Data is an essential aspect of digital marketing. You can compare your recruitment strategies with concrete numbers to determine what methods work and what you need to change. Being able to track success quantitatively simplifies your research process and allows efficient and effective ways of recruiting new students to your college.
Although access to abundant data is helpful, it only benefits your institution if you use it correctly. You must understand what the information means and how to use it while incorporating features on your website to attract and engage prospective students.
1. Data Sources for Digital Recruitment
Finding actionable data you can utilize to improve your digital recruitment strategy is simple if you know where to look. Data sources fall under two broad categories – first-party and second-party. First-party data sources include data you draw from your website, such as:
- Google AdWords and Analytics
- Social media
- Enrollment statistics
- Email campaigns
Second-party data is data someone else collects that you can incorporate into your digital marketing strategies, such as:
- Competitor school's data
- Studies
- Reports
- Industry surveys
2. How to Apply Data to Your Website Content
Google Analytics helps determine the most visited and longest viewed website pages. If you use blogs to communicate information to prospective students, you can narrow down topics that resonate with readers and write similar topics for future blogs.
You can use the same analysis for your college's social media accounts. Social media has its own analytic tools. Reviewing the posts receiving the most click-throughs, shares, and likes allows you to craft more compelling content to target the students you want to enroll in your school. It also facilitates engagement while visitors read about your institution's history, programs, events, and other information.
3. Keep Your Website Functional
The data you collect can improve various aspects of your website. It offers insight into each page's performance and conversions. You can see how long visitors stay on each page and where the most online traffic occurs.
You should refine your website regularly to ensure a quality user experience. A slow load speed and confusing navigational features can frustrate prospective students. They will likely abandon your site and look elsewhere.
While updating your landing pages, consider the message you want to convey. Your content should be informative and easy to read. If you notice a high bounce rate, it might mean the title and meta description don't align with the text on the page, your headings don't capture people's attention, or the content is too overwhelming to read.
4. Leverage Data to Improve Search Engine Marketing
Data can be beneficial in improving search engine marketing by identifying effective keywords. You can determine new keywords to add to your web pages by reviewing crucial indicators, such as the level of competition and volume of searches. Your research might influence the keywords you decide to use for search engine optimization (SEO).
You can also test new keywords to gauge their performance with your target audience before fully committing to incorporating them into your landing pages and blogs. By integrating the top-performing keywords, you improve your SEO and drive more potential students to your website.
5. Features You Should Include in Your Website
Improving your college's digital recruitment strategy requires optimizing your website with compelling features. Many students can't travel to visit campuses in person. They must rely on the information they find online to help them decide where they want to attend school.
At StudentBridge, we offer multiple solutions for prospective students when in-person visits are out of reach:
- Campus Visit Experience - The college campus tour app allows students to tour your college virtually. They can move at their own pace and visit the locations they're most interested in seeing. They're not restricted by a tour guide or time limit. They can explore every area with 360-degree images. Text and audio provide information about each spot they decide to check out during their tour.
- Virtual Events - You can offer an immersive digital experience with virtual events. They increase attendance and participation by allowing prospective students to interact with others without needing to travel.
Learn More About Improving Student Recruitment
Data is one of the most valuable tools available in digital recruitment for educational institutions. You can make more informed decisions about your strategies by understanding and using the data you collect.
With StudentBridge's Tech Platform, you can collect and analyze data to better understand the behaviors of your website visitors. The platform allows you to review each student's needs and interests to personalize the experience and attract the right applicants.
Call StudentBridge at (678) 824-8181 to get started on elevating your recruitment strategy with an effective digital solution.
