CURRENT & FUTURE EMERGING DIGITAL TRENDS IN THE LANGUAGE TRAVEL INDUSTRY. By: Schools & Agents (

Transcription

1 CURRENT & FUTURE EMERGING DIGITAL TRENDS IN THE LANGUAGE TRAVEL INDUSTRY By: Schools & Agents (

2 WHO ARE WE? Online platform where Schools and Agencies can find each other Website which disseminates news related to the language travel industry Promoting schools by sharing articles Working to facilitate digital communication amongst industry players

3 WHY FOCUS ON DIGITAL TRENDS? Many schools worldwide stick to old ways because they seem to work Schools worry about not having the resources (human or financial) to go digital BUT Using both old and newer ways of communication is the way forward

4 LET S GO BACK IN TIME, FIRST How did you communicate 25 years ago?

5 How has this changed over time?

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8 GOING DIGITAL: FACTS Studies published by ICEF Monitor in February 2016 show that digital tools are having an increasingly significant role in the searches which potential students perform when deciding which school is most suited for them. These digital tools include online platforms and directories. Tips: Stop using your resources on traditional methods and start focusing on digital ones.

9 MORE FACTS More than half (of the Agents who participated) also reported that financial diffic ulties (55%) a nd diffic ulties with la ngua ge (53%) are the main concerns for students and parents pre-departure. Personal safety and difficulty with accommodation were also noted fa irly frequently (41%) but slightly less tha n la st yea r. ICEF i-graduate Agent Barometer, Nov Tips: Use long content such as articles and blogs to keep potential clients more informed Use short content such a videos to interview existing clients about such concerns

10 FACTS: CONTINUED LACK OF DIGITAL AWARENESS IN SCHOOLS 52 member schools from around the world were questioned by IALC for Disquiet Dog and the following was found: The majority of schools admitted to not being able to keep up with digital changes. A lot of schools couldn t find the time to develop a strategy focusing on digital. Most also didn t know how to get significant ROI from digital strategies. A substantial amount of schools affirmed that VERY few workers were engaged in digital activities. Richard Bradford, Founder and MD of Disquiet Dog at the IALC Workshop, 2016 MORE DIRECT BOOKINGS: MORE ONLINE PRESENCE As part of the in-depth interviews conducted with agency representatives, the majority of agencies (60%) agree that the market will see an increased proportion of direct bookings to schools IALC Report 2016

11 GOING DIGITAL Which Countries are Shopping Online? - Dec to Jan Statistics: We Are Social Report 2016 OVER 70% - UK, Germany & South Korea OVER 60% - USA, France, UAE, Australia & Canada OVER 50% - Spain, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, Argentina, Poland & Malaysia OVER 40% - Italy, Russia, Turkey, Brazil, China, Thailand & Saudi Arabia OVER 30% - Vietnam & Mexico OVER 20% - Philippines, Indonesia, South Africa & India ALL OF THESE COUNTRIES REQUIRE THE CONVENIENCE OF SHOPPING ONLINE. IS YOUR SCHOOL EQUIPPED FOR THIS?

12 HOW CAN A SCHOOL GO DIGITAL? Social Media: to build new networks & maintain existing ones Website: to inform potential/existing clients & facilitate the purchasing process

13 HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW SOCIAL MEDIA?

14 TOP SOCIAL MEDIA (300 MILLION + USERS) Statistics: We Are Social Report Facebook: 1,590 m. 4. QZone: 653 m. 7. Instagram: 400 m. 2. QQ: 860 m. 5. WeChat: 650 m. 8. Twitter: 320 m. 3. Facebook Messenger: 800 m. 6. Tumblr: 555 m. 9.Skype: 300 m. 9. Baidu: 300 m.

15 OTHER SOCIAL CHANNELS ( MILLION USERS) Sina Weibo: China Zalo: Vietnam Google+: International Taringa: Latin America Mixi: Japan LinkedIn: International Line: Japan/Taiwan/ Thailand/Indonesia Kakaostory: Korea

16 Facebook: THE MOST USED SOCIAL CHANNEL Create a school PAGE / GROUP NOT Profile Tag, Link & Boost Post short and long content REGULARLY

17 LINKEDIN LinkedIn is more used to find agents, as opposed to direct clients LinkedIn school page LinkedIn group Post Longer Content regularly

18 TWITTER Tweet Regularly Tag & Link Look out for IMPRESSIONS Short Content i.e. pictures Follow & Watch Competition

19 YOUTUBE How Can You Increase Video Content For Your School? Student Testimonials - Videos make them more realistic School Video - A more interactive introduction to your school Live Feeds - Taken from lessons or activities Video is the Future of Content Marketing

20 Use Social Insights Insights & Analytics give you: 1. Explanations as to why financial resources are allocated to digital strategies 2. A better understanding of what resonates with your target audience 3. A clear idea of who your audience is 1. Facebook Reach 3. LinkedIn Followers 2. Twitter Overview

21 WEBSITE IMPROVEMENT Include S kype / IM as means of communication (not everyone likes to pick up the phone!) C ontent - Clear, Simple, Comprehensive Include a website Blog - you ca n even get students to do it Keywords to improve S EO - you can find these keywords by using Google Analytics This should really help to start getting more requests from students and agents!

22 What happens when many more students sta rt a sking for quotes? Dealing with direct students can sometimes be very time consuming - so how can we be more efficient? Again, digital tools are the way forward here!

23 Software that is integrated on the school s website and Facebook page Creates Sales Leads from the school s Website and Facebook page Data feed into the school s CRM system - to manage customer relations CourseQuote Generates Branded Quotes within 1 minute, which are sent directly to the student s inbox It can be used with agents as well to facilitate their job and get them to generate your school quotes more efficiently

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25 Try it out yourselves NOW! Go to:

26 Thank you!

27 We are here to answer your questions!