And Carrie On

Personalization matters. Ask just about any marketer about something they need to be doing more of in their work, and they’ll likely tell you personalization.

In my dissertation on how marketing might be used to mitigate the enrollment cliff, one of the key findings was embracing personalization.

We are having to use every tool available to create increasingly tailored and personalized communication. It has to be specific to the student, their interests, their intended academic program, their geographic origin, and their academic background. 

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Why Personalization

We increasingly live in what I call an Amazon world. In this world, students receive personalized shopping suggestions, personalized content when streaming online content, and even customized lookbooks for prom. If higher education continues serving generic emails, printed pieces, and postcards, we’re missing an opportunity to engage students and really make them feel welcomed and heard.

Halligan and Shah explored how students made high-impact decisions and found that customization and personalization were key factors, as they helped boost engagement and served to build an emotional connection.

6 Strategies for Personalizing

In visiting with numerous universities, one of the constant themes I hear is that personalization feels scary, and universities aren’t sure where to begin. My hope is this will help broaden how you think about personalization and can help you begin brainstorming ideas that can work for your institution, too.

Strategy 1 – Personalize part of your admitted materials. This means going beyond just using a name. When I was at Arkansas Tech, the very first signature in the admitted piece was personalized. This allowed us to include a name two times in the book. We also personalized the page about campus clubs, which allowed us to list clubs that were part of the student’s chosen college. Finally, one part of the closing page was personalized, with their t-number, email information, and other items they needed to get started.

Strategy 2 – Photos are a great way to personalize. This is a more subtle way to add a more personal touch. This could be on a spread in something or in a postcard. We did this at ATU with a message from deans and the appropriate dean’s photo was used, instead of a generic photo. Another way this could be done is by showcasing the building where they’ll study. By using a separate image, the piece is more likely to feel like it relates and is less likely to be tossed aside.

Strategy 3 – Personalize your video content. The technology now exists, (and I suspect it will improve with AI) to personalize video messages in the same way. Videos can be edited in sections, and each section can be tailored to the student. For example, students who are admitted get a video that has a chunk in the middle about their major. Each student seems a different major referenced. If that’s too complicated, an easier way to do this is film a student testimonial for each college and use that in email campaigns, so students see content that relates.

Strategy 4 – Yield messages can also be personalized. Many universities are in yield season right now. By partnering with your Admissions team, you can do list-based ads that help drive needed actions, such as encouraging students to complete advising, encouraging students to turn in missing items, etc. The key to this is regularly updating the list, so that as students complete actions they begin to see the next set of items. If the list is stale too long, this strategy can backfire.

Strategy 5 – Personalize your financial aid materials. I don’t know that there’s a better way to make a student feel like they matter than to personalize their financial aid offering. Financial aid packages are naturally scary and full of legalese. If there’s a way to pull in specific data about a student’s finial support as it compares with their costs, this could help many students feel more comfortable about affording college. It also helps to reinforce your brand and that you’ll be there along the way.

Strategy 6 – Websites are the next phase of personalization. Personalized admissions-focused landing pages have existed for some time. These are drive Admissions actions and show great promise. However, I think we’re close to personalizing the main website in new ways. More and more, websites will be hooked to CRMs, opening a wealth of opportunity for the web to become a personalized tool. For example, new people who visit the site see one message, while an IP address that visits regularly begins to see different homepage messages. Another example is a student who’s applied sees die rent messages than one who hasn’t. While this technology is still pretty new for higher education, it’s certainly becoming more common, and I think we’ll see more and more of it in the coming years.

What have I Missed?

The are just a few personalization moments that I’ve identified. However, I’m sure there are many more. What are creative ways you’re trying to personalize?