Digital Marketing Strategy: Building Brand Strength and Enrollment

Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC ... @HighEdMarketing 1

This was real, but silly…http://2d-code.co.uk/qr-code-airplane-banner/

And this is about impossible…http://bit.ly/1COdh5C

DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGY: BUILDING BRAND STRENGTH & ENROLLMENTS

©ROBERT E. JOHNSON, PH.D. 2015

Bob Johnson, Ph.D.eduWeb Digital Summit

Chicago, IL

July 27-29, 2015

Who is Bob Johnson?

• Specialty: online marketing communications• “Top Task” research partner w/Gerry McGovern at Customer Carewords, Ltd, Dublin, Ireland.

• 81 higher education clients since 2006.• “Your Higher Education Marketing Newsletter”… 3,350 subscribers each month.

• @highedmarketing… 6,930+ Twitter followers.• “Higher Education Marketing” blog.• Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education… chair, 1994 to 2003.

AS WE GET STARTED…Everyone struggles to keep up with the rate of change.

A marketing strategy definition…

• “Marketing strategy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its limited resources on the greatest opportunities to increase sales and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage.”• en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketing_strategy

Best balance of time & resources?https://www.titan-seo.com/newsarticles/trifecta.html

Smartphones enabled a revolution…http://bit.ly/TlMtvN

Technology keeps moving…/http://www.samsung.com/us/experience/smart-tv

What might marketers do with this?http://www.apple.com/watch/guided-tours/

Digital marketing is “Insanely complicated”http://tiny.cc/71a6ew

Marketers & “digital” in a 2013 survey…http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/34878.asp

Marketing online for…

Brand awareness…

• We want people to know who we are today so that tomorrow if they need what we offer they will include us in their choice.

• Does not require call to action and landing page.

• Institution focused (often).• Clicks on links optional.

Direct response…

• We want people who are ready (or nearly ready) to make a purchase to start today.

• Requires a call to action and a landing page.

• Academic program focus• Clicks on links mandatory.

6 important strategy points…

• Social media… • Marketing and PR can’t control the message anymore

• Facebook wins by volume, but decreasing

• YouTube is second

• Mobile…• People are connected everywhere, all the time

• Easy to share opinions

• Different tasks on different devices?

Two more really big things…

• Big Data…• “Big data” = the capacity to know more about people than ever before

• We can use it for more precise advertising

• Engagement• More people will “like” and “follow” than will actively “engage”

• Not everybody wants to “engage”

And two more…

• New technology• No need to be first in everything, especially if you don’t know how the “shiny object” fits in your marketing plan

• Relax

• ROI• Difficult to measure the individual impact of every step in a marketing campaign

• But can measure advertising response

IF YOU WANT TO THRIVE IN DIGITAL MARKETING…8 Points to Remember.

LOVE YOUR WEBSITEYour website is (still) the core of everything.

EMBRACE “BIG DATA”Essential to deliver the right message at the right time to the right people.

BE WARY OF RESPONSIVE DESIGNBy itself, it is not a solution for web success in the mobile world.

BE SMART ABOUT CONTENT MARKETINGUnderstand earned media limits…

People don’t respond to typical “brand-centric” content.

FOCUS ON TOP TASKSFocus on tasks important to the people you bring to your owned media, especially your website.

MAKE SURE LANDING PAGE LINKS WORKLanding page videos for UCLA and Northwestern University IMC program were not working for Fall 2014 ads.

RESPOND RAPIDLYRapid response tells people you care about their interest in you.

USE A CRM SYSTEMImprove your email response content and ability to track results from paid media.

AS WE LOOK TO THE FUTURE…

Bob Johnson Consulting, LLC 27

Paid media spending, 2014…http://bit.ly/1fbkW2C

AdAge Marketing Fact Pack 2015…

Steady growth in online advertising…http://bit.ly/1JsVKMX

Mobile vs. desktop to 2017…http://bit.ly/1lSPfrC

Challenges for “the next few years…”http://bit.ly/1p6wzqm

THE GOOD NEWS…Facebook & Google in constant competition to allow better targeting…• “Guest Post: Facebook Is Now The Best Ad

Targeting Platform Around”… March 2013• http://bit.ly/17MDYGL

I. EARNED MEDIA:REASONABLE EXPECTATIONS?Most popular social sites…

Influence vs. owned media.

Social media “experts” often insist…• “A two-way conversation between marketers and

consumers is the whole point of social…• “Anything less… is a reflection of outdated broadcast-style

thinking.”

• Consider an alternate reality• Most people “follow” and “friend” brands to listen, not to

engage in a conversation.• Numbers do count… the more listening the better.

