Online Presence Now More Important than University Brand
CourseAdvisor Survey of Thousands of Students Reveals Key Influences in the Search for the Ideal Online Education Program
Wakefield, MA (PRWEB) November 28, 2007
CourseAdvisor (http://www. courseadvisor. com), an established marketing and lead generation company operating one of the top online education directories, CourseAdvisor. com, surveyed more than 2,800 current and prospective students and found that online presence far outranks university brand when choosing a postsecondary program. With 40 percent of respondents noting that they were currently enrolled in a higher education program, and 80 percent of those indicating that they had known about their selected school before starting their search for the ideal program, the question remained: "How did the students find out about the program to begin with?" The answer: 74 percent of students currently enrolled in a program said they heard about the program from an online search, Web site or education directory such as CourseAdvisor. com.
With more than a million adults currently pursuing degrees online, school administrators are struggling to get a better understanding of what students look for in prospective programs and where they obtain their information. While brick-and-mortar institutions have traditionally relied solely on brand, academic reputation and word of mouth to attract prospective students, they are increasingly realizing the benefits of expanding their online marketing efforts and investing in online search marketing techniques.
"In a recent study, Eduventures found that convenience is a primary driver for why students enroll in particular programs," said Catherine Burdt, Director, Eduventures' Postsecondary Industry Solutions Group. "While reputation and uniqueness of programs also played a strong role, the top combined reasons for enrolling were all about convenience - from course schedule to format and location."
In addition to students' desire for convenience, the CourseAdvisor survey found that:
Brand is not as important as online presence: In fact, survey respondents claimed that familiarity of the school or its brand does not play a role in whether or not they apply to the school. Campus-based components are not critical for online programs: Most students demonstrated minimal concern about the availability of additional campus-based programs. Cost tops the list of concerns: The majority of students noted that they selected online programs based primarily on price, accreditation and academic reputation. Direct mail is a not effective: Direct mail is no longer an effective way to reach students - only three percent of respondents cited it as how they heard of the school in which they enrolled.
In a recent webinar, "How Important Is Your Brand to Students," Carlos Cashman, President of CourseAdvisor, provided an in-depth examination of the survey results. In addition, Catherine Burdt, Director with Eduventures' Postsecondary Industry Solutions Group, provided examples of how specific colleges have increased brand and enrollment by implementing integrated communication efforts. The webinar can be viewed in its entirety at: https://www. gotomeeting. com/register/559877679 (https://www. gotomeeting. com/register/559877679).
"The educational landscape has changed significantly over the past few years, and students are forcing schools to evaluate their current marketing programs," said Carlos Cashman, President, CourseAdvisor. "College marketers need to connect with students how they want, where they want, while addressing the issues most important to them, or schools will not be able to reach and enroll qualified candidates."
About CourseAdvisor:
CourseAdvisor helps postsecondary schools maximize enrollment with high volumes of qualified leads. Combining mathematical modeling, behavioral analysis and sophisticated search technology, CourseAdvisor, owned by The Washington Post Company, predicts and adjusts for new behaviors to stay ahead of enrollment trends. Currently, more than 2.5 million students use CourseAdvisor's leading online education directory, CourseAdvisor. com, where they can match their skills to online degree and certificate programs from over 500 educational institutions ad 8000 programs. For more information, please visit http://www. courseadvisor. com/ (http://www. courseadvisor. com/).
CONTACTS:
Erica Camilo or Kim Pegnato
BluePoint Venture Marketing for CourseAdvisor
781-861-7800
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