In enrollment management, understanding student behavior is crucial. Behavioral data encompasses everything a student consciously or implicitly reveals—demographics, geography, and their digital footprint all contribute to this valuable information.
Within platforms like Slate, this data becomes instrumental in shaping strategies for targeted communications, informed decision-making for counselors, and logistical planning for travel schedules.
Navigating the myriad of enrollment management services available can be daunting. It’s a challenge to discern which ones will truly enhance efficiency without bogging down processes. Slate stands out as a comprehensive solution, offering a streamlined approach to managing enrollment and data needs in one centralized platform.
In conversations with our partner institutions and within the Slate community, a common question arises: “Can Slate do this?”
More often than not, the answer is a resounding yes. Whether unlocking untapped potential within Slate or optimizing the workflow of various processes, Slate proves itself to be a versatile ally.
When analyzing the behavioral data of prospective students, it often feels like pulling at strings. Consider the differing needs of students from urban versus rural settings—each group presents unique challenges and opportunities. Yet, how much insight can you glean from prospects who have yet to raise their hand?
Tracking and interpreting data within Slate allows institutions to delve deeper into prospect behaviors. Even seemingly minor actions, such as a student’s interactions with your digital assets, can provide valuable insights into a student’s interests and intentions.
Targeted Communications
Amidst evolving privacy measures affecting email open rates, leveraging Ping data emerges as a more reliable alternative. Ping data essentially signals a student’s engagement and interest with certain content.
Whether they’re exploring club offerings or scholarship opportunities on your website, these actions convey preferences that can inform subsequent communications strategies.
Slate empowers institutions to not just gather data, but to harness it effectively. From understanding behaviors to refining outreach efforts, Ping data can serve as a pivotal tool in your enrollment management efforts.
Slate is more than just a platform; it’s a partner in navigating the complexities of student engagement and decision-making. Rather than waiting for your counselors to be notified of a student’s engagement with a web page, Slates features allow you to automatically send them the most relevant communications.
Ping data allows institutions to craft highly personalized campaigns tailored to individual student interests and behaviors. For instance, students engaging with financial aid information on your website likely have distinct needs compared to those exploring study abroad options.
Central to this approach is the ability to maintain an arsenal of communication messages from various campus stakeholders. When a student interacts with your platform—whether through browsing pages, clicking links, or submitting inquiries—it’s crucial to have precisely targeted follow-up messages ready to send.
This proactive approach ensures that every interaction is met with relevant and timely communication, enhancing the likelihood of meaningful and informed decision-making by the student.
By harnessing Ping data effectively, institutions can not only understand but also respond to the diverse needs and preferences of their prospective student base.
Informed Decision-Making for Counselors
While well-crafted and templated emails serve their purpose in conveying an institution’s message, it’s counselors who engage with students daily that truly make a difference. Personalized messages from counselors carry significant weight and resonate deeply with prospective students.
Counselors possess the ability to establish genuine connections and effectively communicate with students, moving beyond the sometimes impersonal nature of automated inquiry or application generation emails. A personal touch is invaluable in fostering trust and understanding.
However, the effectiveness of these interactions hinges on having access to informed data. Details such as a student’s timeline in Slate—a snapshot of their application progress or engagement history—provide counselors with crucial insights to guide their next steps.
Additionally, Ping data, past interactions through calls or texts, and event registration offer further context that enables counselors to tailor their messages precisely. By leveraging this data effectively, counselors can craft messages that resonate with students on a personal level, addressing their current concerns and interests.
A personalized approach to prospect and inquiry communication builds a supportive and responsive environment for future students navigating their educational journey.
While technology facilitates communication, it’s the human touch empowered by data that truly drives meaningful connections and student success.
Logistical Travel Planning
When it comes to strategic travel planning in enrollment management, understanding the engagement levels of specific regions and institutions is paramount.
Slate’s Voyager tool plays a pivotal role in this process by offering a geospatial representation of data. This tool integrates various datasets such as American Community Survey (ACS) data, historical enrollment figures, and event attendance records, among others.
By visualizing this blended data on a map, distinct clusters emerge, revealing patterns and concentrations of prospective student activity. These clusters are invaluable in informing travel decisions, allowing institutions to pinpoint areas where engagement is high and potential interest is ripe.
For instance, Voyager enables enrollment managers to identify regions where there’s a significant demographic of prospective students, areas with historically strong enrollment from previous years, or locales where events and outreach have garnered substantial interest.
Such insights empower institutions to allocate resources effectively, focusing travel efforts on areas with the highest potential for recruitment success.
Slate’s Voyager tool transforms raw data into actionable insights, enabling enrollment teams to make informed decisions that maximize their outreach and recruitment efforts.
By leveraging geospatial data visualization, institutions can optimize their travel planning strategies and enhance their overall enrollment management strategies.
How Can The Parish Group Help?
At The Parish Group, our Slate team is more than IT; they’re enrollment managers with decades of experience in higher ed. In building and optimizing instances, we utilize that background and strategy.
As a Slate Preferred Partner, we are always looking for the best ways to maximize your instance and each of its features. With Slate’s complex web of tools, the centralized platform can often do more than we think. It’s just about asking the question “Can Slate do this?”
TPG is here to say yes!
If you’re ready to see how Slate can be a centralized platform for your enrollment management needs, give us a shout at success@parishgroup.com or call our office at 828.505.3000.
Together we do BIG Things.