• Reality makes “ROI” extremely challenging to measure• What are all those “followers” and “friends” actually doing?• When will they take a “desired action”?

Top 10 social media sites, 10/6/12…http://ex.pn/SV3o84 FB + YouTube = 82.9%

Top 10 social media sites, 10/11/14…http://ex.pn/SV3o84 FB + YouTube = 78.8%

Top 10 social media sites, 5/11/15…http://bit.ly/1Ocb5Fn FB + YouTube = 67.0%

Top social media for college-bound teens…Noel-Levitz E-expectations survey, 2014

Owned media is more influential…Ruffalo Noel Levitz E-expectations survey, 2014

2 important points re social media…

• Lifespan of a new item on Facebook, Twitter is very short… just a few minutes.• Not everyone visits

social media every day… even teens.

• If something is important, post it more than once.• On more than one day if

timing permits.

II. PAID MEDIA IN THE DIGITAL WORLD Where are advertising $$$ going now?

Big Data = messages that don’t annoy.

Recognition as response key.

Major players in digital advertising…http://bersondeanstevens.wordpress.com/tag/mobile-advertising/

Social media advertising dilemma…

• “Social media is a very personal experience for most users and it is not clear yet just how much advertising they will tolerate from this medium.”• “Mobile social advertising makes quantum leap forward” at http://

bit.ly/16mOktB Mobile Marketer, April 2013

• Big Data = increased ability to target• Facebook• LinkedIn• Twitter

Where does Big Data come from?http://slidesha.re/15THr6E

Big data = Customer intelligence…

• Fact: few people object to ads that interest them• Opportunity: reduce mass advertising, focus lead generation marketing to people who might have an interest

• Conversion: with permission to speak, focus content strategy on relevance to top tasks of people receiving it

• Penalty: to much “brand speak” and people will withdraw permission to speak or just ignore you

• Reward: people will like your brand

Yes, teens respond to ads…Noel-Levitz E-expectations survey, 2014

Best social for researching colleges…Ruffalo Noel Levitz E-expectations survey, 2015

Recognition is the ad response key…Noel-Levitz E-expectations survey, 2014

Ad responders are not captured…Ruffalo Noel Levitz E-expectations survey, 2015

Key step to higher lead capture…http://bit.ly/OqbqFY

FACEBOOK ADVERTISING…The Facebook example…

Targeting on a mass media site

Facebook is today’s mass media…

• About 1% of people who follow major brands actively “engage” with them… almost everyone just listens. That’s OK.

• “People need to understand what Facebook can do for a brand and what it can’t do. It doesn’t really differ from mass media. It’s great to get decent reach, but to change the way people interact with a brand overnight is just unrealistic.”• Karen Nelson-Field, (Ehrenberg-Bass Institute,

Australia), based on FB metrics “People Talking About This”

Facebook on mobile…http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Will-Desktop-Ad-Spending-Peak/1009959

Facebook cut ad options in 2013… http://newsroom.fb.com/News/620/An-Update-on-Facebook-Ads

• More Facebook recommendations:• “Our vision is that over time, an advertiser can come to

Facebook and tell us what they are trying to achieve, and our ads tools will automatically suggest the right combination of products to help them achieve it.”

• Goal: easier for non-professionals to plan, place advertising.

• 10 goal options today.

Budgeting for Facebook…https://www.facebook.com/help/318171828273417/?ref=u2u

Start: Pick a campaign objective…https://www.facebook.com/ads/create/?act=40154125

Create an ad account…

Create a profile to see your ad (1)…

Create a profile to see your ad (2)…

Set your budget… (you can change)

(1) Create your ad, visual…

(2) Create your ad, text…https://www.facebook.com/business/news/lead-ads

Other display options exist…

Our landing page…https://www.calvin.edu/offices-services/financial-aid/affordability/

Track your conversions…https://www.facebook.com/help/435189689870514/

Create your “custom audience”…https://www.facebook.com/business/a/online-sales/custom-audiences

• Conversion ads to move people through the recruitment cycle.• Send ads to potential

students already in your database.

• Upload contact info (email or phone)… FB will match with its current database.

• FB says 40% to 60% match.

In the FB future… mobile “lead ads”https://www.facebook.com/business/news/lead-ads

YOU TUBE + GOOGLE AD WORDS…

The “get started” page…http://www.youtube.com/yt/advertise/get-started.html

After a “Chemical Engineering” search…

Select your video…

My CE video to promote…http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s64B-NNRxTA

Link your video to this page…http://cee.engin.umich.edu/cee-masters-information

Your ad on this page…https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAWLMMZlkq4

Create text for the ad…

How much to spend?

How much will you invest?

