How to Unlock the Power of Your .Edu

College and university websites hold significant strategic value from a marketing perspective as they serve as the primary online hub for promoting an institution's brand, attracting prospective students, and engaging with various stakeholders. Join Allison and Ben Congelton (CEO & founder of Olark) as they unravel the transformative potential of web optimization and the pivotal role live chat plays in creating exceptional user experiences. Gain invaluable insights from Ben as he shares his expertise on setting strategic goals, implementing metrics, and leveraging testing to make data-driven decisions that drive remarkable results.

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Why Your Website Deserves More Attention

Your institution’s website isn’t just a digital brochure—it’s the hub where prospective students, parents, alumni, and other stakeholders form their first impressions and make crucial decisions. Yet, as Ben Congleton highlights, many higher ed institutions overlook the strategic potential of their .EDU, resulting in missed opportunities to engage and convert visitors effectively.

For many prospective students, the journey to enrollment starts and ends online. Surveys repeatedly show that an institution’s website ranks among the top resources students use during their college search process. However, as Ben and Allison discuss, many higher ed marketers report lower confidence in their website optimization skills compared to more traditional channels like print or in-person events.

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Setting Clear Goals: The Foundation of Optimization

One of the key takeaways from this episode is the importance of setting and aligning on a primary goal for your website. Whether it’s increasing undergraduate applications, driving campus visit sign-ups, or improving alumni engagement, identifying a singular focus simplifies decision-making and helps guide every aspect of your site’s design and functionality.

Ben emphasizes that without this alignment, it’s easy for competing priorities to dilute the effectiveness of your website. For instance, your homepage can’t equally serve admissions, alumni relations, and event promotions without becoming cluttered and confusing. By prioritizing goals and creating an ordered list of objectives, higher ed marketers can make data-driven decisions to move the needle where it matters most.

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Building a Metrics-Driven Funnel

Once goals are set, it’s time to establish metrics and map out the customer journey. Here’s how:

• Define the Funnel: Identify key steps in the journey, such as traffic to undergraduate pages, visits to admissions content, completed request-for-information (RFI) forms, and final applications.
• Track Conversion Rates: Analyze drop-off points between each step to uncover areas for improvement.
• Experiment Strategically: Use tools like A/B testing to refine headlines, calls-to-action, and page layouts to boost conversions.

By focusing on specific areas of the funnel, marketers can identify bottlenecks and create targeted solutions to address them.

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The Role of Live Chat in Optimization

Live chat is a game-changer for improving website performance and user experience. It serves two critical functions:

1. Real-Time Support: Live chat provides immediate answers to prospective students’ questions, reducing friction in their decision-making process.
2. Insight Generation: By analyzing chat transcripts, marketers can uncover common questions, objections, and pain points, turning qualitative data into actionable insights.

Ben shares examples of universities successfully deploying live chat to address barriers in key stages of the enrollment funnel. For instance, the University of Oregon used live chat to assist students with housing questions, leading to higher enrollment yields.

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Avoiding Common Pitfalls

One recurring issue in higher ed website management is the lack of alignment between website content and institutional goals. Ben explains that while digital advertising campaigns often have clear objectives, the same focus is rarely applied to the .EDU.

Another pitfall is relying too heavily on automation without understanding the user journey. While chatbots can reduce costs, they lack the personal touch and qualitative insights that human-staffed live chat can provide.

Finally, higher ed marketers often face challenges in building consensus among stakeholders. Effective optimization requires collaboration across departments to ensure the website aligns with both marketing goals and the broader institutional mission.

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What Skills Should Higher Ed Marketers Prioritize?

To maximize their website’s potential, higher ed marketers should focus on:

• Strategic Thinking: Clearly define and prioritize website goals.
• Collaboration: Foster alignment among leadership and key stakeholders.
• Experimentation: Develop robust frameworks for testing and optimizing content, layout, and functionality.
• Data Literacy: Leverage metrics to inform decisions and measure the impact of changes.

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This episode is brought to you by our friends at DD Agency:

DD Agency is a higher ed-specific marketing technology agency that has conducted countless SEO Audits for colleges and universities across the country. 

In these audits, they detail where you currently rank, what you could be ranking for, exactly how copy should be tweaked on website pages, and much more. 

If this sounds like something you could benefit from, give those folks a ping and be sure to mention that Enrollify sent you to claim a 10% discount on any of their SEO offerings. 

Head on over to enrollify.org/ddaseo, or simply follow the link in the show notes below…that will guarantee you get a 10% discount off of your audit. 

About the Enrollify Podcast Network: 

The Application is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network.  If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!  

Our podcast network is growing by the month and we’ve got a plethora of marketing, admissions, and higher ed technology shows that are jam packed with stories, ideas, and frameworks all designed to empower you to be a better higher ed professional. Our shows feature a selection of the industry’s best as your hosts. Learn from Jeremy Tiers, Zach Busekrus, Jaime Hunt, Allison Turcio, Jamie Gleason and many more. 

Learn more about The Enrollify Podcast Network at podcasts.enrollify.org. Our shows help higher ed marketers and admissions professionals find their next big idea — come and find yours!