Online Marketing. Detailed Assessment Report

Transcription

1 Online Marketing Detailed Assessment Report Mission / Purpose The mission of the Office of Marketing and Public Relations for Online Programs is to increase enrollment-domestic and international-in The University of West Alabama's graduate and undergraduate online academic programs. This will be accomplished within a framework that contributes to the financial well-being of the institution while increasing awareness and enhancing the positive image of both the Online Programs and the University as a whole. The office influences enrollment by increasing awareness of the unique advantages of the University's Online Programs among target audiences. Several strategies are employed, including, but not limited to, traditional and digital advertising, media relations, public relations, referrals, and direct contact. Because the way people communicate and receive communications is constantly changing, the office is prepared to adapt to meet the communications needs of its target audiences. I. Goals and Outcomes/Objectives, with Any Related Measures, Targets, Findings, and Action Plans A. Goal: Address major educational issues Address the major educational, social, cultural, and economic issues of the region and in doing so promote a positive image of the Institution and the area. 1. Objective: Public and media relations Continually increase awareness among all internal and external audiences about the quality and uniqueness of UWA's Online Programs and their importance to the future of the university. a. Measure: Develop media plan Develop a plan to use traditional and social media to promote stories about UWA's Online Programs, faculty, and students. 3 press releases or stories about Online Programs, faculty, and/or students will be developed by September 30, 2013, and sent to appropriate traditional media sources and used on UWA's social media outlets. More than three press releases and stories about Online Programs were developed and shared with traditional and social media. B. Goal: Improve UWA's financial status Improve UWA's financial status by increasing its efforts at productivity and by seeking additional funding from public and private sources. 1. Objective: Evaluate current marketing/recruitment Evaluate the current marketing and recruitment materials and efforts, including message, brand, placement, and effectiveness of all existing Online marketing materials; advertising; and communications and marketing processes. Page 1 of 7

2 a. Measure: Revise existing materials Revise existing and/or develop new materials that better highlight and market the distinctiveness of UWA's Online Programs. Have new print brochures for the master's degree programs and bachelor's degree programs produced by September 30, New brochures were completed in early spring b. Measure: Pursue digital advertising Pursue online digital advertising opportunities through social and digital media to drive prospective students to the website. Begin placing advertising through digital media such as Facebook, websites, and electronic newsletters by May 31, Advertising was placed through digital media in spring and summer c. Measure: Launch campaign Launch a consistent and strategic marketing and recruiting campaign as a more effective way to communicate with prospective Online students. Begin using as a part of the marketing and recruiting strategy by May 1, campaigns were initiated in spring 2013 and are now a major part of the recruiting strategy. 2. Objective: Improve Online Programs website Develop a more comprehensive and customer-friendly web presence for the Online Programs. a. Measure: Materials to web Migrate all Online publications and materials to the Online web page. Have all Online publications and materials on the web by August 30, Findings ( ) - Target: Not Met Staff was not able to accomplish this goal because of office restructuring. 3. Action Plan: Online website enhancement Adding the online publications to the Online Programs website is part of a new plan to completely enhance the entire Online Programs web presence and is under consideration. Established in Cycle: Implementation Status: Terminated Priority: High Implementation Description: It was determined that the website needed to be Page 2 of 7

3 enhanced before the publications could be put on the website, and this will occur once this enhancement is complete. Responsible Person/Group: Bill Wagnon and Lisa Compton Implementation Notes: 9/23/2013 This cannot be accomplished until the overall UWA website is redeveloped. b. Measure: Online programs on web front Pursue a more visible and meaningful presence for the Online Programs on the front of the university's website. Have the Online Programs promoted with one of the main rotating photos or one of the bottom four anchor icons on by May 31, Findings ( ) - Target: Partially Met Requests for Online Programs to have a greater presence on the University's main webpage have not been completed by the responsible office. 3. Action Plan: Additional requests for greater Online Programs presence A meeting will be held with the responsible office as soon as possible to again discuss if Online Programs can have a great presence on the university's website. Established in Cycle: Implementation Status: Finished Priority: High Projected Completion Date: 09/06/2013 Responsible Person/Group: Bill Wagnon Implementation Notes: 9/23/2013 This was accomplished. 3. Objective: Alumni involvement Develop a vibrant and active Online alumni network that builds pride among alumni of Online Programs and encourages their involvement in recruiting prospective Online students. a. Measure: Begin alumni communications Begin communications with all Online alumni via and social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter). Send initial communication to 100 percent of Online alumni with valid addresses by August 30, Initial to 100 percent of alumni was accomplished in May Objective: Enhance Online request form Enhance the Online Information Request form on the website so that it captures more pertinent data to assist in developing future marketing efforts. a. Measure: Enhance Online request form Enhance the "Online Request Form" on the website so that it captures more pertinent data to assist in developing future marketing efforts. Page 3 of 7