Trim your audience…

Other selection options include…

• Countries• Locations within a country• Language• Device used to access YouTube• Operating systems• Wifi carriers• Time of day

Your ad works on YouTube searches…

Your ad works on another video…

Your ad works on Internet searches…

Review your campaign plan…

How your ad will appear…

Your AdWords account page…

Attention to campaign results…

DIRECT RESPONSE DISPLAY ADVERTISINGFocus on specific academic programs…

Place ads in related interest areas

Really poor targeting…

Much better targeting…July 21, 2015

Leads to a proper landing page…

Is this a mistake?

• 22-page “Campus Brochure” PDF

• Slow loading (several minutes)

• Not specific to program featured in the ad

• 95-page “Catalog”• General social media connections

A professional school’s email ad…October 10, 2014

The landing page…http://bit.ly/ZTnVFV

Change the opening text…• Consumers and audiences today face — and help shape — a constant

stream of marketing messages over a wide range of media, and the most successful organizations are those that make their marketing campaigns stand out through a deeper understanding of consumer behavior. That's why there is such high demand for graduates of Northwestern University's online Master's in Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) program. As an IMC student, you'll enter a customer-focused curriculum that teaches you how to extract actionable consumer insights from consumer data analytics to create compelling messages and strategies that grow business. You'll gain a global marketing perspective, grapple with real-world marketing challenges and solve problems using up-to-the-minute, measurable tactics. Leveraging data-driven insight with digital, social and mobile formats along with more traditional ones, you'll experience the deeper understanding of consumer behavior that distinguishes our program. And you'll benefit from Northwestern's world-renowned tradition of excellence in the program that pioneered IMC education, studying with Medill professors who are some of the greatest minds in the industry.

To this, or (best) just drop it…• Consumers and audiences today face — and help shape — a constant

stream of marketing messages over a wide range of media, and the most successful organizations are those that make their marketing campaigns stand out through a deeper understanding of consumer behavior. That's why there is such high demand for graduates of Northwestern University's online Master's in Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) program. • As an IMC student, you'll enter a customer-focused curriculum that teaches you

how to extract actionable consumer insights from consumer data analytics to create compelling messages and strategies that grow business.

• You'll gain a global marketing perspective, grapple with real-world marketing challenges and solve problems using up-to-the-minute, measurable tactics.

• Leveraging data-driven insight with digital, social and mobile formats along with more traditional ones, you'll experience the deeper understanding of consumer behavior that distinguishes our program.

• And you'll benefit from Northwestern's world-renowned tradition of excellence in the program that pioneered IMC education, studying with Medill professors who are some of the greatest minds in the industry.

After the inquiry form…

The brochure in 8-page PDF format…

First page is OK… Text like this is not OK…

Two serious mistakes…

Video did not work… Frou-frou marketing copy…

RETARGETED ADVERTISINGCreepy to some…

Successful to others.

The retargeting trail…

Lucid agency asks 5 questions…http://bit.ly/TjUlOz

• Do you have an online marketing budget of at least a $1,000 dollars per month?

• Do you have at least a few thousand visitors to your Website each month?

• Do you sell a product or service with a long consideration cycle or customer research process?

• Are you concerned with continued branding for your business online?

• Do you have significant online competitors?

RETARGETING MESSAGE STRATEGY…

Focus on academic program visited in response to program-focused advertising or organic search that brought people to your website.

Retarget for individual programs…http://onlinemba.neu.edu/

School home page… M.S. in Finance…

Starting with a search in May 2012…

REJ on a automobile forum…

REJ on Flyertalk…

REJ on the Washington Post…http://wapo.st/HfuLaY

Explore retargeting specialists…https://blog.kissmetrics.com/remarketing-and-retargeting-services/

• AdRoll• Chango• Perfect Audience• Triggit• ReTargeter• Google• (Lucid Agency)

Targeting options…

• Worldwide• U.S.• Custom locations

• U.S. zip codes only• Country• Region• Metro or city

Use AdWords? Check Google first…https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/2454000?hl=en

LINKEDIN ADVERTISING…Best for young professionals in search of new credentials?

Start here…http://www.linkedin.com/advertising

Do you want response or reach?

Response campaign starting page…

Sort the details here…

Select cost and campaign length…

LinkedIn ad example…9:55 A.M. 4/19/2013

After the LinkedIn ad…

The landing page…Immediate inquiry

response…

III. OWNED MEDIA: YOUR WEBSITE FIRSTYes, think mobile.

But don’t forget the large screen.

Influential sources of information…Ruffalo Noel Levitz E-expectations survey, 2015

To answer a question…Ruffalo Noel Levitz E-expectations survey, 2015

KEEP. IT. SIMPLE.

