Higher ed has survived for hundreds of years without giving an ounce of thought to marketing since competition was stagnant due to the inability of new entrants into their markets. For-profit and online education changed all that. Now, competition is almost limitless, and many schools will go out of business if they don't take marketing seriously. Infusing marketing strategy and talent to differentiate your brand, academic programs and having a daily focus on inquiry generation are now requirements. Here are some tips on how to organize and what to focus on.

1. Organizing for Results
Developing a Successful Marketing Organization in
an Industry that’s Resistant to Marketing
Jeffrey Rich | Vice President, Stamats

2. Explore 4 Key Topics
#AligningExperts
Institutional
Will
Financial
Resources
Organization
&
Processes
Disruption
of
Education

3. Afternoon Session
#AligningExperts
Media

4. A Bit About the Speaker
#AligningExperts
Jeffrey Rich
Vice President
Higher Ed
Government
Agency
Corporate

5. #AligningExperts

6. Disruption of
Education

10. #AligningExperts

11. Affordability & Access to Funding
• 3% to 5% annual tuition
increases
• Increased housing and meal
costs
• University textbook conspiracy
• Student loans are tougher to
get
• State & Federal Aid is being
challenged
#AligningExperts

12. What’s Disrupting Education
• Breakdown in geographic barriers to
protection
• Brought about by for-profit online
institutions
• Next traditionals go online
• Universities for the first time need
to compete for market share
• Many institutions lacked the
financial & human resources to
compete
• Many lack the understanding of how
to market
• Escalating Costs / Reduced Access to
Funding
• Result – We Buy Students with Ever
Increasing Institutional Aid #AligningExperts

13. Institutional
Will

15. Institutional Will
• Understand that We Are A Business &
Must Sustain Ourselves
• Understand that Price Doesn’t Always
Equate to Prestige
• Develop efficiencies in the business
• Develop revenue growth &
diversification strategies
• Overcome internal “Cabals”
• Develop a culture of progressiveness &
innovation
#AligningExperts

16. Organization
& Processes

17. Organization & Processes
• Centralized or decentralized
• Tuition-dependent or State-
dependent
• Operate in an environment of
academic skepticism or
professional latitude
• Do you have a President who gets
it and a VP who advocates
• Do you have the financial &
human resources to execute
#AligningExperts

18. Marketing Reports To…
#AligningExperts
To which unit of your institution do you report? n=207

19. Mostly Centralized Marketing
#AligningExperts
How are the following functions at your institution organized? n=207

20. Roles of Admissions & Marketing
Departments
• Marketing raises awareness of
the institutional brand, schools
and specific programs
• Marketing develops effective
media strategies and
compelling messaging to
generate inquiries
• Admissions cultivates those
inquiries and converts them to
enrolled students
#AligningExperts

21. These Functions Need to Work Together
#AligningExperts

22. Let’s Focus on Marketing
• Build an in-house agency
• Completely outsource
• Hybrid
• Marketing strategy?
• Creative talent?
• Media expertise?
• Traffic & production systems?
• Digital & analytics?
#AligningExperts

23. Developing an Effective Marketing Organization
#AligningExperts
President
VP
Marketing
& EM
Marketing
Planning
Creative Web
Public &
Media
Relations
Media
1. PR Director
2. PR Assistant
1. Agency or
Freelancer
1. Traditional UG
2. School of Bus.
3. School of Ed
4. School of H.S.
5. etc..
6. etc..
1. Art Director
2. Copywriter
1. Web Developer
2. Web Developer
• 8 Minimum FTE’s (+VP & Prez
who get it)
• Still need to supplement with
agency or freelance

24. #AligningExperts
President
VP
Marketing
& EM
Marketing
Planning
Creative Web
Public &
Media
Relations
Media
1. PR Director
2. PR Assistant
1. Agency or
Freelancer
1. Traditional UG
2. School of Bus.
3. School of Ed
4. School of H.S.
5. etc..
6. etc..
1. Art Director
2. Copywriter
1. Web Developer
2. Web Developer
You can’t cover
everything. Figure
out what needs
support & what can
survive on its own.
Developing an Effective Marketing Organization

25. #AligningExperts
President
VP
Marketing
& EM
Marketing
Planning
Creative Web
Public &
Media
Relations
Media
1. PR Director
2. PR Assistant
1. Agency or
Freelancer
1. Traditional UG
2. School of Bus.
3. School of Ed
4. School of H.S.
5. etc..
6. etc..
1. Art Director
2. Copywriter
1. Web Developer
2. Web Developer
Do they have the
talent to create
conceptual
advertising?
Developing an Effective Marketing Organization

