We’re deep into traditional college recruitment season. It’s easy to tell. If you have a high school student living at home with you… just check your mailbox. It’s probably flooded with fancy looking direct mail pieces from any and every brick-and-mortar college in your area; and probably a bunch that aren’t even in your state.
I, Conversion Media Group’s journalist/blogger/writer, have firsthand experience with this. See, I have two high schoolers myself.
Now, if you recall, at this time last year I wrote about this very subject, saying, “… the problem we’re seeing now is that some targeted mailing lists are, well, not that well targeted.
“For example, and this actually just happened, my 10th grade son came to me late Tuesday afternoon with a massive smile on his face. He said, “Dad, I’m going to play football at (out of state SEC Powerhouse University)!”
“I thought he was just joking around until he handed me a direct mail piece from the school. In the piece, the Powerhouse SEC school did indeed invite him to enroll there with the opportunity to try out for the football team as a walk-on.
“Huh? He’s 5’9” and 120lbs. Oh, and he’s never played organized football in his life.
“This left me wondering how many completely mis-targeted direct mail pieces this one school in particular sent out… and how much money they wasted.
“If every 5’9” 10th grader in our state received the same letter… we’re talking tens, maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars out the window.”
So, a year has now gone by.
And what’s changed since this time last year?
Well, my 10th grader is now in 11th grade… He’s now 5’11” and weighs about 175. Still not a football player… But we’re still receiving 2-3 direct mail pieces, every day.
Some of which continue to be way off target.
A new example: he got a direct mail piece for an all-girls school. Which, of course, got him just as excited as he was last year when he thought he’d be playing SEC football.
Now, given his first name, I can see how the honest mistake was made. Still…
At up to $10 per piece, when you factor in writing, design, print, mailing lists and postage, direct mail can be incredibly expensive. Of course, most pieces, especially post cards cost a whole lot less…
But regardless of cost, the real cost is in mis-targeting; paying for mailing lists of people who are highly unlikely to ever even consider enrolling in your school.
Clearly, there has to be a better way to market your school to prospects that are more likely to enroll…
And we, Conversion Media Group, believe there is.
Especially if you operate a primarily online institution.
You see, as higher ed enrollment initiative experts, we own and operate US-based, EDU-focused contact centers.
We offer full-scale, omnichannel digital marketing programs designed to generate and nurture high-intent student leads. Leads we hand off to you…
Live on the phone, if you’d like. Or you can call them yourself, that’s up to you.
Now, these high-intent, new student leads are not 10th graders who would love to play SEC football.
No, they’re adult learners who are looking for an online education to help them further their careers. We know… we actually talk with them.
As a result of our omnichannel expertise, and this is where the opportunity for you is, we can produce what are called live transfer leads. Real student leads we hand off to directly to you, live on the phone…
Correctly and efficiently targeted.
Want to know more? Simply give us a call at 1-800-419-3201 and we’ll explain exactly how our various programs can work for you.
This time next year, I’ll have a 12th grader and a 10th grader… So, I’m curious to see what kind of direct mail pieces (and how many) will end up in my mailbox; and how off target they are.