What if I told you that you could improve your enrollment marketing results without spending a single dime by pivoting to audience-centric marketing?
It’s true.
While easy to understand, audience-centric marketing is a surprisingly powerful strategy.
Perhaps one reason it works so well is because most messaging out there is centered on the wrong thing.
In most higher education marketing, a common pitfall is the tendency to focus on the institution rather than the prospective students.
This issue can significantly undermine the effectiveness of marketing efforts, leading to missed opportunities in engaging potential students meaningfully.
Before we get to the topic of this post, let’s explore some of the key issues with the opposite of audience-centric marketing, organization-centric marketing.
Organization-Centric Marketing
Traditional higher education marketing often centers around the college or university itself.
This means that much of the messaging highlights the institution’s achievements, infrastructure, faculty credentials, and other internal aspects.
While these elements are important, they do not necessarily address the prospective student’s needs or aspirations.
The primary goal of organization-centric marketing is to further the institution’s objectives, such as increasing enrollment numbers, boosting prestige, or showcasing academic accomplishments.
While these goals are valid, they often come at the expense of neglecting the prospective student’s perspective.
Neglecting the Audience
Organization-centric marketing tends to overlook the audience’s characteristics and needs.
Prospective students—the primary audience—are often thought of last when it comes to what content needs to be created and distributed.
With organization-centric marketing, there is a general lack of understanding about who the prospective students are, what they value, and what they need from a higher education institution.
Without this understanding, marketing messages fail to resonate.
When the messaging does not align with the audience’s needs, it communicates that the institution is not interested in the students’ personal goals or challenges.
Perceived Selfishness
While unintended, this approach often leads prospective students to perceive the institution as self-centered.
If the marketing message solely focuses on the institution’s benefits and achievements, prospective students may feel that their needs are secondary.
This perception can deter them from considering the institution as a viable option.
At a gut-level reaction, the prospective student or parents may worry that if they enroll, their needs and aspirations will not be prioritized while being an active student.
The Solution: Audience-Centric Marketing
In contrast to the organization-centric approach, audience-centric marketing shifts the focus entirely onto the prospective students.
This method is designed to address the shortcomings of traditional marketing and create a more engaging and effective communication strategy.
By focusing on your prospective students’ needs and aspirations, audience-centric marketing addresses the core issues of organization-centric marketing.
In other words, audience-centric marketing is oriented towards serving the personal needs of the audience.
Empathy and Understanding
By understanding your prospective students’ journey, motivations, and challenges, you can craft messages that resonate deeply with them.
This method fosters a sense of connection and engagement, making prospective students feel valued and understood.
Characteristics of Audience-Centric Marketing
To effectively implement audience-centric marketing, certain key characteristics must be present. These characteristics ensure that the marketing efforts are focused, relevant, and impactful.
A Clearly Defined Audience
To begin orienting content to your audience, you’ll need to segment the audience based on various factors such as demographics, interests, and behaviors.
This helps in tailoring the messages to specific groups effectively.
Developing detailed personas for different segments helps in understanding their specific needs and crafting relevant messages.
A Data-Informed Approach
Leveraging data analytics to gather insights about your audience’s behavior, preferences, and engagement patterns is essential.
This information guides the creation of content that meets their needs.
Beyond using raw data to inform your messaging and marketing decisions, there is so much you can glean from having frequent conversations with actual students.
This anecdotal approach will help to humanize the data you’re getting through your analytics.
Regularly collecting and analyzing feedback from prospective students in focus groups or in private conversations helps in refining the marketing strategy continuously.
A Personalizing Touch
Personalizing the marketing messages based on the audience’s characteristics and preferences enhances engagement and relevance.
Customized messaging means tailoring your communication to fit the unique characteristics and preferences of your prospective students.
Of course, this goes beyond simply addressing them by name; it involves understanding their academic interests, career aspirations, and personal challenges.
For instance, if a prospective student shows interest in environmental science, your marketing messages should highlight your institution’s sustainability programs, faculty expertise in the field, and successful alumni who have made strides in environmental careers.
By doing this, you create a connection that feels personal and relevant, making the prospective student more likely to engage with your content and consider your institution as a serious option.
Audience-Centric Content Creation
In audience-centric marketing, content creation should begin with a question-driven approach.
By thinking through the questions that prospective students are asking, higher education marketers can ensure that the content they produce is relevant and directly addresses the audience’s immediate concerns.
This means moving beyond generic information about the institution and focusing on specific queries that students might have.
For example, prospective students might be wondering about the types of support services available for first-generation college students or how they can balance part-time work with their studies.
By addressing these questions head-on, you can create content that is not only informative but also demonstrates an understanding of the unique challenges and aspirations of your prospective students.
This relevance is key to capturing the attention of prospective students and encouraging them to engage further with your institution’s resources.
Service Is the Heart of Audience-Centric Marketing
The primary goal of audience-centric content is to provide information that directly addresses the needs and concerns of prospective students.
When content is crafted with the intention of answering specific questions, it builds trust and positions your education brand as a valuable and helpful resource.
For instance, a detailed blog post explaining the financial aid process can alleviate the anxieties of students worried about funding their education.
A video series featuring current students discussing their experiences in various programs can help prospective students envision themselves on your campus.
By consistently providing solutions and valuable insights, your school not only attracts prospective students but also cultivates a relationship based on trust and respect.
In helping to solve their problems with content, we’re putting ourselves in servant-oriented posture. We’re here to help!
By serving the audience’s needs, you can foster a deeper connection and increase the likelihood of higher enrollment outcomes.
Serving Your Audience Is the Best Strategy
Audience-centric marketing is a powerful approach that can transform the way higher education institutions engage with prospective students.
By focusing on the needs and aspirations of the audience, education brands like yours can create meaningful connections, build trust, and ultimately drive better enrollment outcomes.
Implementing an audience-centric marketing plan requires a strategic approach, continuous learning, and a commitment to putting the prospective student first.
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Featured image by Microgen via Adobe Stock
