Many college admissions teams are seeing substantially more applications each year, but the rise in applications doesn’t necessarily lead to higher enrollment numbers. According to an analysis from Common App, the number of students applying to more than 10 colleges rose from 8% to 17% between 2014 and 2022. Unfortunately, this can be bad news for higher education institutions with tight budgets. Busy admissions teams struggle to keep up with a flood of applications from students with little knowledge of how the school’s offerings and curriculum align with their needs. Meanwhile, a direct admissions lead (one most likely to convert) may not get the attention they need to make an informed decision.
Not all leads are equally viable. In a time when admissions teams are asked to do more with less, evaluating admissions lead quality is critical. Colleges and students both suffer when students apply to schools that don’t align with their needs. Developing a more streamlined and transparent admissions process can reduce labor for admissions teams and help students find their perfect fit in a school. Explore how to assess the real value of a direct admissions lead. Also, see how prioritizing quality over quantity can improve yield and reduce wasted effort.
What Defines a Direct Admissions Lead?
In the most basic sense, a direct admissions lead is a connection with a student who is likely to thrive at your institution. Often coming from inquiry forms, personalized campaigns, or student-initiated engagement, direct leads signal a higher level of intent and alignment with your school’s offerings and criteria. These students are often further along in their decision-making process, making them more valuable to admissions teams.
Key Indicators of Lead Quality
Admissions lead quality is defined by a lead’s likelihood of converting. However, there is no one-size-fits-all answer to define lead quality for every school. No two student profiles or schools are exactly alike. Students seeking the ideal college will consider several factors based on their goals and lifestyles. Admissions teams generally rely on various types of data to develop a strong strategy for identifying high-quality leads.
Signs that indicate a lead’s likelihood of converting may include:
- Academic fit
- Engagement level
- Geographic location
- Financial aid eligibility
- Prior interactions
Specific criteria can help identify reasons students might be interested in a school. But the value of each factor can vary widely depending on an institution’s offerings and a student’s criteria. