6 Key Issues in Higher Ed PPC Ads
While PPC advertising offers numerous advantages, higher education marketers face unique challenges in attracting and converting leads. Understanding the complexities of the student decision-making journey is key to overcoming these obstacles.
This article explores common hurdles and strategies to optimize your ad campaigns.
1. Misunderstanding the student decision-making journey
A successful campaign offers real value to prospective students. However, creating effective ads goes beyond understanding basic demographics.
The decision-making process incorporates a range of factors—location, tuition, cost of living, academic reputation, campus culture, and post-graduation opportunities. These elements combine to create a more complex decision-making process.
To ensure your ads resonate with students, address their specific needs at each stage of the journey.
2. Failing to adapt ads to the academic calendar
The academic calendar has a significant impact on student priorities throughout the year. Ads that worked well during the spring may be irrelevant by the summer or fall. For instance, students considering summer classes have different needs than those planning for the upcoming semester or looking at post-graduation options.
Adapting your ads to reflect these changing priorities is crucial. This means running different campaigns at different times of the year, focusing on specific student needs and the time-sensitive nature of academic planning. Neglecting these nuances means missing valuable opportunities to engage with your audience.
3. Overlooking the retargeting of accepted students
A common mistake in higher ed PPC is not retargeting students who have been accepted but haven’t yet enrolled.
Many students apply to several institutions and weigh their options after receiving acceptance letters. Admittance doesn’t guarantee attendance, so touchpoints with undecided students are essential.
This is the perfect time for retargeting efforts.
Personalized emails, exclusive promotions, and tailored ad campaigns can help reinforce your institution’s value and keep students engaged. Highlight unique aspects of your school that may sway their final decision, whether it’s a strong alum network, specialized programs, or campus events.
Until a student officially enrolls, they remain in the decision-making stage, so focusing your marketing efforts on this group can help seal the deal.
4. Struggling to optimize campaigns effectively
Launching an ad campaign is only the beginning. To see results, you must continuously optimize your campaigns to attract the right audience and convert leads.
This requires ongoing monitoring, testing, and refining of your strategies. For example, adjusting bid strategies, testing different ad creatives, and using match types and negative keywords can dramatically improve targeting and reduce unnecessary costs.
The challenge lies in having the time and expertise to optimize campaigns regularly. Many in-house teams are stretched thin and don’t have the resources to review and adjust ads constantly.
Digital marketing specialists, on the other hand, handle these tasks efficiently and have the experience to make the necessary adjustments quickly. By dedicating time to campaign optimization, you’ll achieve better results and a higher return on investment.
5. Navigating compliance issues
Compliance issues are a significant challenge for many higher education marketers. Different ad platforms have strict policies that must be followed, particularly regarding trademarked terms. If your ads rely on branded keywords but you don’t have the proper permissions, your campaign’s reach could be severely limited.
To avoid these issues, stay current with platform-specific policies and seek permission where necessary. Being proactive and understanding the rules help avoid disruptions that could halt campaigns.
6. Difficulty in tracking conversions
Attributing leads to specific marketing activities is critical for optimizing PPC campaigns. However, accurately tracking conversions is often easier said than done. If tools like Google Tag Manager aren’t configured correctly, essential actions like form submissions won’t be tracked correctly. This issue arises from incorrect tag setup, browser cookie restrictions, or ad-blockers.
To avoid this, it’s essential that Google Tag Manager (GTM) is set up correctly and tested regularly. Additionally, using advanced analytics tools helps capture more comprehensive data, allowing for better attribution and more informed campaign adjustments.
Conclusion: Overcoming PPC obstacles to boost enrollment
Higher education marketing requires a strategic approach to navigate its unique challenges.
Schools overcome obstacles and improve enrollment rates by understanding the student decision-making process, adapting ads to the academic calendar, retargeting accepted students, and continuously optimizing campaigns. Addressing compliance issues and accurately tracking conversions ensures that marketing efforts deliver value at every stage of the student journey, leading to better engagement and higher conversion rates.
Ready to boost your enrollment numbers with expert PPC strategies?
Contact the team at Perfect Search Media today to fix these issues and turn your higher education campaigns into an enrollment success!