Welcome to the Fathom Blog
News & analysis on digital marketing & analytics
How Schools Can Use Personas to Entice Prospective Students
Targeting your audience is never a simple task, but it can get especially tricky for colleges. For example, your audience can change drastically depending on the degree programs each prospect explores and the learning method (traditional or online) they prefer.
And don’t forget factors that are as fundamental as personality. Some prospective students are eager; others are lazy. Some choose a degree program quickly while some take forever.
So how do you account for all of these variables when trying to reach out to prospective students? Fortunately, there’s a solution—you can develop personas!
Last quarter, the writers at Fathom set out to learn all about buyer personas. If you’re not familiar with personas, check out “Your Crash Course on Buyer Personas” by Caroline Bogart.
As the writer for the education vertical, I’ve been developing personas primarily for schools, and this means figuring out what students really want when they’re considering a college. For each school, I develop four different personas, one for each of the common buying personalities: Competitive, Methodical, Humanistic, and Spontaneous.
For each persona type, I’ll use the school’s demographics to assign a name, picture, occupation, and brief bio, which help the persona come to life. But what’s really important are the persona’s goals because they are specific to each school. These goals are based on the persona type’s typical influencers and motivations, and once the goals are developed, I brainstorm possible solutions to address them.
These solutions are essentially strategies, and I’ve listed some general strategies below to give you a quick overview of what each persona type will look for on college websites.
- Methodical prospective students want to become experts on your school and their program of interest. These are the people who want to receive fact-based emails, read white papers, and identify ways to reach out for answers to their questions.
- Competitive people want to know they’re choosing the best school and the best program, and they want to explore your content quickly to identify your unique selling proposition. Some solutions include short, bulleted copy and charts showing why you’re better than the competitors.
- Spontaneous people make quick decisions, but they want to see any positive media attention your school has received to determine whether it’s a popular choice. To target spontaneous people, you can emphasize awards and publish the latest news on the school blog.
- Humanistic people want to know all about your school’s history and learning environment because they want to become part of a supportive community. They will want to see your social media profiles, a good human-interest story on your “About Us” page, and plenty of student success stories and testimonials.
Keep in mind that these strategies will change based on your audience’s specific goals. Also, certain strategies may appeal to more than one persona type.
Have questions about using personas in the Education Vertical? Feel free to ask them below!
*Image provided by Agonic on Flickr
No Mobile Site? No Problem!
By now, I am sure everyone has heard about the importance of being optimized for mobile. (Heck, we even have an entire category on our blog dedicated to mobile marketing.) More specifically, mobile PPC is starting to really become a must to try, especially if you do any business locally. If you have had contact with anyone from Google in the past year, they practically begin and end every conversation talking about mobile. Well here is a dirty little secret that you may not know about …
You DO NOT need a mobile site to get leads from a mobile PPC campaign.
Yes, you read that correctly, and I am not crazy. How, Matt, you ask, is this possible?
By setting up a “Call Only” campaign—and it’s really quite simple. All you need to have is a working phone number and the ability to handle calls to your business.
Duplicate any campaign you desire and change the settings to target Mobile Devices. Then, enter the Ad Extensions tab and select Call Extensions. Enter in the phone number you would like to appear with your ads (bonus points if this is a line that can be tracked to see the volume this effort is generating). Select the option to “Show my phone number only on mobile phones”. Then select “Show only the link to my phone number”. Save and that is it!
When somebody conducts a search on a mobile device and triggers your ad, it appears with a phone number. When somebody clicks your ad, instead of going to your website, the phone number is automatically loaded into their phone and places a call. It’s like magic! Just remember to answer your phone when it starts ringing.
Resuscitate Your Enthusiasm for Using Social Media in Healthcare
As social media continues to grow at a rapid pace, it has become abundantly clear that all businesses need to utilize social channels in order to compete successfully. This remains true for the healthcare industry even though health services are a necessity to all consumers.
The Internet has become the top resource for health questions, with a huge amount of people consulting it before ever making an appointment with a health professional:
- Over the last few years, trust in online health resources has increased by 44%
- 75% of patients research their symptoms online before visiting a doctor
- 64% of patients who turn to the Internet for health questions use search first to start the research on their condition
- Out of the people searching for health-related information, 55% never make it past the first page
Overall, statistics show that 78% of consumers take action offline after researching health concerns on the Internet (Google Insights).
Social media strategy
Creating a social media strategy in addition to other inbound marketing tactics can further build your online presence and help boost your organic search rankings. Social media allows you to deliver information in real-time to your targeted audience while also demonstrating expertise and establishing trust among your followers (Green Buzz Agency).
There are more than 1,000 hospitals with a social media presence to promote themselves and monitor customer satisfaction (ebennett.org). Not only do social pages connect medical professionals with patients, but they also give patients the opportunity to easily converse with one another:
- 60 million Americans discuss their medical issues with each other online
- 41% of patients have read someone else’s commentary or experience about health or medical issues in an online news group, website or blog
- 24% of patients online have consulted rankings or reviews of doctors, providers, hospitals, or medical facilities (Green Buzz Agency)
Negotiating privacy and legality
Although social networking can enhance your online presence, it is important to remember that there are challenges, specifically in the healthcare industry, when using the Internet to spread health-related information. Primarily, you must be aware of issues surrounding liability and consumer trust since the HIPPA laws limit health professionals from answering questions about a specific patient.
