Advertising between universities may seem like a topic without many variables or completely exploited. However, the reality is that new technological advances allow us to innovate in these aspects as well. Because if the client’s preferences change.In this case, those of the student, marketing must also do so if it is to continue growing in the long term.
A marketing strategy includes all the actions carried out by the company or educational institution, in order to achieve certain goals. Thus, the first step to develop a marketing strategy is to assign an ideal goal or goal to meet. This goal may vary by university but in most cases it is aimed at attracting and increasing the number of students enrolled. And once selected the objective, fulfill the aspects that can not be missing:
Segment your ideal market
This refers to the fact that not all high school graduates are likely to be potential clients for your university. In fact, more filters are needed. For what we recommend to investigate among your existing students and your administrative staff, How is the profile of your perfect student? and thus begin to identify your ideal niche market. Start by knowing what pre-schools they come from, or what places they frequent, what are their professional goals, etc. In this way it will be much easier to raise an advertising strategy.
Adapt your marketing plan
If you are a university with national presence, the fact of being successful in one state does not guarantee success in another. Because most likely to attract students in Chihuahua will not be the same as in Yucatán. Therefore, a good advertising strategy adapts to the local market, students need to feel identified and what a better way than with elements that they can easily understand and are compatible with their needs and interests.
For example, adapting the offered courses can be key at the time of registration according to the trends of the region. So while offering marine biology in Mexico City can be a failure, in Baja California it can become the one that generates the most prospects.
Advertise where they truly see you
Just as consumer trends have changed, new generations no longer frequent the same places they did 10 years ago to obtain information. As a result of this, the best strategy is to locate you where your ideal student can see you. Which means that a digital strategy can not be missing; social networks are monopolizing the market so if attracting new students is your goal, have promoted through a Facebook account, Instagram, etc is the minimum you can do.
Create consistent messages with each other
An easy way to comply with this step is by linking the marketing department with the sales or admissions department and creating a joint advertising campaign. Because it is useless that certain benefits are announced on the website of the institution and that at the time of being in a face-to-face visit, the admissions people speak of completely different ones. So these two departments should be aware of the advertising message, as well as everything that implies in order to maintain consistency and be understood to perfection by the student.
All this, because the first stage, to reach the minds of new students and create a feeling of falling in love with the institution, so that they want to know more about it and then register. Today’s students look for universities with specific characteristics that can make them feel they can work together, not universities that look like what they really are not.
And as corporate educational institutions, a balance must be found between intellectual intelligence, its promotion or educational method and emotional intelligence and the sense of belonging to a group. It is not enough to transmit knowledge, it is also necessary to teach with emotion. The importance of the student for school should be made evident.
Finally reaching the mind of your consumer is only the first thing in the attraction stage, however it is the most important; since it is considered as the key moment within advertising to engage prospects and if the institution is not made known in the correct way, the desired goals can not be achieved. So if you are about to generate a new advertising strategy for your university, do not hesitate to consider these recommendations.
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