Keeping the Conversation Going: Best Practices in Prospective Adult Student Engagement, Stephanie Platteter, Executive Director of Marketing and Enrollment Management, College of Continuing

CONFERENCE ON ADULT LEARNER ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT 2013

Keeping the Conversation Going

Stephanie Platteter

Best Practices in Prospective Adult Student Engagement

July 17, 2013


THE CURRENT STATE OF THE ENROLLMENT CONVERSATION

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• Nonexistent• Inefficient• Ineffective• Inconsistent

Is This Your Conversation?

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WHAT MAKES A CONVERSATION GOOD?

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• Personalized• Conversational• Relevant• Timely

Constructing a Conversation

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SOUNDS GREAT. HOW DO WE DO IT?

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1. Understand your enrollment pipeline2. Define the desired enrollment experience3. Map the enrollment journey4. Create a conversation schematic5. Develop content6. Execute7. Measure

Developing a Conversation Strategy

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UNDERSTAND YOURENROLLMENT PIPELINE

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Define Your Terms

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• Suspects• Prospects• Inquiries• “Hot” prospects or inquiries• Accepts• Conversion• Yield• Enrollment

• Oh my


Prospect -Inquiry

Prospect-Active

Prospect-Program Contact

Applicant

Student

Completed

Conversion


Analyze Activity

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New Inquiries

New Entrants In Plan Inquiries

% to goal

Funnel entrants

% to goal

In Plan

% to goal Inquiries

YTD Entrants In Plan

Prospect Pool In Plan

New Entrant

Prospect Pool

DCP General 1600 NA 78 5% 187 #DIV/0! 406 2764 0% 0%MDS 600 68 238 40% 291 #DIV/0! 29 43% 176 53 5629 128 10% 1%ICP 700 137 159 23% 246 #DIV/0! 51 37% 299 64 963 775 21% 5%BAS Undeclared NA NA 20 35 31 94 175% 113%CM 300 35 35 12% 117 #DIV/0! 2 6% 107 5 1443 143 2% 0%ITI 250 35 33 13% 111 #DIV/0! 2 6% 143 2 1777 56 2% 0%MM 120 12 55 46% 61 #DIV/0! 2 17% 69 5 396 25 3% 1%Subtotal APS 670 82 123 18% 309 #DIV/0! 41 50% 319 12 3647 318 13% 1%MLS 300 25 104 35% 133 #DIV/0! 4 16% 128 0 4712 99 3% 0%ACL 100 7 60 60% 66 #DIV/0! 0 0% 121 1 436 11 0% 0%Hort 140 10 36 26% 37 #DIV/0! 0 0% 57 8 198 11 0% 0%MBS 300 50 75 25% 88 #DIV/0! 6 12% 127 4 464 112 7% 1%IBH 400 80 41 10% 63 #DIV/0! 0 0% 15 0 68 54 0 0Total 4,810 - 459 914 1,420 131 1,648 142 18,881 1,508 9% 1%Total Undergrad 3,570 - 287 598 1,033 121 1,200 129 13,003 1,221 12% 1%Total Grad 1,240 - 172 316 387 10 448 13 13,886 1,539 3% 0%

Targets New FY13 YTD New FY12 YTD Census Conversion


DEFINE THE DESIRED ENROLLMENT EXPERIENCE

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CONFERENCE ON ADULT LEARNER ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT 2013| 13


MAP THE ENROLLMENT JOURNEY’S TOUCHPOINTS

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Phases Discovery Awareness Interest Consideration Anxiety Commitment CCE Enrollment Stage

Suspect Prospect Inquiry Prospect Active Prospect

Prospect Program Contact

Applicant In Plan

Context Searching for program

Expressed initial interest, provided

contact info

Took action that indicated a higher

level of interest

Initiated pre-admission advising

process

Submitted application

Matriculated

Touchpoints External Events X

Advertising X Web site X X X X X X

Direct mail X Phone X X X X X X Email X X X X X X

Internal Events X X X X In person X X X X X

Pain Points Inquiry stream emails manual

event inquiries IC training

Inconsistent follow-up post pre-admission advising apt.

Communication too procedural

Limited comm. from admissions

Two systems for enrolled student engagement

Backstage People Marketing

Information Center/ Program staff at events

Marketing Information Center

Marketing Information Center

Advisers UG Admissions Information Center Advisers Student Services

Advisers Student Services

Processes SPP for campaigns Emphasis on online

Inquiry stream communication

Data entry processes for each touchpoint

Ongoing training

Pre and post event communications

Policies Enter all inquiries

Info session attendee moves here

Follow up appointment with email

Add tickler for student follow-up

Technology Google analytics CRM SilverPop Phone system

CRM SilverPop

CRM Google Mail

Application system PeopleSoft (feeds CRM)

PeopleSoft APlus

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CREATE A CONVERSATION SCHEMATIC

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DEVELOP CONTENT

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• Establish emotional connection• Incorporate relevant information• Send messages from real people• Involve various experts• Monitor message replies

Content Best Practices

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What is Relevant Content?

