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Our behavior as consumers has changed. Ask yourself: when was the last time you deposited a physical check at your bank?

Chances are you have the ability to deposit checks via an app. Did you actually visit an appliance store to buy your vacuum? With online shopping and quick delivery options, even large-scale purchases are done through retailers’ websites.

Most of the actions we take in our lives are done digitally now, from buying groceries to connecting with friends. It’s the reason we turn to retail giants like Amazon first when we need something quickly. Fewer steps, a rapid turnaround, and more convenience are what we crave in today’s digital-first world. 

While we’ve become used to this way of life, unfortunately, that seamless, digital experience has not transferred to all the different services we use. Paper forms and even longer paper trails follow us each time we visit a new doctor’s office or deal with our insurance companies. And unfortunately for students, the same is true for the higher ed experience.

What is Student-Centered Enrollment?

There’s a growing disconnect between what students expect and what they encounter. Sure, we may lure students in with beautifully designed digital ads or engaging social media content, but when they take that step and become a prospect, most are met with a multitude of lengthy forms, unengaging text-heavy communication, and hard-to-follow processes. 

These unnecessary and time-wasting steps can cause students to experience a lot of friction along their admissions journey. What if you could reduce friction, eliminate unnecessary steps, make it easier to collect information, and create a more enjoyable experience all at the same time? 

Consumer brands have figured out the secret: a consumer-centered approach. We believe that in their own way, schools can too, with a student-centered approach. Here are our five simple ways student-centered enrollment can make the admissions process easier (and better) for both students and your teams. (For more, check out our webinar recording and slide presentation.)

5 Ways Student-Centered Enrollment Makes Admissions Easier (and Better)

1. Forms that aren't a chore.

We know forms that ask too much from prospective students have lower conversion rates. Yet, forms that require too little can be problematic for our teams on the backend. So how can we build better forms that aren’t a chore to fill out yet provide us with all the necessary information to get the ball rolling with students? 

Enter: follow-up forms! The first step is to present an easy way to complete an initial, short form. Then, upon submission, provide students the option to fill out a more robust form with additional info. This way you have the preliminary information you need while increasing conversion rates.

A live chat option is also a way to collect the necessary information to create a student record or add details to a current profile. Through Element451, the live chat can request preliminary information and instantly connect it to a student match so you can continue the conversation later or even inject students into a campaign.

2. Emails that students will want to engage with.

Instead of text-heavy emails, focus on visual-first communication. Nowadays, students are scanning text more than ever so if you truly want them to get informed about an event or upcoming deadline, you’ll need to catch their attention quickly. Bold graphics, clear calls to action, and true personalization are the key to tailoring your communications to be more engaging and increase the likelihood of being read and responded to. 

Not only do students feel seen and special when communication is authentically personalized to them, but when you include a real counselor’s name, email address, or photo in your emails, students get a sense that someone on campus is there for them.

Another way to spice up your emails is with personalized videos. A video email is more engaging, gets straight to the point, and allows you to completely personalize the message to the student you’re trying to reach. No need for a big budget and a Hollywood set. The authenticity of a personalized video means way more to students than a generic professionally produced marketing video.

3. Content About Things Students Care About

It’s not enough to present students with information about your school. When we mass communicate with our audience, we lose out on making the type of connections that stand out to students. Getting to know exactly what a student is interested in or concerned about can help us reach them in ways that will impact their decision-making.

For example, event registrations can trigger personalized emails and reminders that keep students engaged around certain topics. Then, they can continue to receive communication that is relevant to what they’re interested in. Whether it’s a certain degree program, a specific sport, or relevant internship opportunities, you can increase students' engagement by delivering communication that speaks to what’s important to them.

4. Timing That Makes Sense

A student-centered enrollment approach asks that we let the student drive the action. Digging into relevant insights and analytics, we can effectively and efficiently create content that aligns with student interests, and deliver the right message to the right student at the right time.

If you know a student has visited a financial aid page two times in one week, our next step would be to send a follow-up communication that informs them about scholarship information and deadlines. Then we might follow up with a survey a couple of days later to see how they’re feeling about affording college. Then, when it’s time to make calls, the counselor can see a more accurate picture of the student and know what to talk about in the moment.

Doing this for every student at scale is possible. Through the magic of automation, setting up workflows that trigger based upon student action means no more mass sends based on date or season. Each student gets the personalized information they need when they need it.

The best part is that all of this can be done inside the Element451 platform so no more manually scheduling, duplicating hundreds of emails, and hoping something sticks. 

5. Actionable Calls To Action

Whether it’s in an email or on a webpage, we need specificity to attract students. Forget “Learn More” and other generic CTAs. In our digital-first age, students expect to find what they need in seconds.

Instead of one-size-fits-all CTAs, tailor them to where students are at in the funnel. With CRM software that helps you build out hyper-personalized emails at scale, you can create various CTAs that are relevant to the recipient's journey along the funnel and will pull in depending on who you’re communicating with.

Increase Enrollment And Student Engagement 

When information is clear for students, they can navigate each recruitment cycle with fewer obstacles and more engagement. Plus, all these examples can help your team be less reactive, more efficient, and ultimately happier. It's a win-win. Happier students that convert and healthier admissions, recruitment, and engagement teams.

See how it can be done with a personalized demo of Element451.