How Can Universities Boost Their Marketing Efforts in 2023?

What Is the State of Higher Education in 2023?

2023 has brought with it a sea of changes and challenges for higher education institutions. As the world population goes through major shifts, the pool of young university hopefuls is rapidly shrinking. This, combined with the rise in non-traditional learners dominating the higher education scene, as well as the proliferation of online learning platforms, have added considerable pressure on universities to innovate and course-correct. Therefore, the need for top-tier university marketing has become more urgent than ever before.

A great place to start is to reevaluate your processes and streamline, replace, or readjust where you must. All the marketing efforts in the world will lead to less-than-ideal results for your university if your internal systems and processes are not set up for success. This is why we have gathered a thorough processes checklist to help you identify areas for improvement. Let’s start!

8 Considerations to Help You Improve Your University Marketing Efforts in 2023

Ramping up the marketing efforts for any institution can be a daunting task. Use the list below to identify your organization’s strong points and areas where you can pivot. Once you’re ready to take the next step, we invite you to read our Creative Leadership Challenges article. In it, you will find a list of potential solutions to the challenges you may have identified through this article.

Hone In on Your Student Recruitment and Retention Strategy

Research from the World Economic Forum shows a noticeably sharp downward trend in the number of university hopefuls. A major issue particularly acute in the US, has been attributed to several global factors. Additionally, student recruitment is not the only troubling area for higher education institutions. According to the State of American Education Outcomes in 2023, completion rates currently stand at:

• 78% for four-year institutions
• 42% for two-year institutions
• 54% for certificate-granting institutions

And the numbers follow a downward pattern like the data on student recruitment. The story being told here is loud and clear:

The time is now for higher education institutions to invest in the following areas!

Resource Management, Organization, and Allocation

With multiple departments and projects vying for limited resources, it is a challenge to manage and allocate said resources effectively. You may wish to consider using the university’s strategic objectives and priorities as your compass. By doing so, you can better identify the university’s most pressing needs, and make the right decisions in accordance with the overarching vision of the organization.

Evaluate Departmental and Organizational Time-Management Effectiveness

In trying times, the resources you have available are your greatest asset. However, having all the resources in the world means little if you cannot deliver projects on time. In such cases, project management tools with a time-tracking component to them will work wonders for you. By tracking the time your staff need to complete each task, you can provide accurate project timelines and equalize how you distribute work across the organization.

Examine Departmental and Cross-Departmental Collaboration and Communication

Well-concerted efforts always yield the best results. And yet, most institutions still follow a siloed-efforts approach. In reevaluating your department and organization’s communication and collaboration processes, you must identify all instances of siloed work – and this is the easy part. Once you have an exhaustive list of all said processes, you must then initiate a cultural shift from the top down. Doing so will take time, effort, and a lot of convincing, so prepare yourself to challenge and be challenged.

Analyze Your Budget and Its Limitations

Next, look at what budget you have available, and where and how it is being spent. Use Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to determine the Return on Investment (ROI) of your marketing activities. Keep track of your budget, identify potential cost overruns, and make necessary adjustments to stay within the budget. This is easier said than done, and the difference it will make for your institution is worth the investment.

Start Providing Progress Reports to Your Colleagues and Stakeholders

Universities are often called upon to provide project updates and other types of documentation to colleagues and stakeholders. Regulatory bodies, funding partners, students, donors, suppliers, vendors, students, staff, and the list goes on. When dealing with such a plethora of audiences, it is crucial that you use systems that can generate reports quickly and accurately. Doing so will help save time and resources while keeping everyone involved aligned.

Create and Introduce Accountability to Meet Deadlines

The primary enemy in successfully managing and completing projects is twofold – a lack of accountability on one end, combined with non-adherence to deadlines on the other. To combat these, you must first introduce processes that minimize the risks involved. Then, you need to educate those involved in setting goals and deadlines for the organization and the importance of following through with them.

Evaluate, Manage the Risk of, and Measure the Success of Research Projects

Research projects come with a certain level of risk in multiple areas. The outcome of any given research project may affect a university’s finances, reputation, and operations. In approving such a project, then, you must have access to the right tools that will help you predict the risks themselves and the likelihood of them occurring for each research project. Finally, you need to measure the success of your project by tracking the metrics that will make most sense to your stakeholders.

Lytho’s Solution to Support Your University Marketing Activities in 2023

Are you ready to boost the marketing activities of your university? You’ve come to the right place, then. We at Lytho help you streamline your entire workflow and harmonize all brand collateral under a single, uniform platform. Our Creative Operations solution makes allocating and managing resources and stakeholders a breeze. Let us help you ramp up your marketing planning and efforts to ensure future success!

Feel free to reach out to us by scheduling a demo and learning how our creative solutions can boost the effectiveness of your creative projects. We look forward to speaking with you!