Even before the COVID-19 pandemic pushed many universities online, there was a growing trend of students opting for online learning. Now, in our post-pandemic new normal, many colleges are continuing to embrace different learning modalities, from on-campus to online and hybrid.
But while the degree names might be the same, marketing for on-campus and online students can’t be a one-size-fits-all approach. Online students have specific needs, and connecting with them requires a tailored strategy both in terms of messaging and targeting.
Portrait of an online student
Before you market to online students, you need to know more about them. Who are online students? Today, just about everybody.
That’s not an exaggeration: stats from 2023 show that over half of students were enrolled in online courses, whether exclusively or alongside their on-campus classes. This year, more U.S. college students will learn entirely online than completely in-person.
But even with the ubiquity of online learning, there are still a few things many undergraduate online learners have in common:
- They skew slightly older than traditional-age college students, around their late 20s on average
- They’re more likely to be women
- About half are working full-time
- About half are raising children
- The majority live in the suburbs
- Most enroll in a college within their residential state
- The majority are looking for a new career that makes them more money or better aligns with their interests
- The vast majority know what career they plan to pursue before enrolling
What online students want
Whether on campus or online, prospects aren’t just looking for a degree—they’re looking for an experience.
When marketing to traditional prospects, you don’t just talk about your academic offerings. You mention the campus, student life, faculty expertise, and student resources. You help prospects imagine their experience and picture themselves as members of your campus community. This inspires loyalty that can stay with them throughout their academic career; a student who feels supported and engaged is more likely to stay and graduate.
In my time working as a digital content specialist for online programming at a large university, we found this to be true of online students as well. Online students loved seeing images of campus in our marketing and social media posts. We created a 360° virtual tour and admitted students who received links to the tour in their welcome package were more likely to enroll. Online students I interviewed were proud to be members of the university community and felt a real connection to the institution. They weren’t just in it for a degree. They were in it for the experience.
Show your value—and embrace your prospects’ value
Of course, the academic experience is still important. And online students want to know their degree is worth both the price and time investment.
But while student outcomes and career prospects are important, you don’t just need to prove that an online degree from your institution is valuable. You need to prove that online students are valuable to you. That means making sure your institution is ready to offer the resources online students need to succeed.
In practice, that can look like offering services like tutoring, library resources, academic advising, and even counseling to online students. Make these services easy to find and accessible on your website and mention them in your marketing materials. You’ll not only justify your price, but will show that your institution has online students’ wellbeing in mind.
How to find them
So, you know what online students want and have built a program and resources that cater to them. Great! Now the real challenge begins: creating a marketing strategy that gets your message in front of the right audience.
At Paskill, we work with Southern California University of Health Sciences (SCU), Central Penn College, and Point Park University (PPU) to do exactly that.
Targeting niche prospects across the country
SCU offers highly specialized online health science programs that cater to a niche, national audience. To find these prospects, we planned and executed a digital media strategy using paid search, display, social, and retargeting tactics. By monitoring, testing, and organizing all the data going in and out of their CRM and media platform, we’re able to ensure our campaigns are targeting higher-quality students who are likely to inquire and enroll at SCU.
Shifting to adult learners and programmatic marketing
Central Penn College promotes career-driven programs to prospects in the Mid-Atlantic region. To compete in a changing marketplace, they shifted their focus from traditional college students to adult learners. We launched a programmatic marketing campaign that tailors our targeting for each individual program. A custom dashboard helps us monitor performance data and get insights into not just our media efforts, but the strengths and weaknesses of Central Penn’s academic offerings.
Exploring new channels for online program marketing
PPU needed specialized expertise in marketing their online and hybrid programs, spanning undergraduate through doctoral degrees. We manage and optimize PPU’s campaigns on a weekly basis across LinkedIn, Meta, and Google, looking for opportunities to increase lead volume and quality. We’re always on the lookout to explore emerging channels and recently expanded our reach through a successful test campaign on Reddit.
