roadmap for niche marketing panel presentors meredith amburn student development specialist, college...
TRANSCRIPT
Roadmap for Niche Marketing
PANEL PRESENTORS• Meredith Amburn
Student Development Specialist, College of Lake County
• Michele BrownDirector of Recruitment & Outreach, Oakton Community College
• Kendra ChartsCareer Program Recruiter, College of Lake County
• Shani GarzaTransfer Coordinator, Northeastern Illinois University
Barriers for Community College Students
• Time • Academic Preparedness• Money• Confidence• Schedules• “Red Tape”• Childcare• Transportation
Key Marketing Messages
• Convenience– Location, location, location– Class schedule vs. life schedule
• Curriculum– Relevance– Just in time, just right for current
application• Cost
How to Reach Adults?
• Research indicates adults need to see the same message six times before responding!
• “Magic formula” for enrolling adults– Need– Motivation– Resources
Adult Students are:
• Autonomous, self-directed• Foundation of life experiences• Goal-oriented• Relevancy-oriented• Practical
Key Messages to Promote to Adults:• Special Services
– Counseling and Advising• Adult learners’ orientation• Experiential learning credit• Designated Adult Advisor• Extended learning opportunities
– Job Fairs– Clubs with career focus
Adult Marketing Initiatives
– Adult search piece– Bilingual pieces– Targeted radio spots
“Just in time, just right for current application”
How to Reach Special Populations?• Special Events for different
markets – Black Teen Summit– La Via– High School Registration/Advising
Workshops– STEM Open House– FUTURES Unlimited– Special Needs Program
How to Reach Influencers/Parents?
• Through their newspapers – they still read!– Chicago Tribune Local Inserts– Evanston Sentinel– India Tribune– Philippine Weekly– Polish Daily News – Reflejos
How to Reach High School Students? • Electronic Media/Website Banner
Advertising – ChicagoSunTimes.com– Google– Facebook– Pandora – Alloy– Ringleader Digital
Create / Implement
• Home School link on your home page
What makes your institution home
school friendly ? What are the necessary steps that
home school students need to take?
* Work closely with Admissions and PR
Host Home School Events
• Plan AccordinglyFormat : Open House or Formal Lecture?Time of Year: Spring, Summer, or Fall?Time of Day: Morning or Evening?Location: In House or Off Campus?Invite: Everyone or Select Few?Promote Via: Home Site, Newspaper Ads,
Flyers, or Kiosk?Details: Catering, Decorations, Signage?
Home School Event Follow-Up• Use the Sign in Sheet Put contacts into data baseThank the families for coming out via e-mail or
phone call
• Surveys/FeedbackWhat went right? What can be done differently?
Identify and Contact Honors Students • Collaborate with :Honors Program CoordinatorHigh School CounselorsHonors students on your campus• Promote Honors Program at:Local High SchoolsLibrariesVarious Community Events
Identify and Contact Potential Honors Students Continued….• Purchase ACT list
• Create mailings to promote honors coursework (from Honors Program Coordinator)
• Invite select students to future event
What do Potential Honors Students Need to Know?• Communicate / Share:
Eligibility Requirements
Benefits
Testimonials
Host Honors Event
• Plan AccordinglyFormat : Open House or Formal Lecture?Time of Year: Spring, Summer, or Fall?Time of Day: Morning or Evening?Location: In House or Off Campus?Invite: Everyone or Select Few?Promote Via: Home Site, Newspaper Ads,
Flyers, or Kiosk?Details: Catering, Decorations, Signage?
Follow-Up from Honors Events• Sign in Sheet Put contacts into data baseThank the families for coming out via e-
mail or phone call
• Surveys/FeedbackWhat went right? What can be done differently?
How to reach Middle School Students?• Noncredit programs, events, the
arts, etc.• Introduce career clusters• College campus visits – hands on
experiences and college preparation
How to Reach Audiences for Career Programs?• Audiences:
– Adults (already on campus and not on campus)
– High School Students (current and traditional students)
• Where can you find these audiences?– Adults
• On campus: GED, ESL, developmental, undecided
• Off campus: Job Centers, CBO’s, Faith based organizations
– High School Students• Undecided, Tech Campus (vocational
programs)
Career Program Focuses:
• Nontraditional careers for males and females
• STEM programs– Midwest Girls Collaborative– Perform outreach to high schools– National Science Foundation grant– Hands on STEM event
Key Messages to Promote Nontraditional Career Programs:• Describe potential jobs, emphasize
potential earnings, career advancement and required training
• Break down stereotypes• Send inclusive messages• Promote support services at your
institution
Career Program Initiatives
– Career booklet – Strong collaborative relationship
with Lake County Technology Campus. Offer grants, scholarships and dual enrollment credit.
Career Program Initiatives
– Career booklet – Strong collaborative relationship
with Lake County Technology Campus. Offer grants, scholarships and dual enrollment credit.
My Role at NEIU and CLC
As the NEIU Coordinator of Transfer Enrollment I serve CLC and Lake County area students:
• Provide pre-admission advising to disseminate academic program requirements, major options, admissions requirements, financial aid options, and academic support programs;
• provide registration and academic advisement information to newly accepted transfer students;
NEIU Staff hired through the grant:
Karen Davidson, M.A.– Title V Activity Dir. / Asst. Dir. for Transfer & Retention
Tiffani Robertson, MBA - Title V Coordinator of Articulation & Degree Audit
Matthew Sawicki, BA – Veterans Admissions Outreach Specialist
What is the Title V Grant?
Title V grants are awarded to eligible Hispanic-Serving Institutions seeking to enhance and expand the institution’s capacity to serve Hispanic and low-income students. These grants provide funds to improve and strengthen the academic quality, institutional stability, management, and fiscal capabilities of the institution.It is a great honor to be awarded only one of five cooperative Title V Grants in the US. What makes this grant unique is its collaborative quality. The College of Lake County is an emerging Hispanic Serving Institute and Northeastern Illinois University (NEIU), is the only four-year public Hispanic Serving Institution in the Midwest. The demographics of students served and the proximity of our campuses made it a great fit for both institutions.
How will it impact Lake County students?The cooperative project, titled “Partnership for
Lasting Impact on Retention, Transfer and Graduation,” will include several initiatives:
• Streamlining student transfer from CLC to NEIU by creating student friendly transfer tools;
• establishing a NEIU Transfer Center at CLC and at NEIU to improve mentoring, advising, orientation, and financial literacy workshops for students and their families;
• expanding the number of B.A. completion programs offered by NEIU on-site in Lake County;
• providing comprehensive services to students who are military, veterans and their families; and
• creating a transfer and veteran peer mentoring program
Who is our target audience?
• Lake County residents• College of Lake County students• Hispanic, first generation and low-
income students• Student Veterans
Things to consider….
• Suburban student• Few options to complete
Bachelor’s degree• Location• Affordability• Access to information• Simplifying the transition
Smoother transition
• Strong presence in Lake County newspapers and media
• Building strong relationships with the College of Lake County, Lake County high schools, and community agencies
• Offering Information Sessions at the College of Lake County and at the University Center
Hispanics in the US
• 1 out of 2 people born in the US since 2000 is Hispanic
• 25% are English dominant• 47% are Spanish dominant• 28% are bilingual
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Report 2007
What’s important?
• Understanding the family as a unit• Understanding group decision
making• Alleviating the conflict between
individual needs and family group expectations
• Offering strategies to maintain harmony even in conflict
• Beware of translation choose transcreation
Marketing efforts…
• Making the message more personal
• Send the message that Higher Ed is a family decision to:– Get closer to your dreams– Give them a better life– Be a good example for the rest of the
family