8 Lead Generation Strategies for Higher Education Institutions

Higher education lead generation is a process that can be difficult for many institutions. If you are not adept at capturing leads, you may find yourself struggling to do so. Fortunately, there are many ways to generate leads for your college or university. Many of these strategies are relatively easy to employ but can yield a high number of leads.

Why Should Your Institution Generate More Leads?

If you don’t generate an adequate number of leads, your institution could be missing out on the opportunity to attract numerous students. Lead generation is important because it helps spread the word about your institution and its offerings while helping you appeal to prospects. Even if you currently have numerous prospects, you should never underestimate the power of lead generation strategies.

1. Blog Consistently

To capture more leads, you will need an adequate amount of web traffic. If you are having difficulty generating the amount of traffic you want, you may want to consider creating new content regularly. By creating content, you can incorporate an effective number of important keywords, and by doing so, rank higher in search results. You will even begin to notice you are receiving more organic traffic from search engines such as Google. By maintaining and updating a blog consistently, you can target various keywords each month.

If you’ve never blogged before or writing isn’t your forte, you may be wondering how you are going to establish a credible and interesting blog. Even if you do enjoy writing, you may not have the time to create excellent content regularly. Fortunately, there are content writing companies, such as BKA Content, that can help you achieve your blogging goals with minimal effort. BKA Content does keyword research for you and writes quality SEO material.

2. Offer Social Proof

In terms of strategies for lead generation for universities, offering social proof is one of the most effective and easiest to do. Individuals often need to be convinced in some way to complete a lead generation form. Website visitors don’t like giving their personal information to just anyone, so you will need to provide proof that your programs and offerings are trustworthy and of high quality.

You can share social proof in a variety of ways, but one of the easiest methods is to incorporate reviews and testimonials. Showing off positive reviews can prove to potential students or employees that your university is legitimate and committed to providing a solid educational experience. If you don’t have any social proof, don’t hesitate to ask some of your faculty members and students for a review. Although written reviews can be powerful and help you capture leads, video testimonials tend to be the most useful.

3. Add Higher Education Lead Generation Forms to High-Traffic Pages

When it comes to higher education lead generation, you will want to add a few lead generation forms to your site. You should begin with pages that generate lots of traffic. For example, home pages often see the most traffic, so you should incorporate an accessible and visible lead generation form on your home page.

After deciding which pages see the majority of the traffic, you should pay attention to the time-on-page. If visitors to your site spend a significant amount of time on your page, you should make sure the page contains interesting and engaging content for them to read. Adding a lead form can also improve results.

If a page has high traffic but visitors spend little or no time on it, you may need to improve your content to ensure users are seeing what they want to see. Doing this will satisfy your users and improve their overall browsing experience.

4. Show Your Appreciation

Have you ever clicked on the submit button for a form and not received a genuine thank you or acknowledgment that your information was captured? Although this may seem like a small hiccup in the grand scheme of things, you will want to acknowledge your potential leads and thank them for providing their personal information. The best way to show your gratitude is to:

• Send an email – Link your form to an email platform of your choosing so once a potential lead submits their information, they will receive an email thanking them for their efforts. An email also functions as official proof that a site visitor has submitted a form.
• Redirect to a thank you page – By sending your potential customers to a thank you page, you can ensure they know their information is with a safe and reliable source. Let them know you obtained their information and send them a link to other relevant pages on your site so they can learn more about the services your university provides.

No matter how you choose to say thank you, just make sure it comes across as authentic and heartfelt. Potential students can see right through any fluff. Being authentic with your appreciation can help with higher education lead generation.

5. Respond to Leads Immediately

Universities concerned with higher education lead generation must understand the importance of urgency. Once you receive a lead form, don’t let it languish for days or weeks. As time progresses, the lead will become colder and the person who provided their information may even forget they did so. By following up with a lead within the first few minutes of receiving a form, you can significantly improve your conversion rate. Simply put, get in touch with potential leads immediately to boost your number of conversions.

6. Craft a Powerful Call to Action

Student lead generation can be difficult, but if you want to get more leads, you will need to create a powerful call to action. One of the greatest mistakes website owners can make is to end their content with a weak call to action. To improve the effectiveness of your call to action, it may be useful to offer site visitors something that will make them fill out a lead generation form. For example, you may want to entice visitors with some university swag, such as a pen, a mug, or a T-shirt. Offering potential students an opportunity they can’t refuse goes a long way toward crafting a great call to action.

7. Engage With Prospects Directly

In the age of social media, direct engagement with potential students or employees can go a long way. Depending on how many leads you have, it may be useful to reach out through phone, email, or most importantly, social media. To avoid wasting any time, you should try to reach out to leads most likely to utilize your services and programs. The process of higher education lead generation will require you to follow up with prospective leads.

8. Ask for Referrals

Asking for referrals may seem like an old-fashioned way to generate leads, but in reality, most of your current students or prospects will probably be willing to provide you with a good referral. In other words, let your students help you generate leads. Nothing will boost the credibility of your institution like a happy student who decides to tell their friends and family about you.

Referrals are one of the most solid and trusted higher education lead generation strategies available to institutions of learning. When connecting with a potential lead, ask them if they know anyone who may be interested in your programs or services.

Learn More About Our Monthly Blog Subscription Services

If you are ready to make the process of higher education lead generation easier, BKA Content is here to help. With our unrivaled and affordable blogging services, you can ensure potential leads are converted in just a few seconds. Learn more about our monthly blog writing services today.

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