Social Networks andStudent Enrollment

An integrated approach

Presented by:

@andrewcareaga@MissouriSandT

#AACRAOSEMXIXNov. 8, 2009

Our goals today

What is social media? Why does it matter?Why should you use it?How can you use it?Have fun!

What is your digital IQ?

What is social media?

◦‘a shift in how people discover, read and share news, information and content’ – Wikipedia

◦user-generated content

◦‘architecture of participation’

Types of social media

NetworkingFacebookMySpaceTwitter

BloggingBloggerWordpressTypepad

BookmarkingDeliciousDiggStumbleUpon

Media sharingFlickrYouTubeSlideshare

CollaborationWikipedia

The magic behind it all: RSS

Changing channels:from mass market to social media Source: Universal McCann, When Did We Start Trusting Strangers? September 2008 (http://universalmccann.bitecp.com/strangers_report.pdf )

Changing channels:from mass market to social media Source: Universal McCann, When Did We Start Trusting Strangers? September 2008 (http://universalmccann.bitecp.com/strangers_report.pdf )

User-generated content:a brief history

How people use social media

Groundswell social media ladder

Source: Forrester Research; Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies (2008)

Graphic: Business Week, www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_24/b4038405.htm

Social media usageages 18-24Source: www.forrester.com/Groundswell/profile_tool.html

In a revolution, kings lose their heads.

… therefore, think like a peasant.Dan Forbush, founder of Profnet, 1996

Social media: the realmof the digital peasants

A few of my friends

‘Twitter is about approach, transparency and immediacy.’

Jack Dorsey, co-founder of Twitter (and Missouri S&T alum) :)

Jack Dorsey has more followers on Twitter (1,300,585) than The New York Times has subscribers (1,039,031)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8

The real digital divide:immigrants vs. natives

Preferences for learning, workingSource: Mark Prensky, “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants,” On the Horizon (MCB University Press, Vol. 9 No. 5, October 2001)

digital natives prefer digital immigrants prefer

To receive info quickly from multiple sources

Controlled release of info from limited sources

Multitasking, parallel processing Single or focused tasks

Pictures, sounds, video before text

Often prefer to receive written info

Interacting in ‘real time’ Greater need for private and personal space for introspection

Learning that is instant, relevant and fun

Info presented linearly, logically and sequentially

Hyperlinked sources, user-generated content

How teens communicate

95% spend time with friends face to face

88% talk to friends on a landline 67% talk to friends on a cell phone 65% send email to friends 61% use social networking sites 60% of online teens send instant

messages to friends 58% send text messages to friends

Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project

It’s not just teens; it’s parents

90 percent of parents use the web to select a college for their children

84 percent prefer email communication with a college or university

76 percent prefer follow-up by mail (letter, brochure)

5 percent looked at a campus’s MySpace page

Source: Circling Over Enrollment: The E-Expectations of the Parents of College-Bound Students , cited in Joe Dysart “90 percent of parents choose their kids’ colleges on the web,” TodaysCampus.com, Nov. 4, 2009

Levels of trustSource: Hobsons Domestic Research Report 2009-2010, cited by Karlyn Morissette, www.doteduguru.com, Oct. 22, 2009

Campus website

Campus visit

Viewbook

High school counselors

Social networking sites

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

H.S. seniors

H.S. juniors

H.S. sophomores

‘Trust ranking’ of recruitment efforts

The rise and fall of social media(according to mainstream media)

1. What is (insert latest social media service here)2. Why ______________ is silly3. Why ______________ is cool4. Hey, look what famous celebrity is using ___________ !5. The dark side of _______________6. ____________ doesn’t live up to its promise7. Hey, whatever happened to ____________ ?

Social networks: the big three

Aug. '08 Aug. '090

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

Time spent on social networking sites has tripled in the past yearSource: Nielsen

Facebook

MySpace

Twitter

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

92.2

64.2

20.8

Unique visitors, Aug. 09(in millions)

How do you leverage social media for student recruitment?