A digital marketing and analytics agency like Fathom can help you build and maintain successful social channels for your healthcare business while traversing the tricky legal environment. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the Internet won’t have an effect on loyal patients. Easy access to mass amounts of information (including peer input) can greatly sway customers’ decisions, especially when it pertains to their health and well-being.
***
If you liked this post, be sure to check out other healthcare-industry insights in this blog’s healthcare category.
***
Photo courtesy of Herts Air Ambulance via Flickr.
Do You Smell That? It Could Be Your Stale Content
Once you create quality content for all the pages on your website you’re finished, right?
Wrong. Your content is not something you can just write and ignore. You may not realize how quickly your content can go stale. Just like the brown bananas in your kitchen, if you let your content sit for too long without edits, it can go stale. Fresh content is key to keeping your site relevant.
While it may seem like a hassle to continually track all of your content, if you take the time to do it right maintenance will be much easier.
Creating a Content Inventory Spreadsheet
First, it’s important to log all of your existing content on a spreadsheet or chart. The important information you need to include:
- URL – Add the page URL for tracking purposes
- Page description – Include a quick description of the page’s content
- Page level – Note where the page occurs on the site
- Content function – What kind of content is on the page?
- Content owner – Who is responsible for the up-keep of the page’s content
- Date of creation – The date the content was originally developed
- Update frequency – How often will the page need updated to stay relevant?
- Current status – Is the page current, or does it already require edits?
- Notes – Add any additional information that will be necessary to know
If your website has numerous pages, it can seem overwhelming to create a spreadsheet like this. However, if you start with the primary pages and slowly work through content page by page, you will eventually have a working inventory of all your content.
A content inventory spreadsheet is meant to guide you when it comes to making site updates and creating new pages. Pages that have a high update frequency will be your major priority. These pages usually include upcoming events, press releases, employee directories and things that could quickly change within your company. When it comes to content creation, use your inventory as a reference as to what your website is currently lacking.
While the process of a content inventory is tedious, the benefits far outweigh the boredom.
How do you currently keep track of content on your website?
LinkedIn Is an Asset for B2B Link-Building
According to Debra Mastaler, blog author of Link Spiel, LinkedIn for B2Bs is a hot ticket. Here are a few reasons why:
- It is populated with businesses and business professionals,
- It provides a neutral setting for companies to post information,
- People use it as a search outlet for vendors and suppliers,
- It is a good venue for establishing oneself or one’s company as an industry leader.
An increase in link-building opportunities is another perk; however, many B2Bs have yet to take full advantage of this benefit. If your B2B company is in the market for quality, relevant backlinks, then here are a few ways LinkedIn can be of assistance:
Company profile pages
LinkedIn provides a link to your company’s website from the profile page—pretty simple. Additionally, it’s worthwhile to ask employees to link to the company from their profiles as well. Suggest they consider linking to your:
- Company’s homepage
- Company’s blog
- Company’s Facebook or Twitter profile
Posting on a profile page
Populated by professionals, LinkedIn is a great outlet for posting business-related updates and content, even information that might be considered a little dry on other sites like Facebook and Twitter. Consider posting updates with relevant links leading to:
- New product or service pages
- Events
- Articles and press releases
- Videos
- White papers and case studies
- Contests
- Reviews
Additionally, if a LinkedIn member is actively searching for your type of content, then they might post one of your links elsewhere without you even having to ask. One thing to be mindful of however, is not to flood your updates with links leading to your company’s site. Be sure to include a variety of resources, including ones coming from other sites when applicable.
Outreach information haven
One method for acquiring quality links is that of blogger outreach, but between finding targets and creating engaging outreach emails this can be a daunting task. LinkedIn can help by providing:
- An advanced search – This is useful for filtering member profiles by industry. Once the field has been narrowed, check these profiles for links to sites that seem worth reaching out to.
- Common ground– You might have the industry thing in common, but in what other ways do you or your company relate to your targets? Do you both:
- Have affiliations with a school?
- Attend mutual conferences?
- Participate in the same forums?
- Belong to a mutual group?
Scanning a profile can be an easy way to go the extra mile. A thoughtful connection mentioned in an email often makes contacts more likely to provide a link.
- Contact information – Look for that elusive contact information within a user’s profile, or within a blog stemming from a profile. LinkedIn’s InMail may also be an option if no other contact info is available.
Group Participation
Participation on LinkedIn is not only a good way to establish yourself as an expert, but it’s a good way to pave the way for future links to your site. Two ways in which to get involved include:
- Answering questions
- Creating a group
LinkedIn’s Answers section is a means of displaying your area of expertise, by responding to questions posed by members. A “Web Resources” section is available to insert links that support your reasoning. If readers find value in your resources, then they may choose to put your link on their own website.
Creating a group is another way to build valuable industry relationships as well as links. Opportunities include:
- Linking to your company’s site from the group’s profile page
- Including relevant links within messages you send out to group members (within reason and moderation)
Groups are especially helpful for companies in very niche industries. Demonstrating your knowledge to professionals is helpful in establishing relationships, an essential step for becoming a future guest blogger, or for other outreach efforts.
In general, securing quality backlinks for B2B companies has traditionally been more difficult than doing so for B2Cs. While LinkedIn is not a quick fix for this disparity, it’s a key tool for gaining links, but perhaps more importantly, for laying a solid foundation for a quality, ongoing link-building campaign. LinkedIn holds so many benefits for a company’s off-site SEO, and so I ask, if your B2B company is not currently on LinkedIn, then what are you waiting for?!
* Photo courtesy of Adriano Gasparri via Flickr
