Top 10 ways to generate leads for an online degree program. See our take on the best ways to market your college or university's online degree program.

1. The Top 10 Ways To Generate Traffic
and Leads for an Online Degree
Program
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7/26/13

2. 10. Traditional Advertising
Now it really is tough to put traditional advertising at #10 on this
list, but if you are looking for an online program wouldn’t you
expect to be marketed to via an online channel? I am not
saying that traditional advertising (direct mail/magazine Ad)
cannot work for an online program, especially if you are a
larger brand. I have seen this type of advertising be successful
as a touch point for brands and programs with very large
budgets. But at the end of the day, the effectiveness of
traditional advertising is extremely hard to measure and tends
to be very expensive.
 Cost: Generally High
Quality: Medium
Volume: Generally Low
Ease of Implementation: Medium

3. 9. Social Media Campaign
Social Media is such a hot topic nowadays, how can it be so low on
this list?? Well this list is focused on driving traffic and leads, which
social media generally doesn’t do (unless you are using paid ads
within social networks). Social Media is fantastic as a branding tool for
a university or program, but is it going to directly generate leads?
Unfortunately most of the time the answer is no. Social Media
strategies and campaigns also tend to be pretty pricey, as large
amounts of high quality content and different types of incentives have
to be used to generate any type of user interaction. If you are a new
program trying to drive revenue for your program, I recommend
holding off on social media until you are more established.
 Cost: Generally High
Quality: Low-Medium
Volume: Generally Low
Ease of Implementation: Low

4. 7. (tie) Email Buy
So tied at #7 on this list is the purchase or renting of a targeted email
list. For some programs, highly targeted email buys can work extremely
well. Unfortunately, the effectiveness of email blasts has slowly
decreased over the last ten years or so, with lists becoming more
spammed and less targeted. Individuals also do not trust email
advertising like they used to, and many people utilize a totally different
email account (which they rarely check) for any email lists and sign up
opportunities. While some programs that offer highly specialized
programs might find a golden opportunity through a targeted list, most
online programs generally are going to invest a lot of money and
receive a limited return.
 Cost: Medium-High
Quality: Low-Medium (higher if more specialized)
Volume: Medium (but can wildly fluctuate depending on
specialization and list quality)
Ease of Implementation: Medium-High

5. 7. (tie) Targeted Display (Non-CPC Model)
So the reason targeted display that is sold on a non CPC model is at
#7 is due to the risk involved with purchasing this type of online
placement. You might put in some good time and find a site that
seems to fit your programs target market, and pay a flat fee for a 3-
month placement contract (guaranteeing a certain number of
impressions) on that site, but receive next to nothing in return. That is
why we recommend that generally if you are going to implement a
display campaign you do so through a third party like Google Display
or Doubleclick where you are in control if traffic is non-existant.
Sometimes this advertising can work wonderfully, and you can drive a
large amount of highly targeted traffic extremely cheaply, but
generally if you are on a tight budget it’s a good idea to stay away.
 Cost: Medium
Quality: Low-Medium (higher if specialized)
Volume: Medium (can fluctuate)
Ease of Implementation: Medium-High

6. 6. Google Remarketing
Google Remarketing is a fantastic opportunity for programs to
create customized lists of users that they can display targeted
advertisements to. This is a great way to try and re-interest them
in a program, especially if they originally arrived at an asset
that wasn’t optimized for conversion. We have our own
customized strategy for utilizing remarketing for our clients, but
every program should at least be building a list off of individuals
who visit their homepage.
 Cost: Low
Quality: Medium
Volume: Medium (can be higher depending on list size)
Ease of Implementation: Medium-High

7. 5. Targeted Display
Google Display/Facebook Ads/LinkedIn Ads
Display advertising on a CPC model can be somewhat hit or
miss, depending on a programs target audience. If you have a
defined program audience, and have created different
personas for this audience, then Facebook and LinkedIn are
great avenues for hitting that market. The Google Display
network is also massive, and if you put in the time to research
different sites that offer advertising opportunities, you can
experience extremely high ROI’s.
 Cost: Low-Medium (you pay what you want)
Quality: Medium
Volume: Medium (you drive what you want)
Ease of Implementation: Medium-High

8. 4. Google Adwords/Bing Ads
(Keyword Based Search)
So most of the time, Google Adwords is extremely expensive, but it is by far
the best place to find individuals who are interested in a degree program
who might not be familiar with your brand. If someone is searching for an
online MPA program, and you are marketing one, then what better way to
drive targeted traffic than by having your brand show up at the top of the
results. Bing also tends to be slightly less expensive then Google, and will not
drive near the volume, but is a great complement and should be always
be setup. One thing that is essential for the success of this traffic source is
optimized landing pages.
 Cost: Medium (bid on the long-tail, you pay for as many clicks as you
want)
Quality: High
Volume: Medium (you drive what you want)
Ease of Implementation: Medium

9. 3. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
The reason SEO comes in at #3 is because if you are able to get your
program ranking high for a targeted keyword, you get all the benefits
that Adwords offers except you don’t pay per click…. SEO is a no-
brainer, but implementing a campaign around a highly competitive
term can be very expensive. Finding a highly specialized firm of hiring
an expert in the realm of SEO is mandatory if you are looking to
succeed. The main benefit to SEO is while the costs up-front may be
high, once you have attained a position you most likely are staying
there for the long-term.
 Cost: Medium-High
Quality: High
Volume: Medium-High (depending on the keywords you rank for)
Ease of Implementation: Low (you pretty much have to outsource)

10. 2. Cultivate Your Existing Database
Wow this is at #2??? Well you would be surprised how many universities
we work with who are sitting on a database of 100k potential students
who never thought to let those individuals know that they are
launching an online version of the program that they were originally
interested in enrolling in on-campus. If you are about to launch an
online program, why not let as many people know about it as possible,
and drive the ones that are interested to a highly customized landing
page that provides a unique offer to them. Politics can sometimes get
in the way here, but at the end of the day this is a fantastic
opportunity to quickly generate high quality leads.
 Cost: Low
Quality: High
Volume: Medium (depending on your database)
Ease of Implementation: High

11. 1. Redirect Internal Traffic
This somewhat piggy backs on #2, but why not target
individuals who are already familiar with your brand, are
looking at similar programs, and are ready to enroll now? If you
offer an on-campus Masters in Computer Science, then why
don’t you build a link from the on-campus page to the online
page as an alternative? That is only the tip of the iceberg, get
access to a universities analytics and use Google search
operators to find what you are looking for.
 Cost: Low
Quality: Very High
Volume: Medium-High
Ease of Implementation: High