4 Online request form will be updated by May 31, This form was updated in spring 2013 with continual updates scheduled by August 31, Objective: Evaluate lead/referral communication Evaluate the effectiveness of the university's current communication processes with referrals and inquiries of prospective Online students. a. Measure: Develop coordinated communication plan Develop a more coordinated and effective communication plan for immediate and meaningful follow-up to all referrals and inquiries of prospective students for the Online Programs. A coordinated and effective plan for communicating with referrals and leads of prospective students will be in place by March 1, A coordinated and effective plan for communicating with referrals and leads of prospective students was accomplished by February Objective: Prospect tracking Implement a system for tracking prospect students to the Online Programs. a. Measure: Datatel Recruiter Datatel Recruiter will be secured to track inquiries, referrals, and applications of prospective students of the Online Programs. Both office personnel will be trained on using Datatel Recruiter by August 31, Findings ( ) - Target: Not Met Office personnel were not trained in the use of Datatel Recruiter. 3. Action Plan: Datatel Recruiter Training Office personnel will be trained in the use of Datatel Recruiter in fall At the request of Datatel personnel, the scheduled training was delayed due to implementation of the on-campus recruiting portion of the system. Established in Cycle: Implementation Status: Finished Priority: High Implementation Description: Datatel consultants will return to campus to train Online Programs personnel. Projected Completion Date: 11/29/2013 Implementation Notes: 9/23/2013 This training has occurred. II. Analysis Questions and Analysis Answers A. What specific strengths did your assessments show? (Strengths) The ability to gather and analyze data to determine trends in online recruiting and enrollment. Page 4 of 7

5 The ability to achieve results using targeted marketing campaigns. The ability to use data to develop fluid marketing and communications plans, to enhance publications, and to improve travel to be more efficient. The ability to use key indicators to influence and improve the data received on prospective students. B. What specific weaknesses or challenges did your assessments show? (Weaknesses) The lack of the ability to pull certain data at times was problematic, but can be solved. The tremendous increase in competition from other online programs is a challenge. The University's tuition costs for online programs are much higher than the tuition of competitors. The lack of new degree offerings outside of education is a challenge. UWA's lack of name awareness outside the local region is an issue. Only having one full-time recruiter makes it difficult to recruit competitively. The online marketing director was moved to a new position making it difficult to work in both areas. C. What plans were implemented? The entire marketing/recruitment plan, including materials, was evaluated and new materials developed. Online digital advertising and marketing opportunities were pursued and used. Social media was implemented to communicate about the online programs and to prospective and current students. campaigns targeting specific degrees to specific people and geographic areas were implemented. The process for capturing and using information on prospective students was greatly enhanced, including the communications with these individuals. The media relations efforts for promoting online program successes were greatly enhanced. The way the office uses conferences to recruit students was streamlined and made more effective. D. What plans were not implemented? The use of Datatel Recruiter enrollment management software was not implemented. The overhaul of the online portion of the UWA website did not get accomplished. The plan to get more information about online programs on the front of the UWA website was not achieved. E. How will assessment results be used for continuous improvement? The office will use the assessment results to continue to seek ways to increase undergraduate and graduate online enrollments. The office will use the assessment results to find ways to continually provide the best customer service possible and the most efficient admissions processing possible. The assessment also will be used to gauge progress from year to year. III. Annual Report Section Responses A. Key Achievements The new Director of Marketing and Public Relations for Online Programs began employment October 29, 2012, and the newly created position of Online Recruitment Specialist began employment on November 5, Accomplishments since that time include: Page 5 of 7

