Looking ahead to 2023, the student recruitment landscape is becoming increasingly competitive, posing challenges for institutions to attract and enroll students. With the abundance of information available online, students now have greater access to resources for comparing and selecting colleges and universities. In this dynamic environment, institutions must employ effective student recruitment strategies to differentiate themselves and attract top-quality students. In this blog post, we will delve into five powerful student recruitment strategies that institutions can leverage in 2023 to boost enrollment numbers. By implementing these strategies, institutions can enhance their visibility, engage prospective students, and ultimately increase their chances of attracting and enrolling a diverse and talented student body. Stay tuned as we explore these strategies and provide actionable insights to help institutions thrive in the evolving student recruitment landscape.
Strategy 1: Personalized Communication
Personalized communication will always be key to attracting students. As students want to feel valued and recognized as individuals, not just another name on a list. Research suggests that students tend to show a preference for institutions that have established active engagement with them beforehand.
Here is why by using Meritto (formerly NoPaperForms), institutions can create customized emails and text messages for prospective students, tailored to their interests and academic background. With Meritto’s (formerly NoPaperForms) Marketing Automation, you automate contextual communication with each student, increasing the likelihood of enrollment.
Providing institutions with a powerful communication platform that allows them to send personalized messages to prospective students. Institutions can use the platform to segment their audience based on various criteria, such as interests, academic background, and location. For example, institutions can send messages to students who have expressed interest in a specific program or have a particular academic background. This targeted approach can help institutions build a relationship with each student and increase the likelihood of enrollment.
Strategy 2: Social Media Marketing
With billions of people using social media platforms, institutions can leverage this massive audience to promote their programs and attract prospective students. One can ensure that no opportunity can get untouched with Meritto’ strategic remarketing where institutions can run target ads to specific groups of students based on their interests and location.
With the real-time update of the leads/inquiries stage in the audience segments, you can optimize personalized nurturing and bolster their decision of joining your education organization. Set up recurring data push for the target audience and run your remarketing campaigns on auto-pilot.
For example, institutions can create ads that promote their STEM programs to students who have expressed an interest in science and technology. By using social media to showcase the unique aspects of their institution, institutions can attract students who are a good fit for their programs.
Strategy 3: Streamlined Application Process
Students are busy and don’t want to spend hours filling out forms and submitting paperwork. By reducing the number of steps in the application process and eliminating unnecessary paperwork, institutions can increase their conversion rates and enroll more students.
Here is why Meritto’ Application Automation provides institutions with an intuitive and user-friendly application management system where you can create custom applications that are tailored to their specific needs and requirements. The platform allows students to submit their applications online, eliminating the need for paper-based applications. Institutions can also automate various aspects of the application process, such as sending reminders and notifications to students who have not completed their applications. By streamlining the application process, institutions can increase their efficiency and enroll more students.
Strategy 4: Virtual Tours
Post Covid19 as more students turn to virtual learning and online courses, virtual tours will become increasingly important in 2023. Virtual tours provide students with an immersive and engaging experience that allows them to explore campus facilities and learn more about academic programs from the comfort of their own homes. With a help of a platform in place, institutions create interactive virtual tours that showcase the unique aspects of their campus and programs, allowing prospective students to experience what it’s like to be a student at the institution.
Strategy 5: Data-Driven Decision Making
By analyzing data on student behavior and engagement, institutions can identify areas for improvement and refine their recruitment strategies to better target prospective students and track and analyze student behavior and engagement across multiple channels, including email, social media, and the application process.
Meritto’ robust reporting engine provides institutions with a comprehensive data analytics platform that allows them to track and analyze various metrics, such as open rates, click-through rates, and application completion rates. Institutions can use this data to identify trends and patterns in student behavior and engagement and refine their recruitment strategies accordingly. For example, institutions can use data to determine the most effective communication channels for reaching prospective students or to identify areas of the application process that may be causing drop-offs. By using data-driven decision-making, institutions can optimize their recruitment strategies and enroll more students.
Conclusion
Year-on-year student recruitment will continue to be a challenge for institutions. By adopting effective student recruitment strategies and incorporating strategies tailored for education institutions, institutions can stand out from the crowd and attract the best and brightest students. Personalized communication, social media marketing, streamlined application processes, virtual tours, and data-driven decision-making are just a few of the strategies that institutions can use to increase their enrollment rates. By leveraging Meritto’s purpose-built application management platform, institutions can streamline their recruitment processes, optimize their communication strategies, and make data-driven decisions that lead to more successful student recruitment outcomes.
With an intuitive and user-friendly application management platform institutions can create custom applications that are tailored to their specific needs and requirements by streamlining the entire process, and enroll more students.
