This document summarizes key findings from Stamats' 2007 TeensTALK study on college-bound high school students. Some of the main findings include: - Students begin seriously considering colleges as early as sophomore year, researching options online and visiting campuses. - The campus visit is extremely important for making a final college choice. Many students do not decide a school is "the one" until after visiting. - Word of mouth from friends, family, and high school counselors heavily influences where students apply and attend. - While students consider many colleges, most only apply to 3-5 schools, with many applying to just one. - Parents are heavily involved in the initial

1. 2007 TeensTALK ® Presented by Fritz McDonald Creative Director Stamats, Inc. Cedar Rapids, IA 52406 (800) 553-8878 [email_address]

4. Understanding the Millenials

11. The new recruiting landscape… 25% of first source of inquiring students is now the application* *Brian Niles, Target X

12. 2007 TeensTALK ® Data

16. Geographic Distribution of Respondents

17. Programs of Interest Soph. - 13 percent Jr. - 9 percent Sr. - 6 percent

21. Tips on Expanding Outside a Four-Hour Radius 1. Don’t make it your primary recruitment effort - Be really good in your own backyard first 2. Recruit students similar to your current student body profile - Using geodemographic analysis and historical data can target promising markets 3. Realize you are in a more competitive environment - Students willing to travel far for college are twice as likely to be applying to six or more colleges 4. Boost your overall academic reputation. Students willing to travel for college - Place significantly more importance on academic reputation - On average score 200 points higher on the SAT 5. Realize their parents are more sophisticated “college consumers” - Twice as likely to have parents who possess a graduate or professional degree - Those not traveling far for college are twice as likely to be the first generation

22. Tips on Expanding Outside a Four-Hour Radius 6. Speak about off-campus amenities - These students place significantly higher importance on what there is to do off- campus (i.e. restaurants, shopping, nightlife, etc.) - Remember that you are not just selling them a college, but a new and unique location - Focus on the specific, unique location attributes you can offer students 7. Remember this map

31. The Single Most Important Thing To Know About Marketing To Teens

32. Your Brand Experience

34. Brand Marketing Constituent Relationship (Experience) Management Direct Marketing Image Action Retention Three Legs on the Marketing Stool

37. Preferred Campus Visit Activities “ Sometimes they spend too much time on the college’s history. I wish there was more information about what the students think.” Top 9 campus visit activities Percent Take a tour 60% Attend a class 33% See residence halls/dorms 24% Meet with students 15% Meet with professors 11% Tour surrounding community 10% Wander around by myself 8% Meet with admission staff 6% Attend an athletic event 4%

38. Process of Choosing a College

39. The Decision-Making Unit Gatekeepers Purchasers Decision Makers Influencers Purchase Choice

40. Gatekeepers Gatekeeper “ My teachers and counselor helped me with which courses would help me get into the my school I chose” Parents Guidance counselors High school teachers and coaches High school & college friends Siblings Pastor Family friends Relatives

41. Influencers Influencers Parents 76% Guidance counselors 29% High school teachers and coaches 12% High school & college friends 10% Relatives 9% Family friends 3% Parents Guidance counselors High school teachers and coaches High school & college friends Relatives Family friends

42. Decision Makers “ I’m going to sit down with my mom and my family and we’re going to see which one fits me. You need your family to help you with your decisions.” Decision Maker Parents Students

45. The Funnel Continuum Early Funnel Mid-Funnel Late Funnel Middle School-Freshman years Sophomore-Junior years Junior-Senior years Naïve consumer More experienced Savvy, even cynical Emotional More logical Logical/emotional Scanning Still scanning, but reading more; comparing Synthesizing; emoting Review features Evaluate benefits Compare outcomes Wide range of colleges Narrowing of range Small range with safety valve Mass messages* More customized Highly customized (re)Introduce Sell Keep sold Low touch/low CPC* Higher touch/high CPC Higher touch/high CPC *Emerging technology allows for increased personalization with low cost-per-contact

51. York University – Subway Domination

52. Role of the Web

54. College’s Web Site: Most Liked Features Qualities Percent Description of programs/majors 31% Pictures of the college: dorms, classrooms, activities 24% Current student testimonials 9% Easy to navigate/use 9% General overview/basic information 9% Admissions standards 8% Financial aid/scholarships 8% Athletics 8% Activities available 7% Tuition, cost to attend, fees 7% Virtual tours 6% Basic statistics: GPA, grads, admission rate, etc. 5%

55. Interesting Web Site Features Feature Percent “ Very Interesting” Q&A regarding admission and financial aid topics 58% Q&A with current students in your program of interest 56% Virtual campus tour 55% Employment/graduate school statistics of graduates 54% Q&A with faculty members in your program of interest 47% Academic statistics of entering students 41% Podcasts created by students that show the true college experience 40% New information about the college sent via RSS feed 36% Virtual tour of the city the college is located in 35% Profiles of successful alumni from the college 33% Student journals/blogs written by actual students 27% A searchable electronic viewbook 25%

59. Humanize it

60. The Other Most Important Thing To Know About Marketing To Teens

61. 85 percent of online traffic is initiated from a search engine

63. “ It all starts with Google, from there I can go wherever I want.” 16 year old prospective student

65. Example Paid Search Organic Search

67. Views on College Mailings “ Mailings that I threw away were little colleges I’d never heard of. Mailings that I kept were the ones that I knew about, the ones that had good academics, and people that went there had good success.”

68. College Mailings - continued “ It can be difficult when you are getting bombarded with letters. You read the first few that you get. Then after a while you get tired of it because they come day after day. Every once in a while one will catch my eye and I will look through it.” “ Generally when I get letters I read them all, but they have to catch my interest right away or I get bored. I am interested in the pictures or the interesting facts.” Source: TeensTALK ® qualitative interviews

69. Preferred Information in College Mailings (Top 15) Information Preferred Percent Majors/programs offered 38% General information 26% Financial aid/scholarships 16% Brochures 8% Tuition and fees 8% Course catalogs 8% Campus life 8% Athletic program 7% Extracurricular activities 5% Campus visit/open house 4% Personalized mailings 4% Prerequisites/admissions standards 3% Pictures 3% Location 3% Current student experiences 2%

72. Where To Go From Here

75. Thank You! Fritz McDonald Creative Director [email_address] 800.553.8878 office www.stamats.com © 2008 Stamats, Inc.