Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
199 FOLLOWERS
Austin Williams creates ideas that inspire action. Based on Long Island, New York, we make marketing and advertising work for your business.
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
At this point, the word phygital isn’t exactly new; reports on this hybrid of physical and digital marketing go back at least five years. However, the rapid and ongoing evolution of digital technology does mean that the ways marketers can combine physical and digital techniques and experiences are constantly growing.
While the future is ever changing, there are two types of phygital marketing poised to become increasingly relevant for brands across industries—particularly in finance, higher education, and healthcare—that are worth exploring: wearable technology at events and a public physical ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
In the college marketing landscape, student retention has long played second fiddle to new enrollment. Not anymore. In the face of COVID-19, it’s more important than ever for colleges to not only attract new students—but to also retain existing ones. And it won’t be easy: 62 percent of parents say they’re anxious about sending their kids back to college and 52 percent of students believe going back to school in the fall is a bad idea, so retention is more crucial than ever.
What COVID-19-related retention barriers do schools have to overcome?
Student retention during a worldwide pandemic is ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
The COVID-19 pandemic has left marketers stumped. This is an unprecedented situation—we can’t consult digital marketing case studies that were conducted during global pandemics for data and guidance because there are none.
Businesses are left wondering how they should market themselves (if at all). While in most cases that answer is yes they should market themselves, there are some follow-up questions you should ask yourself to ensure your digital marketing strategy is still as solid as before the pandemic hit.
Is my brand’s messaging appropriate?
The fallout from tone-deaf marketing is ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Musical.ly, Vine, and now TikTok? The newest addition to the changing social media landscape, this video-sharing app is capturing more than its share of attention (and users). Should it also be capturing a share of your college’s digital marketing budget?
The answer is probably.
With 500 million monthly active users worldwide—and 41 percent of them between 16 and 24—TikTok may be a smart choice for your higher education institution. In fact, it now ranks as the third most frequently used app behind Facebook and Instagram, respectively. That’s huge gr ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
A recent study shows Generation Z—estimated at 2 billion people worldwide—would rather watch long-form video on a mobile device than on a 65-inch living room TV.
This represents a behavioral shift started by Millennials, who defined the concept of watching video wherever it was convenient for them. Now, the mobile device has become the screen of choice.
With Gen Z spending even more time on their mobile devices, now’s the time to tailor your higher education marketing strategies—especially around open house and college tour times of year—to kids and their parents looking to naviga ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
The competition to get students into college is fierce: More than 8 million students apply to 4,500 colleges and universities in the U.S. each year. Everyone looking for the edge that will set them apart… and fill their incoming classes.
Yes, we are talking about the schools competing for the students.
Over one quarter of high school seniors will apply to seven or more schools this year, and almost half of these will be accepted to more than one college—giving student prospects more choice than ever before. That additional leverage is shifting the emphasis to the narrow end of the recru ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
Higher education’s predominant target audience—the prospective undergraduate student—is a consistent and specific demographic, which enables colleges to market with a level of precision other industries can’t match. It’s no secret that Generations Z and Alpha (your incoming and not-so-future students, respectively) spend the majority of their time on smartphones; in fact, nearly one quarter (22 percent) of Gen Z use their smartphones 10+ hours per day and 67 percent use search engines as their first source of information for higher education institutions. That’s why getting to the top of thei ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
Thanks to our daily usage of the internet, it’s nearly impossible to have never encountered a chatbot. In fact, they’ve become so ubiquitous that you probably don’t even recognize them unless you need to interact with one. When they first emerged on the market, they were either a nuisance you immediately minimized or a form of mindless amusement (as anyone who spent hours harassing AIM’s SmarterChild bot can attest). But the times they are a changin’. With an anticipated global growth of 24.43 percent by 2022, chatbots have become integral to the way the general public prefers to communicate ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
While colleges like to project personas of stability and endurance, the truth is higher education is having a tough moment. With word last month that another small college would close, colleges and universities are reminded of the challenges they face, year in and out:
Finding academically qualified applicants for the next incoming class
Serving the current student population from the classroom to the dorm room
Helping recent graduates get desirable jobs
Keeping influential alumni happy and giving
All of this can factor into the merciless and seemingly endless set of rankings and ratings th ..read more
Austin Williams » Higher Education Marketing
3y ago
Do traditional college students have different—and higher—expectations than their nontraditional counterparts? It would seem so. A recent national study of more than 600,000 students reveals that traditional students are less satisfied with their college experience than online and adult learners. The 2017 National Student Satisfaction and Priorities Report found that 67% of adult learners and 74% of online learners reported they were satisfied with their experience overall compared to just over 50% of students at four-year public and private institutions and 64% of students at two-year public ..read more