In higher education, effective communication is crucial for success. Whether it's between students and staff, or even within departments, clear and timely communication can make a significant difference in achieving institutional goals. 

This is particularly true for small teams in private universities or community colleges, who often have to juggle multiple responsibilities and wear many hats. 

Ignite, a new offering from Element451, is an all-in-one software package that provides the hyper-personalized and automated communication tools our partner institutions need to reach and meaningfully connect with today’s learners. 

Best of all, these tools extend staff effectiveness so even the smallest of teams can produce high-quality and impactful communication to reach even the largest of goals.

Embeddable AI-powered live chat (BoltBot)

Generative content and copy improvement (Copilot)

Artificial Intelligence Helps Small Teams Achieve Big Results

Ignite’s artificial intelligence (AI) powered solution is making a significant difference in schools like the College of the Albemarle (COA) in North Carolina, where Admissions Counselor, Brittany Meinsen, has seen remarkable engagement through outreach efforts. 

The all-inclusive nature of Ignite means Meinsen’s daily work is now streamlined and the simplicity of the interface makes it easy for anyone on the team to use. People profiles, task management, and shared inboxes reduce friction and allow for a more cohesive working environment, no matter what department someone is in.

Ignite’s ability to personalize communication with each individual is also transforming the way partners interact with students. Using data and AI, the software generates personalized messages that are tailored to the student's interests and needs. 

Lenell Hahn, director of admissions, and her team at Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) have also used these features to stand out from other institutions. 

We love the Conversations module. That’s something I didn’t see in other platforms. We’ve used this to create synergy across campus. We add faculty as users so they can text students without giving out their phone number. The relationships students build with faculty are key to their future.

And now teams can leverage BoltBot, a conversational chatbot powered by ChatGPT API, to work tirelessly around-the-clock. This allows teams to focus on more complex issues and build relationships with students during business hours. 

With BoltBot in charge of answering inbound questions on SMS and web messenger channels, institutions can stay responsive 24/7.

Bolt Copilot is an all-in-one AI content generator and copywriting tool integrated throughout the entire software, allowing teams to deliver AI-created content across every channel at scale. From drafting replies to changing the tone of a message, Copilot helps teams like Hahn’s produce the kinds of messages today’s learners expect.

Modern Communication to Reach Students Where They Are

Since transitioning from their previous email and paper communication methods, Vice President of Student Services at Randolph Community College, Chad Williams, has seen rapid process improvement and increased staff efficiency through the use of Ignite’s omni-channel communication tools such as: 

segmented and automated communication campaigns

SEMO also took advantage of the automated communication workflows and unlimited texting. Workflows allowed the admissions team to set up a series of messages that were sent automatically to prospective students at predetermined intervals. This saved the team a lot of time and ensured that students were receiving timely and relevant information about SEMO.

By incorporating text messages into their communication plan, Hahn’s team learned that many of their students, especially younger ones, preferred text messaging to email. 

Through SMS communication, SEMO was able to reach more students and improve their engagement. Best of all, no personal phone numbers are required to text since every conversation is stored in Ignite’s shared inbox.

It has really revolutionized the way that we engage with our students simply with the personalization as well as the conversations that we were able to have with our students via text message or via email. It's really created this ecosystem within our colleagues and within our institution of being able to personally reach out to them. It's just really created this culture of engagement within Forsyth Tech.

Meinsen and her team at COA also took advantage of the SMS features, but this time for outreach to busy working adults who don’t have time to check their emails. They’ve seen a 40-50% increase in engagement with outreach simply by implementing texts into their communication plan.

Devin Purgason, Executive Director of Marketing and Student Care at Forsyth Technical Community College has also seen the benefits of implementing these advanced communication tools, especially automated emails and text messages, to create what he calls a "culture of engagement" among students and staff.

Everything You Need to Reach Students in One Place

Williams and his staff at Randolph Community have leveraged many customization capabilities, which allow them to tailor the software to their needs. They plan to use the platform heavily in student services, admissions, counseling, financial aid, and veteran affairs.

Likewise, Meinsen points towards the all-inclusive nature of Ignite as a key differentiator, as it doesn't require other programs to connect to it.

It’s all there. You don’t have to go to a different program. You have it all-in-one and it is awesome. I’m not a coder or a programmer and it’s been easy.

Hahn agreed, adding that they’ve been able to eliminate five other technology vendor relationships due to the all-in-one nature of Ignite. 

For example, many partner institutions rely on third-party email hosts, chatbots, task management systems, SMS providers, and more.

Plus, with Element451’s robust customer success team at their side, our partner institutions know they can rely on us to help brainstorm and collaborate to take their engagement strategies to the next level.

The Element451 team is an amazing partner for Forsyth Tech. I use the word partner very, very specifically because they really come alongside us. They understand our mission and our vision and they work really really hard to make sure that we are accomplishing our goals.

Ignite’s modern communication tools and AI-powered features have been instrumental in helping our partner institutions do more with less. 

Automated workflows, personalized messaging, SMS features, and intelligent chatbot and writing tools are helping admissions teams be more efficient and effective in their communication to better connect with today’s students and reach their goals.

Small Teams, Big Impact: Ignite's Cutting-Edge Tools Revolutionize Student Communication

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