The Art of Marketing Faculty-led Programs

NW Symposium on International Faculty-Led Programs | April 2017

Overview of session

3:00pm: Introduction

3:30pm: Panelists

3:45pm: Small group discussion

4:15/30: Sharing key take-aways, session wrap up

5pm: PDX Ed Abroad Happy Hour!

Introduction - CISabroad

• Semester, Summer, Internship and Custom Programs

• Run more than 60, completely customized faculty-led programs annually all over the world (every continent but Antarctica!)

• We provide logistical, risk management and budget support for faculty-led programs to over 100 institutions nationwide

• ...so we have a lot of experience seeing what works (and what doesn’t) when it comes to successfully recruiting students to fill a program!

Jamie HammondManager of Faculty-Led

Programs, CISabroad

Challenges of Marketing FLPs

• “It’s not my job”• “I don’t have enough time for this”• “I wouldn’t even know where to start!”• “I’m not comfortable with the term ‘marketing’ - I’m not

selling a car!”• “All my students said they were interested, but only three

actually paid deposits!”• “I scheduled an info session and no one showed up”

What does the Open Doors data tell us?

Step 1: Setting yourself up for success• Before you even begin marketing, is this a viable program?

• Does your program go somewhere where students WANT to go?

• Are you setting realistic enrollment goals based on location, campus size and demographics?

• How many majors do you have?

• Is it a required course? Will it contribute to a minor?

• Is your course competing with any others abroad?

• What is a realistic goal for your program?

• If 20% of students in your dept. tend to go abroad, and there are only 75 students in your dept, 25 may not be a reasonable target enrollment!

• Keep attrition rates in mind!

• Understand/communicate the program approval process

Marketing is NOT a “dirty” word!

https://www.act-on.com/blog/smart-agencies-dont-neglect-the-middle-and-bottom-of-the-marketing-funnel/

YOUR GOAL:

Get the word out!

Get students interested

Keep their interest

Get them to apply

Get them to commit to the program, and go abroad!

GO!

Sample #s:

500

200

100

20

10

Marketing: what works?• Adopt a marketing mindset. And start early.

• Talk about it all. the. time.

• Focus on the experience, not price

• Create a sense of urgency

• Follow up consistently with your interested students (leads)

• Frame the conversation positively• Redesigned info session

• Motivated and available faculty leader• 8 out of 10 students tell us they chose to go on a program because of the faculty leader!

• Talk about it…all the time…7x marketing. Did I already mention this?

What else works?

• Create a platform for past and current applicants to connect• Consider starting a facebook group to keep them engaged

• Give returning students the tools to talk about their program• Use their millennial expertise to help promote! I guarantee they have more photos and videos

than you, and they’re already making short films...ask one of them to make one or two 30 second “commercials”!

• Utilize your ed abroad partner orgs!

• Articulate the value of study abroad• 97% of study abroad students found employment within 12 months of graduating (double that of

the average student)

• 90% of study abroad alumni who applied got into their 1st or 2nd choice for graduate schools

• Faculty leader?

• Academic department?

• Study abroad office?

• Int’l ed org partner (“providers”)?

• It varies!

• We see everything across the spectrum; the best success comes when the faculty leader is engaged in promotion and working hand-in-hand with the study abroad office

• Collaborate - use each other as resources!

Whose job is this, anyways?

Today’s Panelists

Teela FoxworthProfessor of

Communication Studies, PCC

Richard WhiteProfessor of Urban

Studies, Portland State University

Jennifer HamlowDirector of Education

Abroad, Portland State University

Let’s Discuss!1) How are faculty-led programs marketed on your campus? What is the division of responsibilities between faculty leaders, study/ed abroad offices, other departments? Are expectations clearly defined?

2) What on campus resources do you utilize to conduct successful outreach to students?

3) If you work with providers, how have you utilized their resources to successfully market programs? And, providers, what ideas have successfully promoted programming on campuses?

4) When marketing your program, what has worked particularly well (or NOT worked well!) in the past?

Keys to Success

• No matter the institution, you need:• A clear a division of roles• Knowledge of and access to resources• To articulate the value• Engaged faculty• Realistic expectations• DATA!

Thank you!

Interested in receiving a copy of today’s presentation and take-aways? Contact: jhammond@cisabroad.com

Thank you!