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Key Messages Resources Call(s) to Action Contact Signature Week 1 Financial Aid

How to pay for your education/options How to apply for financial aid

Financial Resources Wizard

Contact a Learner Rep to discuss financial aid options

Financial Resources Wizard Register for an upcoming information

sessions (link to session listings)

Information Center Learner Rep – Charles Russell (direct line and email)

Jessica Haensch – Financial Aid Coordinator (title and email only)

Week 3 Careers Diverse job opportunities for grads Overview of career services offered to students

Career and Internship Services Website

Contact a Learner Rep to obtain more information on career services and other advising opportunities

Register for an upcoming information sessions (link to session listings)


Liz Hruska – Director, Career and Internship Services (title and email only)

Week 5 Industry/Program Info Advisory board makes the difference for grads Program highlights and benefits, designed to meet career and industry outlook, and ideal for working adults

Faculty bios Advisory board members

Contact a Learner Rep to obtain more information about the degree program of interest.



Faculty Director(s) – CM, MM, ITI, Program Director - MDS (Titles and emails only)

Week 7 Philosophy Hands on learning you can utilize right away. Learn a blend of theory and real-world insight from professors as well as industry professionals, including company presidents, CEOs, and more.

Contact a Learner Rep to obtain more information about the degree program of interest.



Program Director – (Titles and emails only)

Week 9 Pre-application Try a course, “test the waters” before you apply

Course search

Register for a course Contact a Learner Rep about course

selection or to arrange an in-person or phone appointment with an adviser.



Admissions Coordinator (Title, email, and direct dial)







EXECUTE

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Quiz: What is the best way to manage your cross-channel communication in the enrollment pipeline?

a) Use CRM softwareb) Use Marketing Automation softwarec) Use a homegrown systemd) All of the abovee) None of the above, I’ll do it manuallyf) Some of the above

The Technology Conundrum

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Answer: f of the above


Marketing automation refers to software platforms designed for marketing departments and organizations to automate repetitive

tasks. Marketing departments, consultants and part-time marketing employees benefit by specifying criteria and

outcomes for tasks and processes which are then interpreted, stored and executed by software, which increases efficiency and

reduces human error. Originally focused on email marketing automation, marketing automation refers to a broad range of

automation and analytic tools for marketing

Marketing Automation Wikipeida 7.8.13

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketing

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consultant


• Triggers messages through specific channels when particular conditions are met

• Allows for lead scoring• Tests different cross-channel contact strategies

and automatically deploys the winner• Supplements CRM

Why Marketing Automation

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MEASURE

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• What to measure– Conversions– Communication metrics

• Inbound/outbound call activity• Inbound/outbound email activity• Emails sent, opens, clicks

• Benchmark• Share results broadly

Measurement Best Practices

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Undergrad Inquirer Stream 1.4 (Jessica Haensch)

Undergrad Inquirer Stream 1.5 (Liz Hruska)

Undergrad Inquirer Stream 1.6 (program director)

Undergrad Inquirer Stream 1.7 (Michelle Koker)

Undergrad Inquirer Stream 1.8 (Janet Pelto)

Undergrad Pre- and Post-Event Communications (Charles Russell)

Undergrad Brochure Requestors 1-Week Follow-up (Janet Pelto)

UNDERGRAD EM AVERAGES

All CCE EM E-mails Average

All CCE E-mails Average

0.0% 5.0% 10.0% 15.0% 20.0% 25.0% 30.0% 35.0% 40.0% 45.0% 50.0%

36.2%

33.0%

46.2%

27.2%

34.0%

37.2%

25.7%

35.5%

27.4%

22.7%

7.2%

7.1%

14.9%

3.8%

7.5%

13.6%

2.5%

9.2%

6.9%

4.5%

% Clicks% Opens


FY12 Actual YTD Q1 YTD Q2 YTD Q3 YTD Q4 (thru May)

-

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

EM EmailsService EmailsInbound EM callsOutbound EM callsInbound Calls



Stephanie PlatteterExecutive Director of Marketing and Enrollment Management, College of Continuing Education, University of [email protected]

Associate Consultant, Demand [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]