The international education industry faces a unique challenge, marketing to millennials (aged 41-26) and gen z or zoomers (aged 25-15). These generations are the most educated and globally connected in history but are also the most skeptical of traditional institutions.
Marketers and counsellors need to create authentic and innovative content to reach the interest of this critical demographic.
At Edvisor we know that this is not easy, so we want to give you some simple and effective 5 golden marketing keys, without spending money, to reach this client demographic and successfully market your international education business.
📋 Table of Contents
Use the technology at your fingertips
There’s no denying that the internet and social media have completely changed the way we communicate and do business. Using tools such as LinkedIn and Edvisor to your advantage is important as an international education agency. They will help you connect with other professionals in the international education industry, and grow your business.
The increased expectation for “instant gratification” means these demographics expect their needs to be met instantly. So, personalized attention with live chat, providing access to multiple options that can fulfil exactly what they are looking for, and the ability to generate instant quotes when the student contacts you - is priceless!
Another feature to fulfil the need for immediacy in prospective clients is if students could quote your courses through your website. By enabling the student to view different options like playing with the number of weeks for the course, accommodation options, and view different pricing - your chances of closing the sale skyrocket. This technology exists within Edvisor and it's up to you to use it.
Offer unique programs and services as well as showcase your values
To attract digital aficionados to your international education business, you must offer programs and services that appeal to this demographic. More than ever, you should position your agency to promote what makes your business unique and what differentiates it from other agencies, like offering unique cultural immersion experiences or a custom-designed curriculum.
Aside from showing your agency's uniqueness, it is also essential to reveal your core values, especially for gen z. For zoomers, it is more crucial to connect with what they buy. It seems that through this generation, a new way of understanding the world is opening up.
Get testimonials from your current international students
Use powerful word-of-mouth marketing strategies to connect with your current international students, plus connect with students’ friends and family to promote your courses/programs, attract new international students and increase revenue.
Nowadays, solid social proof is very influential. Think of Amazon reviews or feedback from customers on Airbnb, they play a key role in the decision-making process for many users.
As for student recruitment, the same applies. Nobody will make a major decision about their future college or next language course without researching to see what other students are saying about the programs you're promoting.
Testimonials can be utilized in a variety of ways:
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Website - share success stories from current students about their experience.
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Social media channels - reach a massive audience, especially through targeted advertising on Facebook or Instagram.
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Blog content - over time, a blog post will build a brand voice that’s easily recognizable by potential students and enhance organic search results.
Implementing star-based ratings and making written feedback optional could be a good way to encourage students to leave reviews online.
Your website needs to be information accessible, mobile-friendly, and promote safety
Social media is definitely the place where millennials and gen z do their research, but your website is the driving force, second only to direct emails. Therefore, you should ensure you have an updated, optimized website that makes it easy and enjoyable for site visitors to browse and find informative materials that speed up the purchase process.
Additionally, mobile Internet users have overtaken desktop and laptop users over the past few years. Therefore, being mobile-friendly is key to making students stick around your site long enough to gain an interest in your proposals, and is also very important when ranking on search engines.
Another important factor to take into account on your website is that the COVID-19 crisis of 2020 has affected in-school learning, and likely will for quite some time. It is therefore essential that all the courses in your portfolio have the option of being covered by insurance so safety concerns are not a barrier.
Use social media platforms
In 2019, many companies like Forbes indicated that more than 80% of each generation uses social networks at least once a day, making them part of their daily routine. Considering how rapidly this trend is growing, it would be a real shame not to use these communication channels to promote your international recruiting business.
In this order, social media platforms like Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat are the 5 most popular among millennials. As for gen z, Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and Facebook. So, both generations use the same platforms but they have different preferences!
With this data, it would seem obvious to at least publish on YouTube and Instagram, although if we take into account the growth rate in recent years, our advice is - “focus on TikTok”. According to Business Insider, in 2024, TikTok will overtake YouTube and target Facebook next.
If you still don’t publish content on TikTok and you are feeling encouraged after reading this blog, know that TikTok offers amazing opportunities for building organic audiences due to its algorithm favouring content over following. Additionally, if you want content ideas that perform very well in the international education industry, invite ambassadors to represent your brand and let them, with a sense of humour, share their real experiences, give constructive pieces of advice, or bust myths to future students.
Whether you post on Tiktok or more mainstream platforms, you'll find that as you build your following on social media, you gradually reach a position where a single piece of content can instantly reach millions, even if your actual number of followers is much less.
Conclusion
There are many aspects of digital marketing that can be beneficial to use without needing much effort or investment, and obtain a positive and successful reward.
You can promote your brand and values by using the minimum amount of appropriate technology for your business. Through an optimized website, your students can see the available programs and also even buy them on their own! And finally, sharing your business on the correct social networks can lead to more business opportunities and growth for your company.
Edvisor offers easy access to great digital tools for the international student recruitment industry, to help agencies and educators connect more efficiently and grow their businesses. Get in touch with us today to learn more!
