While higher education isn’t typically leading the pack in technology adoption, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in today’s marketing teams may be surprising as the use of AI is rapidly evolving to engage prospective students more effectively.
Predictive AI and machine learning make it easier and quicker to understand student behavior, preferences and interest in enrollment allowing marketers to optimize their targeting and reach strategies. While those uses of AI are making marketers’ tasks more efficient, AI is also a powerful student-facing tool. AI-powered chatbots are helping to streamline the process of answering students’ most pressing questions.
Consider the development of “Pounce,” by Georgia State University, an AI chatbot that’s improved the university’s ability to engage with prospective and current students.
AI Applications in Higher Education Marketing
At a time when enrollment at institutes of higher education can’t seem to keep pace with pre-pandemic numbers, a report recently published by LT (LaneTerralever) and Convince & Convert, tells us that AI could be a game-changing tool in the marketer’s toolbox.
According to the report, “2024 Bridging the Gap Between Student Needs and Marketing Strategies,” AI adoption is actually relatively high with 38 percent of higher education marketers using AI daily and nearly 80% using it at least weekly. While the AI usage policy varies greatly from institution to institution, what the data tells us is that marketers are making and will continue to make a case for the value of these tools to expedite the output of their work and elevate the sophistication of their marketing to potential and current students.
Content Creation:
Content and creative teams within higher education see the most value in AI support today. These marketers put AI to use in two primary ways: developing user experience — website and email personalization, chatbots, data analysis and target as well as content creation — ad creative, social media content, blogs, email copy, audio and video.
When it comes to short-form content creation, AI seems most valuable to marketers in boosting their ability to deliver on their content demands. 65% of marketers use AI to assist with social media content creation and 53% use it for graphics.
Blog development is the only type of content that is more likely to be AI-generated in its entirety, rather than AI-assisted.
Personalization of Communication:
Marketers have tools now to get closer to one-to-one experiences for prospective students. In fact, 47 percent of marketers are leveraging AI for website personalization. But here’s the kicker, email is the preferred engagement channel for students — 55% say they want to hear from institutions via email — and the channel they engage with most frequently — 51% use email when researching higher education. However, marketers are expected to invest 10% less in email over the next two years. AI can be a powerful tool to help them close that gap of expectation and delivery.
Consider leveraging AI to develop a robust email nurture program for prospective students. Segmenting those strategies into targeting students based on their program/degree interest, type of school they’re applying from, non-traditional versus traditional students, etc. can allow marketers to personalize content in a real way.
Chatbots for Instant Support:
For marketers, chatbots extend the personalized touch and create more efficiencies in providing prospective students with answers to their most pressing questions. Now, AI chatbots allow for more sophistication on the marketer's side and, potentially, more satisfaction on the student side. Nearly 40% of marketers say they’re using AI chatbots currently and a quarter of students are relying on a school’s website as their primary source of information when researching higher education. Marketers have the ability to answer a greater number of students’ questions in even greater detail than ever before with the machine learning that supports AI chatbots and which will only increase in their sophistication as time goes on.
Benefits of AI in Recruitment and Enrollment
- Efficiency:
The value of AI for marketers becomes amplified when you consider how much quicker they can accomplish tactical tasks in their day-to-day operations. That time saved becomes invaluable in allowing them to focus on strategies that will advance or enhance their current marketing efforts, both in promoting the school’s brand and in recruiting prospective students.
- Enhanced User Experience:
The higher education institution’s website is more important than ever. It's one of the first places students look to for data and first impressions. Marketers can ensure their website is optimized to perform for both search and AI chatbots to help ensure it’s fast, easy to navigate, and tailored for mobile. Schools can also consider developing custom website content and user flows based on degree interest, demographics, financial aid needs, and campus life preferences and then match student interests to custom email and SMS marketing user experiences. Finally, there should be a concerted effort to focus on video content from students tailored to the specific student types and interests.
- Data-Driven Decisions:
Institutions of higher ed have troves of data on prospective students and do not typically have the appropriate amount of time to make the best use of that data. That’s where machine learning and AI practically revolutionize the marketer's job. Not only do they no longer need to spend hours upon hours pouring through data, but they can spend more time strategically planning how best to put that data to practice, including highly segmenting email nurture flows, informing new creative and messaging and customer journey mapping
Challenges and Considerations
Most marketers will be challenged less by the tolls themselves and more by restrictions placed on them by the institutions they work for. For the marketers with fewer restrictions, like with any emerging technology, like AI, there will be constant learnings and pivots so marketers have to be prepared to be flexible and stay on top of the latest learnings to ensure they’re using AI to its best and full capabilities.
Ethical Concerns:
The best practice for higher ed marketers using AI is to understand that it is just a tool; you still need to fact check, vet and make your own any of the AI tools used and that includes everything from gathering and analyzing data to developing content. AI is only as good as the inputs you give it; learn best practices for prompting to get the most out of your time.
