On the Road to Increase Student Enrollment Support
Let us break it down for you. The higher education market is flooded with options. If you want to increase your student enrollments, you have to deliver exactly what a prospective student expects, at the right time along with the required enrollment support.
Now, the question arises: what is it that the students want? Well, you need to think like a student to arrive at the answer.
As a prospective student, you would want the right information to be delivered to you which ultimately helps you make the right investment. You would want your queries to be addressed and your doubts removed. You would expect to be valued by the organization you are aiming to enroll in.
There, you know the answer.
Your enrollment management strategy should be centered around these expectations.
Listed below are four rudimentary steps you can take to reach the right students, capture their interest, and convert them into qualified enrollments.
Go social:
Social media is there for a reason. Go ahead, use it to reach out to your prospective students. Most organizations leverage social media to establish a brand image, attract prospective students by posting pictures, videos of various events, activities that take place on the campus. What you need to ensure is that it is driving conversions also. Strategize how you can provide your prospects with rich information about your programs, courses at the right time through YouTube videos and other social networking sites.
You can also use paid promotions to reach a greater audience.
Make the right first impression with your website:
Your website is your first impression on a potential student weighing different options. A thorough evaluation of your website’s accessibility, ease-of-use, content, relevancy is the first step towards better conversion rates. Any student today has a medley of options to choose from which can get very confusing. You sure don’t want your website to add to that confusion. Your organization’s website should’ve clear answers to four questions- what all does a course entail, how much will it cost, how long will it take and what will the student get out of it.
Further, you should use the right keywords on your website to rank higher and reach a greater number of students.
Make enrollment support a priority:
If you want to see tangible results, you need to take concrete steps in the right direction. You can’t have a trial and error approach towards student enrollment support and expect miraculous results. Begin by crafting a proper enrollment management plan. Have required resources (advisors and tools) in place to answer students’ queries. For example, all the students don’t fall into the traditional category. Students, today, are working full time or part-time jobs to pay for their finances. That’s why you should have after-hours student support to cater to distance learning, continuing education students’ needs.
Be proactive about your approach. Communicate regularly with your prospects to ensure a greater number of conversions.
Be proactive:
Leverage data. For example, there might be some students who started filling an application and then left it midway or showed interest in some course. Utilize such data to reach out to these students and lead them towards process completion. Also, the game isn’t over with students enrolling. They are free to drop out anytime if they think they didn’t make the right choice. That’s why it is imperative to keep your students engaged in the learning process. For that continuous, proactive communication is the key.
These are some basic measures you can take to increase your enrollment. Besides these, every organization has its own unique challenges. Find yours and strategize how you can work around them. If you need expert help for enrollment support, contact one of our certified enrollment counselors!
Anthony Banford is an esteemed executive with 19 years of experience in technology, consulting, and education. He begins his latest chapter as Chief Revenue Officer at BlackBeltHelp, aiming to innovate in the higher education support industry. His move follows a successful stint as Head of Revenue at StudentBridge since March 2023, where he significantly contributed to the company’s merger with Full Measure Education, enhancing its service offerings.
Todd Hollrah joins BlackBeltHelp bringing 25+ years of experience managing service delivery operations for several Fortune 500 clients around the globe. After a distinguished career as an executive in the BPO industry, Todd will provide critical insight into building an exceptional customer experience combining both live voice and automated solutions.
Inspired by a family computer that always needed fixing, Chris Uthe has submerged himself in business and technology for the last 20 years. His first company, a PC repair and networking business, was started at just 16 and successfully fueled a deep interest in solving problems as he helped business customers throughout his hometown adopt technology into their business. He would go on to successfully run a media & managed IT company before joining the Ed Tech industry with a successful 13-year tenure within an ERP/SIS company leading the Student Portal & Learning Management division. His last startup, EdSolio, helped to fuel the winds of competency-based education by providing a comprehensive view of a student’s work and achievements. Chris is now focused on creating successful learners by ensuring the highest quality help and support through the use of AI backed toolsets spending the last 3 years in the student engagement and support markets.
Quaiser Absar is the Chief Technology Officer and Director of Institutional Computing at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia.
Bringing in over 2 decades of experience with him, Manish has ensured seamless operations in terms of client delivery, reporting & analytics, quality, training, and transitions with a special focus on technical integrations to help reduce costs and improve the bottom-line.
Anthony has served higher education in diverse, leadership roles for over 30 years and has helped organizations thrive through his expertise in developing, analyzing, and executing growth strategies. Prior to joining BlackBeltHelp, he served in College Administration as well as in leadership roles within Blackboard Student Services and Ellucian, Inc.
Accomplished IT Specialist and Manager with extensive experience in a higher education setting and demonstrated abilities to effectively manage both student and professional staff. Self-motivated problem solver, who is skilled in managing many issues and prioritizing their importance to find resolutions in a timely and effective manner. Possesses strong abilities to adapt to new technologies by extrapolating from existing experience. Possess first-rate communication and collaboration skills to work with diverse groups effectively.
Lila Buytendorp has been serving as the Director of User Services at Moraine Park Technical College (MPTC) since 2000. In this role she is responsible for staff & lab desktop computing and end user support. She guides and supports technology based on the curriculum needs and ensures technology is implemented to support the emerging needs of the college. She builds and supports integrated systems to improve efficiencies and uses technologies to support data-driven decision making. Lila is a member of the Capital Projects Planning and Design Committee to ensure new or remodeled facilities have appropriate technology.