First, discoverwhat’s already working

What works at Missouri S&T?Highest-yielding enrollment activities

Campus visits/summer camps◦ More than 70% apply◦ About 61% enroll◦ 26% of 2009 freshmen

attended at least one summer program

Tele-counseling◦ Increases attendance at high

school visits, receptions, etc.Consistent, frequent

communicationRelationship building

Communication + relationships

Enrollment Management communications plan◦14-18 contacts or communications

per prospective student◦21-27 for minorities or women◦28-36 for minority women

Other university outreach◦Public relations activities◦Design team, alumni events◦Athletics recruitment◦Social media

3 steps to social network success

Amplify your advocate network

Listen and engage

Reach out

Amplify your networks

‘Official’ Content:News releasesblog postsvideo

Distribution:RSS to news.mst.edu,Twitter,Facebook

Redistribution: By audiences via TwitterFacebookMainstream media

Social media in S&T’s communications workflow

The power of amplification

Connect with existing networks◦Current students◦Alumni◦Prospective students

Inform themInformation leads to

involvement and engagement

# of callouts

0 200 400 600

562

161

54

3 sites

2 sites

Main site

Social web callouts:1,387 colleges/universitiesSource: BlueFuego.com, “Social Web Callouts: 6-month research,” Aug. 3, 2009

The power of amplification

Connect with existing networks◦Current students◦Alumni◦Prospective students

Inform themInformation leads to

involvement and engagement

The power of amplification

Connect with existing networks◦Current students◦Alumni◦Prospective students

Inform themInformation leads to

involvement and engagement

The power of amplification

Connect with existing networks◦Current students◦Alumni◦Prospective students

Inform themInformation leads to

involvement and engagement

The power of ampli-fication

Listen and engage

Listen and

engage

‘Something as simple as a status update that ties to an emotional time in new, current, and former students lives seems to resonate.’

Rachel Reuben, director of web communication, SUNY New Paltzdoteduguru.com blogger

What can you do with a Facebook group or fan page?

Promote eventsShare newsShare images

and videoEncourage

interaction

What can you do with a Facebook group or fan page?

Promote events

What can you do with a Facebook group or fan page?

Share news

What can you do with a Facebook group or fan page?

Share images

What can you do with a Facebook group or fan page?

Encourage interaction

What can you do with a Twitter account?

Promote events

Share newsShare images

and videoEncourage

interaction

Teens don’t Tweet?

Teens don’t Tweet?

‘[N]ow comScore tells us that kids used to hate Twitter, but they don't anymore.’Source: Dan Frommer, “Actually, kids don’t hate Twitter anymore,” BusinessInsider.com, Aug. 26, 2009

Social networks for prospective students

ZinchUnigoCappex

Internal social networks

Measurement

AudienceWho?Where do they

go? Content

What is being read?

What is of interest?

Engagement and action

Source: Jen Evans and Michael Procopio, “From Talk to Action”(sequentiaenvironics.com)

Facebook fan page audience

More insights from Facebook

Measuring content: Twitter

Measuring content: Twitter

Clicks on ‘Keister bomb’

They’re clicking, but…are they interacting?

They’re clicking, but…are they interacting?

Numbers aren’t everything

Facebook: audience engagement

Facebook: audience engagement

Facebook: audience engagementthe BlueFuego formula

A. Likes/post (as a % of fans)

B. Comments/post (as a % of fans)

Total engagement = A+B/# of fans

Analyzing social media traffic

Analyzing social media traffic

Social media guidelines

How to engage?When to engage?Who’s in charge?

Social media guidelines

First – learn about social mediaIntegrate into your existing

communications strategy◦Which tools work for you?

Collaborate – don’t competeClarify account ownershipGet necessary approvalsDefine critical vs. non-critical contentUnderstand your liability

Social media guidelines

Protect your studentsProtect your accountBe ethicalBe open (don’t try to

suppress content)And finally…

Don’t be like them

Resources: books and blogs

The Cluetrain Manifesto, Rick Levine, Christopher Locke, Doc Searles, David Weinberger (www.cluetrain.com)

Groundswell, Josh Bernoff and Charlene LiThe New Rules of Marketing and PR, David

Meerman ScottWikinomics, Don TapscottBlogs

BlogHighEd.orgCollegeWebEditor.comdoteduguru.com

Thank you!

Andrew CareagaDirector of CommunicationsMissouri University of Science and Technologyacareaga@mst.edu@andrewcareagawww.twitter.com/andrewcareagahttp://highered.prblogs.orgFind this slideshow athttp://slideshare.net/andrewcareaga