphas constitute the largest generation in history. They're highly digitally supplied, formally educated, and materially in doubt. ...And they're about to come to your college's recruitment office. Mark McCrindle , Founder and Principal at McCrindle Research , discusses what makes Gen...

With so many competing small colleges, it’s important to highlight what makes a specific college special. Whether it be ocean front property, close to the mountains, or offering a special major, the unique characteristics can make all the difference. Dan Sanchez , Director of Audience Growth at SweetFish Media and formerly from Bethany Global University , talks about his past and current successes...

Whether you're brand new to listening, or have been here since the beginning, you don't have to search for the best nuggets of information… because they're all in this episode, hand selected for you! In this episode of The Higher Ed Marketer, Troy Singer , Senior Account Executive at Think Patented , summarizes the 10 most useful moments on the show so far. Featured on this episode: - Juerell Smit...

When you’re looking at changing the “way we’ve always done it,” you’re working to remove barriers and ultimately move your organization forward. Being able to then communicate change as an advantage to both prospective students and internal stakeholders is a challenge. But it’s an important one for driving growth. In this episode of The Higher Ed Marketer, Bart Caylor , President & Founder at...

Marketing for community colleges has long focused on affordability and transferability. But in this episode, Jeffrey Fanter , VP Marketing & Communications at Ivy Tech Community College , explains why community colleges should establish that they are not just launching pads for an education, but also launching pads for a career as well. What we talked about: - How community colleges are adapti...

COVID has hit higher education recruiting hard. People have spent so much time on Zoom calls that colleges and universities are having to get far more creative than just hosting a Zoom webinar in place of a college tour. Pair that with the reduced travel for recruitment, ACT and SAT cancellations, and hesitancy to travel to institutions, it’s made building that admissions funnel incredibly difficu...

Content is where marketing is headed. How can marketers in higher education mass produce content that is relevant, applicable, and interesting to prospective students? In this episode of The Higher Ed Marketer, Bart Caylor , President & Founder at Caylor Solutions Inc , and Troy Singer , Senior Account Executive at Think Patented , chat with Dan Freeborn , Assistant Director of Marketing and E...

Earlier this year Kenyon College received a record-breaking $100 million gift from an anonymous donor. Kenyon’s marketing department was then faced with the challenge of how to tell the story of this generous anonymous donor while also explaining why gifts at every level are important. In this episode of The Higher Ed Marketer, Bart Caylor , President & Founder at Caylor Solutions Inc , and Tr...

Those universities that prepared to go virtual and did it well are now reaping the benefits of the trust that they earned from parents and students. What sets those schools apart from others? In this episode of The Higher Ed Marketer, Bart Caylor , President & Founder at Caylor Solutions Inc , and Troy Singer , Senior Account Executive at Think Patented , chat with Peter Ashley , Vice Presiden...

Small to medium sized colleges, a lot of them private, all experience the challenge of trying to differentiate from public and other private schools. This challenge makes it even more critical for colleges to align their marketing in a way that can impact the major driver of institutional revenue and growth: enrollment. In this episode of The Higher Ed Marketer, Bart Caylor , President & Found...

How do we help uncover and explain the most informative and persuasive information to prospective students? How do we tell stories that get them excited about education? We start by finding and utilizing data, analyzing that data, and then creating segmented marketing messages that will move the needle. In part two of a two-part series, Bart Caylor , President & Founder at Caylor Solutions Inc...

How do we help uncover and explain the most informative and persuasive information to prospective students? How do we tell stories that get them excited about education? We start by finding and utilizing data, analyzing that data, and then creating segmented marketing messages that will move the needle. Bart Caylor , President & Founder at Caylor Solutions Inc , and Troy Singer , Senior Accoun...