Creating (and Managing) the Enrollment Funnel Best practices in inquiry acquisition, conversion, and yield Jennifer Copeland Vice President DemandEngine KCTCS Recruitment Summit Monday, July 23, 2012
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Agenda The case for building (and managing) a funnel How do you find them…and then what?!? How it’s done
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 What is your job?
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Brand awareness vs. Direct Response Awareness building –General awareness –Mass advertising –General calls to action Direct response –Specific, targeted promotions –Defined audience –Specific calls to action with goal of generating response
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Education: The considered purchase
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Agenda The case for building (and managing) a funnel How do you find them…and then what?!? How it’s done
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Student communication preferences
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Search Engine Marketing Natural Search Optimization –Increasing website visibility in natural/organic search returns –Increasing visibility of social media postings in natural search returns Paid Search Advertising –Sponsored ads appearing with search results (on engines) –Sponsored ads appearing on relevant websites (on display partners)
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012
Agenda The case for building (and managing) a funnel How do you find them…and then what?!? How it’s done
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Case Studies Among Us West Kentucky Community and Technical College KCTCS Learn on Demand
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 West Kentucky Community and Technical College Need –Highly-specific programs (existing and new) going online and need to grow enrollment. Challenges: –Budget for regional and national reach –Limited resources to do anything once people express interest –Highly-specific programs that require department involvement
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 West Kentucky Community and Technical College Programs involved: –Health Physics –Logistics and Operations Management –Marine Technology
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 West Kentucky Community and Technical College Step 1: Persona Development
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 West Kentucky Community and Technical College Step 2: Targeting
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 West Kentucky Community and Technical College Step 3: Ad Development and Landing Pages
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 West Kentucky Community and Technical College Step 4: Now what?
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West Kentucky Community and Technical College Step 5: Evaluate and optimize
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Learn on Demand Need –Grow enrollment….NOW Challenges –New model for education, so need to educate prospective students on what this is and how it works –Online programs are a dime a dozen –Many different “hands” in the marketing mix for LOD
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Submit LOD Web Form Search Engine Results Google Ads Direct Mail Enter the recruitment funnel LOD Inquiry Generation
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Learn On Demand
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Case Study: Learn on Demand Personas developed –Persona 1 — General KCTCS Learn on Demand Student –Persona 2 — Associate in Arts Student – Persona 3 — Associate in Science Student –Persona 4 — Business Administration Systems Student – Persona 5 — Computer and Information Technology Student –Persona 6 — Nursing — Associate Degree in Nursing Student – Persona 7 — Nursing — Nurse Aide Certificate Student
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Case Study: Learn on Demand Step 2: Targeting
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Case Study: Learn on Demand
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Learn on Demand: Results to Date
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What’s next for LOD? Direct mail drop with calls to action that will generate inquiries Search engine optimization of the LOD website –With compelling offers and landing pages to capture interest
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Summary Building (and managing) an enrollment funnel is key to impacting enrollment Search engine marketing provides an ideal channel for inquiry generation Generating the inquiry alone is not enough Use personas to attract the “right” prospects Monitor for conversion to inquiry and yield to enrolled student to track progress
DemandEngine, Inc. Copyright 2012 Jennifer Copeland Vice President Twitter.com/demandengine 39