Strengthening alumni engagement creates a stronger academic community that not only helps to increase funding for universities but also attracts new students who are eager to start networking from their very first day. Yet, encouraging alumni to stay involved with their alma maters after they graduate requires work. Tapping into what matters most to your higher education program’s alumni is the key to keeping them engaged. But, first, you have to know where to find them.
Today, LinkedIn is recognized as being one of the most valuable tools that you can use for higher education marketing. With over one billion users that are spread across 200 different countries and territories, you can bet that you’ll find an array of both alumni and prospective students who are interested in higher education on the platform. Knowing how to use LinkedIn for universities gives you insight into where you can begin bolstering your college or university’s marketing towards alumni who are interested in professional networking opportunities.
Build a Stronger and Larger Community
Prospective students often list networking opportunities as a primary component in their decision-making process for finding a college. Building a strong LinkedIn presence with connections among your institution’s alumni helps to demonstrate to prospective students that many opportunities exist for career networking. Since many students are building LinkedIn profiles early in their academic programs, they’ll view your institution as being able to give them a competitive edge when it comes to getting ahead through professional networking.
As you explore how to use LinkedIn to encourage professional networking in higher education, keep in mind that you’ll want to use targeted advertisements that resonate with alumni and prospective students. Our team at SemGeeks can help you know when to use dynamic ads versus sponsored messaging that goes straight to people’s inboxes. While you want to build a larger community, it’s also important to strike the right balance between generating brand awareness without causing people to feel inundated with constant advertising when they’re aiming to network.
Lower the Cost of Low-Quality Leads
Finding leads who truly believe in investing in their education isn’t as easy as casting a wide net across every social media platform. Experienced higher education marketers know that it’s critical to take a deeper look at the data when choosing where to invest advertising funds online. Every social media platform has a history of attracting users who meet specific demographics. Knowing which types of people a platform attracts can help you lower the number of low-quality leads that your higher education program receives.
In 2021, LinkedIn users spent more on their education compared to people who used other large social media platforms. Choosing to direct your institution’s marketing efforts towards people who clearly value education means that you’ll pull in better quality leads that turn into conversions. Just as companies may come to your campus to hold career fairs to recruit new graduates, you’ll find that meeting your institution’s alumni where they spend the most time helps to maximize the use of your college’s marketing funds.
Enhance Graduate-Level Marketing Strategies
LinkedIn for universities is also a powerful tool for attracting and recruiting people who are interested in graduate-level studies. Since the majority of people on LinkedIn are professionals who are committed to obtaining higher education, incorporating this platform into your institution’s marketing strategy provides you with infinite opportunities to share new and upcoming graduate-level education opportunities.
If your university just opened up a new academic program or invested in new tech equipment for a department, then you can let the alumni know with a widespread message on their LinkedIn accounts. This is also the ideal platform to remind recent graduates about new higher-level professional certificates and degree programs that are related to their chosen career fields. Encouraging alumni to return to your institution to continue their education helps you to get an even higher ROI on your higher education marketing strategies.
Collect Usable Information for Lead Follow-Ups
One of the benefits of using LinkedIn for universities is that your advertising options include handy tools such as lead generation forms. Encouraging alumni to sign up to attend your institution’s next big networking event or to volunteer to share their stories has never been easier. When leads can easily send their information to your marketing team using a pre-filled form, you’ll find that the number of easy-to-reach leads skyrockets.
Improve Retargeting Opportunities
Having students make it all the way to the admissions process and opt-out at the last minute is frustrating, but strengthening alumni engagement gives you an additional strategy to use. Many prospective students get last-minute jitters that are often linked to feeling a lack of support. While sending nudges through personalized email marketing campaigns can help redirect students’ attention back to your school, it is also good to use a multilayered approach.
Helping to promote professional networking in higher education provides your university with alumni relationships that help to demonstrate how your school supports students at every stage of their academic journey. For instance, you can use messaging to share an alumni story that helps a student see themselves also becoming successful after they finish their degree. Or, you can use advertising to highlight connections between alumni mentors and their student mentees. While other forms of marketing may focus on emphasizing a student’s individual options for exploring academic programs, LinkIn for universities makes it easy to put a recognizable face on your institution’s marketing messages that inspire students to move forward with enrollment.
With so many higher education institutions focusing on Facebook and other social media platforms that cater to more diverse audiences, choosing to use LinkedIn for universities is like a secret weapon that you can use in your marketing plan. Keep in mind that learning to market on a new platform can involve a learning curve, and our team at SemGeeks can help you overcome any hurdles that you face faster. All you have to do is reach out to us today and let us show you how we can develop a targeted advertising campaign on LinkedIn that strengthens alumni engagement and fosters a stronger academic community.
Strengthening alumni engagement creates a stronger academic community that not only helps to increase funding for universities but also attracts new students who are eager to start networking from their very first day. Yet, encouraging alumni to stay involved with their alma maters after they graduate requires work. Tapping into what matters most to your higher education program’s alumni is the key to keeping them engaged. But, first, you have to know where to find them.
Today, LinkedIn is recognized as being one of the most valuable tools that you can use for higher education marketing. With over one billion users that are spread across 200 different countries and territories, you can bet that you’ll find an array of both alumni and prospective students who are interested in higher education on the platform. Knowing how to use LinkedIn for universities gives you insight into where you can begin bolstering your college or university’s marketing towards alumni who are interested in professional networking opportunities.
