Tim Copeland's Blog on College & University Marketing and Enrollment Management

Social Skepticism? Research Note from the Nation's Retailers

With the promise of social networks, many colleges and universities have gone 'all-in' creating institutional and departmental presences on social networks such as Facebook and Twitter.

Yet, at least one industry is starting to question their social investment. In a research report on five 2011 retail eCommerce trends, Forrester Research found an increased level of skepticism around the role of social networks in driving sales.

While the hype of social networks in commerce has created a frenzy around S-commerce" (social commerce) and "F-commerce" (Facebook commerce), the reality is that those buzzwords have been more speculative than proven.

For two years running, Forrester's research with Shop.org has shown that retailers have all created presences on social networks, but most have been unable to quantify the return on this investment and even fewer have found that social networks grow their business.

According to Forrester, fifty-nine percent of retailers surveyed in an annual survey with Shop.org said that the returns on social marketing strategies are unclear, while 28% said that social marketing strategies broadly have helped them grow their businesses to date.

To the degree that retailers find any benefit at all from social strategies, it is most frequently driven by tactics like ratings and reviews on a website rather than activities on social networks.

Finally, what may put the nail in the coffin: Social networks in fact ranked dead last on a list of 10 customer acquisition tactics when retailers were surveyed in our 2010 Shop.org survey. 

As higher education enrollment marketers are faced with an ever-expanding communications toolbox, take time to consider the implications. Raise your line of sight and consider the following questions:

1. What are your interactive marketing objectives? Listening? Supporting? Talking? Embracing?
2. Are you set-up to manage (planning, people, processes, and technology) a true multi-channel experience for your prospective students?
3. What enrollment metrics can you reverse engineer (and measure) from the desired end result?

Balance innovation and hype by focusing on fundamentals.

iPad - Shiny Object for Student Recruitment, Marketing, and Admissions

How are you using the iPad for student recruitment, marketing, and admissions?

With 25+ million iPads sold and counting what are you waiting for? In a recent LinkedIn invite, I received the following invitation to join a group on this very topic:

Everybody's doing it, right? I mean every student has an iPad and if I'm not using the iPad to recruit students then my recruitment efforts are behind the curve, right?

Well, not so fast.

In a new Pew Research Center study release this week, they found only 11 percent of American adults own a tablet of some kind. At DemandEngine, we found in a study earlier this year that less than 10% of high school (n = 1,000+) access information via tablet. In 2011, tablet ownership growth has flattened a bit:

As an iPad owner, I can truly say that it is a wonderful device. There is no debate on how the device is changing how we consume media and content, and to some extent, how we communicate. But let's keep it in perspective.Starting with a decisoin on the technology or platform first is the wrong path.

Ask first who you are trying to reach, what is their online/mobile participation profile, and what you are trying to accomplish. Then, and only then, can you choose the technologies and platforms to use.

Campus Auxiliary Innovation - Car Sharing at Georgia Southern

Small town meet big city idea.

Georgia Southern University is teaming with WeCar, a car-sharing program by Enterprise Rent-A-Car, to offer students, faculty and staff a creative new transportation option.   Georgia Southern is the first university or business in the state of Georgia to offer the service first popularized in large cities. 

Located in Statesboro, GA, Georgia Southern University enrolls approximately 20,000 students, granting Bachelors, Masters, Specialist, and Doctoral degrees.

“We are very excited to be working with WeCar on this exciting new program,” said Kristi Bryant, director of parking and transportation at Georgia Southern.  “This program is ideal for students looking for an economical way to get around town, take a road trip to Savannah or to go home for the weekend.  With more than 20,000 students attending Georgia Southern from every U.S. state and nearly 100 countries around the world, not everyone brings a car to campus.  This new program provides our students with a great option to get around whether it is a short trip to the store or going home for the holidays.”

WeCar allows students, faculty and staff to rent cars – a Nissan Cube or Toyota Prius – for a few hours at a time, for an entire day or even overnight.  The service provides students with a transportation option if they do not have a car on campus, or do not want to add mileage to their own vehicle.

For a $35 annual membership fee, students, faculty and staff can rent one of the vehicles.  Fuel, insurance and up to 200 miles are included.  Unlike most rental programs that require renters to be at least 25 years of age, WeCar requires that drivers be 18 years of age with a valid driver’s license.  The first 100 members who sign up receive a $35 driving credit for use toward an hourly, daily or overnight rental.

For more information, visit: www.wecar.com or follow you can even follow WeCar at Georgia Southern on Twitter @WeCarGSU. Why anyone would want to do that I have no idea.