What’s Our Path? What Forces Will we Use?
Changing the trajectory of Lee University’s online programs
Messaging and media parody aside, recruiting students for graduate programs has become increasingly competitive as well as more expensive. Higher education marketers must be more attune to the limitations of most budgets and how those limitations should impact strategic decisions. What follows is how I appropriately mapped Lee University’s market, identified target markets, positioned online programing in each market and developed a campaign plan and channel strategy that drove real recruitment results.
Focus on the Familiar
Prospective online students start their college search with what is known — most often with institutions within a 50 mile radius. Our first task was to determine how well Lee University’s programs were known within proximity to the institution. A combination of analytics, market data and share of search projections gave us a good understanding of what type of advertising investment I would need to meet our reach goals.
Build a Competitive Moat
Successful businesses build a “deep and wide competitive moat around them” (according to Buffet). While there’s an obvious need to start building awareness in-state — opportunities exist to expand that ‘moat’ into western North Carolina and northern Georgia.
“More than half of online college students note that if their online program were not available at their chosen school, they would look…elsewhere.”
Using market data along with census data I found opportunities — lack of competition or high density of target audience — outside of TN to build awareness. The long-term objective was to build salience, before a neighboring competitor, before prospective students are in-market
Secondary markets were identified and marketing strategy was developed around typical buyer behavior.
Our campaign strategy was twofold:
Be Everywhere With Brand
Use video ads to reach all addressable audiences across all markets to quickly build brand recognition.
Maximize the Lower Funnel Where it Matters the Most
Use Display advertising to target those prospective students most likely to be interested in an undergraduate degree.
