Bridging Silos In Higher Ed

“This silo business is for the birds,” said a VP of marketing for a university to a table full of nodding heads over lunch one day at the AMA Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education.

One of the most frequently revisited topics at the conference was the frustration caused by various higher education departments siloed from one another: Enrollment, Marketing, Communications, Admissions, Advancement, Alumni Relations, Student Affairs, etc. The inefficiency and lack of cohesion this structure causes is maddening for higher ed leaders.

In our years working with colleges and universities this is a common scenario we’ve noticed from the outside, so it was refreshing to see it being so widely addressed within the industry at this conference. Many institutions highlighted successes they’ve experienced through increased collaboration.

A few anecdotes on this topic from AMA Higher Ed:

- In an informal poll of attendees at an educational session on Yield Strategy led by Rashida Dinehart of Media Cross and Molly Swagler of the University of Pittsburgh, about half the room had a centralized Marketing department separate from an Enrollment Management department at their institution, versus the other half with Marketing, Enrollment and Admissions housed in the same department.

- A participant in one of the sessions attended by our team shared that her institution recently created a new position split 33% three ways between Admissions, Alumni Relations and DE&I for the purpose of developing strategy for how to involve alumni in the enrollment marketing process.

- Mary Gresch of the University of Washington, Binti Harvey of Scripps College, and Rob Zinkan of RHB (and formerly at Indiana University) led a session entitled, “The CMO of the Future: The Chief Constituent Officer” in which they reimagined the classic higher ed org chart, broadening the strategic role of a chief marketing leader to include integrated advancement. This enables Marketing & Communications to tell the story of the institution’s overall direction and mission and lead the institution there.

- One Enrollment Marketing Strategist we met from a small private university described a task force at her institution where representatives from Marketing, Admissions, Enrollment, Advancement and Alumni Relations, and Academic faculty members meet monthly to share experiences and progress on strategic initiatives and offer collaboration and buy-in to one another.

- Frannie Schneider of Creighton University led a session describing a partnership between the Marketing, Student Affairs, Residence Life and Student Success departments to develop a successful Retention Marketing campaign. In describing how her Marketing department executed this partnership, she provided a blueprint for how Marketing can forge similar partnerships to achieve cross-departmental missions.

It’s clear from our perspective that higher ed institutions have much to gain from increased collaboration and idea sharing. That’s why we’ve developed several programs that are designed to reduce our clients’ labor, achieve cross-departmental missions, and engage multiple stakeholder groups. 

HERE ARE A FEW USE CASES:

Branded Student Care Package Program

We develop online pop-up shops where loved ones can purchase care packages of branded swag for their favorite student, showing love and encouragement while also reinforcing school spirit and advancing the institution’s brand. Simultaneously, alumni can also purchase care packages to “sponsor” students and support their alma mater.

o Helps advance the institution’s brand (Marketing)

o Provides encouragement and improves student mental health (Student Affairs)

o Engages parents/families (Student Affairs)

o Engages alumni and encourages support (Advancement)

3-Touch Mailer Program

Our direct mail campaign that builds excitement with three successive branded merchandise touch points to engage and intrigue prospective students, congratulate accepted students, and welcome enrolled students.

o Touch 1 - Generates initial interest/Marketing

o Touch 1 - Entices campus visits/Enrollment

o Touch 2 - Congratulates accepted students/Admissions

o Touch 2 - Increases yield/Enrollment

o Touch 3 - Limits melt/Enrollment

o Touch 3 - Fosters campus community/Student Affairs

Pop-Up Shop

While our online pop-up shops can be used for a variety of purposes, a common use is as a redemption site for enrolled students to receive an incentive for attending orientation programming. Students are given a unique single-use redemption code upon attending an orientation session, and they use the code to claim a special swag gift mailed directly to their home before the start of the fall semester.

o Increases attendance at orientation (Student Affairs)

o Limits melt (Enrollment)

o Reinforces the institution’s brand (Marketing)

For more use cases and ideas, check out our case studies or get in touch with us!

Check out our post with more top takeaways from AMA Higher Ed 2022!