{"id":25561,"date":"2021-03-06T09:48:10","date_gmt":"2021-03-06T09:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.parcelpending.com\/blog\/how-to-attract-college-students-online\/"},"modified":"2023-04-03T18:41:40","modified_gmt":"2023-04-03T18:41:40","slug":"how-to-attract-college-students-online","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.parcelpending.com\/en-ca\/blog\/how-to-attract-college-students-online\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Attract College Students Online"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many higher education institutions are facing new challenges when it comes to attracting prospective students. Whereas college fairs and campus tours were once the norm, today campus recruiting is all online all the time. <\/span>So, <\/span>how do you market to college students<\/span>? <\/span>As we continue to navigate health and safety guidelines associated with in-person events, here are the top strategies for <\/span>effectively <\/span>marketing<\/span> your college to prospective students online.<\/span><\/p>\n

Create Virtual Tours<\/b><\/h2>\n

A virtual <\/span>campus<\/span> tour is your secret weapon for <\/span>marketing<\/span> to prospective <\/span>students<\/span>, especially for out-of-state or international students. <\/span>Between March 13 and April 13, nearly 1.4 million people viewed a virtual <\/span>campus<\/span> tour produced by YouVisit, a virtual tour company. High <\/span>school<\/span> seniors are taking these tours at a rate 228% higher than they were a year ago<\/span>1<\/sup><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

A good tour works to introduce a prospective student to the culture, internships, professors, and the <\/span>college <\/span>campus<\/span>. A <\/span>great<\/span><\/i> tour includes question and answer sessions with professors, college graduates, and other students. It\u2019s also important to immerse visitors into the experience with multimedia dimensions, interactive elements, and strong calls-to-action.<\/span><\/p>\n

Highlighting amenities and facilities on college campuses so that students can see themselves living on campus is also key. Virtual walkthroughs should showcase the student union, the bookstore, dining options, and even <\/span>parcel locker<\/span><\/a> solutions available or<\/span> intelligent lockers<\/span><\/a> for student use. <\/span>An <\/span>electronic locker<\/span><\/a> solution can<\/span> provide a contactless method for <\/span>shipping to college dorms<\/span><\/a> or distributing<\/span> key documents, campus passes, books, and <\/span>campus mail<\/span><\/a>. Accessible 24\/7, students no longer need to wait in long lines to pick up packages from the mailroom creating a better student experience. This is especially important as <\/span>student consumer trends<\/span><\/a> indicate a shift to almost entirely online purchasing.<\/span><\/p>\n

An investment in a tour today pays off in the futu<\/span>re, too, even<\/span> as some semblance of normal returns. <\/span>College<\/span> marketers note that the virtual tours marketing strategy also works to introduce family members to the <\/span>school<\/span>, <\/span>thereby gaining buy-in for the <\/span>school<\/span> choice.<\/span><\/p>\n

Invest in Paid <\/b>Digital Marketing<\/b><\/h2>\n

With over 5,300 colleges and universities in the United States, it\u2019s critical to be easily found on the web by <\/span>students<\/span>. A recent study reports that 73% of <\/span>marketing<\/span> leaders are increasing their <\/span>marketing efforts<\/span> and are reallocating<\/span> their efforts towards <\/span>digital marketing<\/span>2<\/sup><\/span>.<\/span> Of those, 28% <\/span>indicated they would add<\/span> more online advertising, 18%<\/span> would invest in <\/span>more content <\/span>marketing<\/span>, 15% <\/span>would pursue more<\/span> organic growt<\/span>h, and 12% are looking to enhance their <\/span>social media<\/span> marketing<\/span> strategy<\/span>. <\/span>Pay-per-click,<\/span> search engine optimization, and retargeted ads are all available tools at a <\/span>college<\/span> marketer\u2019s disposal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Leverage <\/b>Social Media<\/b> Platforms<\/b><\/h2>\n

While<\/span> some m<\/span>ight joke that <\/span>students<\/span> seem to have been born with a phone in their hands, the statistics almost seem to bear it out.<\/span><\/p>\n