26. #AligningExperts
President
VP
Marketing
& EM
Marketing
Planning
Creative Web
Public &
Media
Relations
Media
1. PR Director
2. PR Assistant
1. Agency or
Freelancer
1. Traditional UG
2. School of Bus.
3. School of Ed
4. School of H.S.
5. etc..
6. etc..
1. Art Director
2. Copywriter
1. Web Developer
2. Web Developer
Mission Critical.
Should be Handled
In-House
Developing an Effective Marketing Organization
Mission Critical.
Must be Handled In-
House

27. #AligningExperts
President
VP
Marketing
& EM
Marketing
Planning
Creative Web
Public &
Media
Relations
Media
1. PR Director
2. PR Assistant
1. Agency or
Freelancer
1. Traditional UG
2. School of Bus.
3. School of Ed
4. School of H.S.
5. etc..
6. etc..
1. Art Director
2. Copywriter
1. Web Developer
2. Web Developer
Developing an Effective Marketing Organization
Will Address in
Afternoon Session

28. Processes
• Workflow management
– Strategic & Creative Briefs to
define strategy, required
creative assets, messaging,
calls to action, etc..
– Creative asset development &
trafficking system
– Analytics & ROI assessment
– Research/consumer insights,
approval processes,
stakeholder buy-
in/socialization
#AligningExperts

29. Financial
Resources

30. Most Often Asked Questions
• How much budget do I need?
• How much budget do I need?
• How much budget do I need?
• How much budget do I need?
#AligningExperts

31. The Answer – How Much Have You Got?
#AligningExperts

32. Experience Matters
• Media dollars = Inquiries
• Marketing & media planning are
about determining “best use”
– The way you spend $25K is much
different than how you would spend
$250K
– Defusing your media spend reduces
its effectiveness
– Often better to reduce your breadth
of media
#AligningExperts

33. Setting Your Budgets
#AligningExperts
Inquiries (X) Conversion Rate (=) Enrolled Students
CPI (X) Required Inquiries (=) Marketing Budget
1,000 (X) 10% (=) 100 Enrolled Students
$115 (X) 1,000 (=) $115,000
CPES (X) Required Enrollments (=) Marketing Budget
$1,500 (X) 100 (=) $115,000

34. Cost per Inquiry
#AligningExperts
Do you have a "cost per inquiry"
for nontraditional, adult
Bachelor's degree students?
Base: Responsible for
nontraditional, adult Bachelor
degree programs n=148
Recognizing different costs may apply
to different programs, what is your
estimated average cost per inquiry for
nontraditional, adult Bachelor's degree
students? Base: Respondents stating
they had a cost per inquiry. n=40

35. Cost per Inquiry
#AligningExperts
Do you have a “cost per inquiry”
benchmark for Master’s degree
students? Base: Responsible for
Master’s degree students n=165
Recognizing different costs may apply
to different programs, what is your
estimated average? Is your cost per
inquiry for a Master’s degree student…?
n=29

36. Cost per Enrolled Student (CPES)
#AligningExperts
Do you have a “cost per enrolled
student” for nontraditional,
adult Bachelor’s degree
students? Base: Responsible for
nontraditional, adult Bachelor
degree programs n=150
Recognizing different costs may apply
to different programs, what is your
estimated average cost per enrolled
student for nontraditional, adult
Bachelor’s degree students? Base:
Respondents stating they had a cost per
enrolled student, n=41

37. Cost per Enrolled Student
#AligningExperts
Do you have a “cost per enrolled
student” for Master’s degree
students? Base: Responsible for
Master’s degree students n=165
Recognizing different costs may apply
to different programs, what is your
estimated average? Is your cost per
enrolled Master’s degree student…?
n=29

38. Know Your Metrics - Set Your KPI’s
Act on Metrics
• Conversion from inquiry to application to
enrollment
• Cost per impression
• Cost per click
• Click-thru rate
• Cost per piece
• Cost per name
Manage to KPI’s
• Cost per enrolled student for UG & Grad
• Cost per Inquiry for grad/non-traditional
#AligningExperts

39. Adjustments
• Recognize the difference between
traditional undergraduate & graduate level
marketing
• Understand which programs need
marketing support & which don’t
• Recognize you will get self-generated
inquiries & enrollments
• Use your CPI & CPES metrics to refine the
accuracy of your projections
• Recognize different programs will have
different media formulas
#AligningExperts

40. Afternoon Session
Today @ 4:00
How to Become an Effective
Media Planner for Your Institution
#AligningExperts

41. #AligningExperts

42. Thank you!
On-Campus Workshops for Marketing Departments, President’s Staffs &
Boards. Look for Upcoming Webinars
Jeffrey Rich | Jeff.Rich@Stamats.com | 319.440.6670
Please complete the session evaluation at: insert web address here