Everything you need to convert more students online | 2024

Everything you need to convert more students online | 2024

Oct 8, 2023

Matt Gemi

Yellow chairs in a stage
Yellow chairs in a stage

If you're a college or university, then it's likely that you've got plenty of new students every year who need to be convinced to sign up for your courses.

You might have thousands of potential students out there who aren't yet sure about enrolling with you - and even if you do get them to sign up, you need them involved in their courses as much as possible.

So how can you convert more students online? Well, the answer is simple: if you can create a great product or service that students want, and then tell them about it in a way that makes sense to them, then they're going to follow through on what they've committed themselves to doing.

Use the right voice for your school

Your school's voice is unique. It should reflect the mission and culture of your institution, as well as be consistent with your brand. Here are some guidelines:

  • Don't use a generic voice. A "one size fits all" approach is rarely effective in marketing, especially when it comes to content creation. If you want students (or potential students!) to read what you have written about yourself or your school, then make sure it sounds like something that would come out of an actual person's mouth--not just some random person who has never been near higher education before!

  • Don't use too much slang or colloquialisms if they aren't part of who we are at our core as an institution; if they do fit our personality though then go ahead and experiment with them! Just don't go overboard on trying new things because there may be unintended consequences associated with doing so (like losing credibility).

Create a clear offer 

One of the most important things you can do is make sure that your product is clear, easy to understand and well-presented. You should also be honest about what you're offering, why it's worth paying for and how it will help students.

You can use case studies (e.g., testimonials from students who have used your products) as well as short videos or other visuals to demonstrate how effective your course has been in helping others achieve their goals.

For example: "Our 'How To Write An Essay' course has been used by over 10k students worldwide since we launched it in 2016! Our average student score on essay exams increased by 5% after taking this course."

Find out what your students want

The best way to create a service that will convert more students is to find out what your students want, then create a service that delivers it.

You can do this in several ways:

  • Ask them. If you have an email list, send out an email asking them what their top three goals are for learning languages and/or improving their language skills. If not, ask at conferences or events where you meet your target audience (e.g., language learners). Create a unique learning experience for your students. You might also want to include this question as part of your marketing strategy (see below).

Use case studies

Case studies are a great way to show the benefits of your service, and they don't have to be perfect. If you have time constraints and can't get access to all the information you need (like student grades or specific course details), don't worry about it! Just use whatever data you have available.

You don't need to worry about competition either--even if there are other schools using your platform in their courses, that doesn't mean yours won't convert well too. In fact, it might even help! The more people see something working well for someone else, the more likely they'll want it for themselves as well.

Follow marketing trends

  • Have a clear idea of what your product or service is.

  • Offer a free trial or demo.

  • Make webinars.

  • Show how it works in action.

  • Focus on online marketing.

  • Work with an agency.

  • Use case studies to show how it works, and screenshots and videos if possible (e.g., "Here's what our student said about us when they were asked how we helped them get their career back on track").

Follow A/B Testing

  • Test different landing pages, headlines and CTAs (call-to-actions) for different online programs.

  • Test a variety of CTAs with different wording. For example: "Register Now" vs. "Get Started Today." Or if you have an offer in place, test out a different offer to see what gets more conversions.

Conclusion

If you can create a great product or service that students want, and then tell them about it in a way that makes sense to them, then you'll convert more of them online.

Students are busy and they don't have time to read long content. Allow students to find a quick answer, not a long explanation. Students want the information they need NOW--not tomorrow or next week!

Students are also pretty sceptical when it comes to buying something online because they've been scammed before (and who hasn't?). So when they see an advertisement on Facebook or Instagram from someone claiming they can help with their homework problems or improve their grades by using some kind of new app...they might think twice before hitting "subscribe" on your email list!

Now that you have all the tools to convert more students online, it's time to get started. The most important thing is to remember that this is a long-term process and not something that happens overnight. You need to build up trust with your audience over time - so don't be discouraged if things don't work out right away!

black and white photo of a microphone
black and white photo of a microphone

Matt Gemi

When I’m not busy transforming the digital landscape at Urest, you can find me attempting to perfect my coffee brewing skills or passionately debating the merits of pineapple on pizza. With a knack for turning data into dazzling insights, I’m here to sprinkle some marketing magic into your day—one blog post at a time!