What do most people want from your website?

Fast task completion.

Attention to Jakob Nielsen…http://www.nngroup.com/articles/university-sites/

Top 10 Design Guidelines… My favorites…

• #5• “Make it easy to view a list of

majors and programs.”

• #8• “Follow the user journey:

check the main tasks for each of your audiences.”

• #9• “Beware the perils of making

your website ‘cool.’“

Let Google help you…https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/

THE GOLDEN RULE…

<5 seconds to connect

Top tasks for future students…

• Top tasks at the start…• Find the programs you offer• Visit the academic program(s) of interest• Learn what you will cost• See if your grads are successful (AKA, “outcomes”)

• Other important tasks• Who enrolls at this place?• What’s required for admission?• Where are you located?

8 easy-to-scan link clusters…http://sydney.edu.au/

Tasks grouped by cycle stage…http://www.esu.edu/admissions/index.cfm

Great alumni “experience” stories…http://blogs.davidson.edu/afterdavidson/

Responsive design is not a panacea…http://www.ucsd.edu/

BRANDING ACROSS CHANNELSAugustana College, South Dakota

Value message at S.D. home page…http://www.augie.edu/

A LinkedIn message connection…

• Opening text notes “reasonable cost” and “exceptional value.”

• “See more” includes URL (not live link) to the “value” page.

“Exceptional Value” also on Pinterest…

• “Augustana College (SD) is a community where challenging academics, a caring environment and reasonable cost come together to create exceptional value.”

On Twitter…

• “Augustana College (Augie) campus & student life - where challenging academics, a caring environment & reasonable cost come together to create exceptional value.”

And on Instagram…

• “Augustana College (SD) Official Augustana College (Augie) campus & student life — challenging academics, a caring environment & reasonable cost create exceptional value. http://www.augie.edu”

IN THE (NEAR) FUTURE…

Future opportunities & challenges…http://bit.ly/1p6wzqm

Extraordinary speed…

• “In 2000, “the first ads we wrote for Oracle were about 7 seconds. If the consumer was online and didn’t get the content that they wanted within 7 seconds, they’d be gone.

• “Now 7 seconds is a lifetime.”• In 2017?

• “If Spotify is fixated with delivering content in under 200 milliseconds now, can you imagine what the competition will be in 5 years?”• Lawrence A. Kimmel, CEO, Direct Marketing Association

A verbal search future… https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/1331723?hl=en

• In the mobile world, no need to touch anything

• What words will your visitors use?

• Must work better than your “search” works now

• “Top task” even more important… know “Taskwords”

More video content…http://www.startstorytelling.com/

Google glass is still breathing…http://www.google.com/glass/start/

Growth hacker marketing is buzzing…

The book… The course…

WRAPPING UP…STRATEGY POINTS FOR SUCCESS

Digital strategy steps…

• First impression online is critical…• Top tasks from customer viewpoint• Abandon “marketing speak” content• Website is most important

• Big Data to focus paid media ads…• Simple online inquiry forms boost ROI…• Immediate inquiry response…

• Telephone, email, or texting

• Continuing response unless told to stop…• New role for video story telling

An underused strategy element…

• Academic program interest of potential students as the starting place…• Online advertising for individual programs• Use academic program interest from first response• Inquiry, application & finance options from every

academic program page• Academic content written for students, not faculty and

their friends• Social media plan for selected programs• Video stories from students and faculty in academic

programs

THANKS FOR BEING HERE IN CHICAGO!Bob Johnson, Ph.D.

bob@bobjohnsonconsulting.com

www.bobjohnsonconsulting.com

@highedmarketing

DIGITAL MARKETING RESOURCES12 sites and subscriptions to add to your kit bag.

Stay current with ClickZ…http://www.clickz.com/

And weekly Google searches…

Internet advertising resource center…http://bit.ly/1tGQMJr

Industry self-regulation…http://www.aboutads.info/

To watch U.S. legalities…http://1.usa.gov/1oiQJLP

Subscribe to Search Engine Watch… http://bit.ly/1m3b33Z

Ehrenberg-Bass Institute…http://www.marketingscience.info/

Data-Driven Marketing Institutehttp://thedma.org/ddmi/

Pew “Internet & Tech” research…http://www.pewinternet.org/

Social media strategy cheat sheet…http://bit.ly/UVq4XC

Social Media Examiner…http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/

“Secret guide” to CRM selection…http://bit.ly/1xGPtfw

Digital Marketing Strategy: Building Brand Strength and Enrollment

digital marketing strategy

social media marketing

complicated http

survey http

revolution http

silly http

impossible http

marketers digital

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