6 Developed action steps and action items as a precursor for a new marketing plan for Online Programs and presented these action steps and plans to the Dean's Council and the President's Council. Began re-imaging the print publications for Online Programs. Completed changes to the undergraduate brochure and submitted copy for a new Online Viewbook to the Print Shop. Began re-imaging the radio and television advertisements for Online Programs to better sell the benefits of online education at UWA. Developed the tentative travel schedule (conferences, schools, industry, military bases, etc.) for the Online Recruitment Specialist for calendar year Developed a new plan for communicating with and engaging alumni of the Online Programs, especially through use of . Developed and began implementation of a new plan for communicating with referrals and inquiries from prospective online students (which will be further enhanced in the future by Datatel Recruiter). Reviewed the Online Programs Web pages and developed a plan for building a comprehensive, dynamic and customer-friendly Web presence for Online Programs. This includes working with Dr. Amy Jones and her Television Production course on video content for the Web pages. Inquiry forms on the Web pages already have been enhanced and work is under way now on improving the application for admission to Online Programs. Began development of a new advertising campaign that will be more focused in the beginning on digital advertising. Held initial meeting with Datatel representatives to begin implementation of the Datatel Recruiting prospective student tracking and communication tool into the Online Programs student recruiting and marketing process. Initiated discussions with three professional marketing firms as part of the process of seeking consultation and assistance in growing UWA's online enrollment through direct contact with potential students and digital marketing. Began enhancing the social media presence of Online Programs, including the first Twitter account for UWAOnline and the first LinkedIn account. Developed a relationship with the executive director of the area Economic Development Authority for potential joint promotion of UWA's online academic programs to area businesses. Greatly streamlined travel to conferences and the ways in which UWA representatives recruit at conferences. New partnerships were pursued such as with the Alabama Fire College and Demopolis High School, among others. An initiative to recruit students in Turkey was launched. A new Military Recruitment Initiative was begun to increase UWA's "military friendly" status. UWA received the first Integrity Excellence Certification for its use of the Remote Proctor. UWA was again named the Military Friendly Schools Designation by Victory Media. Bill Wagnon and Lisa Compton did a presentation at the Online Faculty Retreat to encourage their help in recruiting students. Targeted campaigns using website landing pages were launched and resulted in increases in applications. Lisa Compton worked with the new dean of online programs on a "90-Day Plan" for the new leadership. B. Staff Achievements Lisa Compton and Bill Wagnon participated in a "Keys to Marketing Online Programs" webinar to learn how other institutions are reaching prospective online students Page 6 of 7

7 Lisa Compton and Bill Wagnon participated in a "Creating an Ideal Marketing Plan for Your Online School" webinar presented by Todd Zipper, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of LearningHouse: Your Online Education Partner. Lisa Compton used Tegrity video to address the Online Programs Faculty Retreat in August. Lisa Compton completed an online course so that she would have the experience to help recruit future online students. Bill Wagnon was named Dean of Admissions and Enrollment Management and charged with reorganizing all undergraduate/graduate and on-campus/online recruiting, admissions, marketing, and retention under one umbrella. Page 7 of 7

8 Planning and Assessment Approval Department or Division: Online Marketing Chair or Director: Mr. Bill Wagnon Dean or Vice President: Dr. David Goals are broad statements describing what the nnit wants to accomplish. Goals relate to both the unit's mission and the University's mission. The goal(s) is stated as the University goal(s) a unit is attempting to meet. Outcomes and objectives are statements that describe in some detail what the unit plans to accomplish. Outcomes/objectives are associated with all applicable goals, strategic plans, standards, and institutional priorities. Objectives are active-verb descriptions of specific points or tasks the unit will accomplish or reach. Outcomes are active-verb descriptions of a desired end result related to student learning and the unit's mission. I Measures Measures are statements to judge success in achieving the stated outcome or objective. Measures contain information on the type of evidence and assessment tool that a unit will use to verify if stated outcome/objective has been met. Achievement Targets Achievement targets are the thresholds that the measures must meet for the unit to determine that it has been successful in meeting its specified outcomes/objectives. Achievement targets are measurable statements.

9 Findings Findings are indications whether an outcome/objective was met or not. Findings are put into the system under each achievement target. Findings include an interpretation of results, possible uses of results, reflection on problems encountered, indicated improvements/changes and strengths or weakness. Action Plans Action plans are detailed plans created by the unit to meet an outcome/objective that was only partially met or not met or to make improvement to those outcomes/objectives that were met but still need some strengthening. The plan includes a projected completion date, implementation description, responsible person(s)/group, resources required, and budget amount (if applicable). :_ Action plans created in previous cycles have been updated with implementation notes. Annual Report The Annual Report section contains information on key achievements, faculty and/or staff achievements, and community/public. I The unit has on and created narratives for each of the following areas: specific strengths and progress made on outcomes/objectives, specific weaknesses or challenges, plans that were and were not implemented, and how assessment resnlts will be used for continuous improvement. App roved by: Received by OlE:,, -r fd""""'r 0ice Jfsid.,.r_ Signature o '"" r{ijv' ~.JJ- Sigfia ~ ator of P ~ g and Assessment 3 Date:-~,--..!......:.. _ Date: h /1/JI 3 I I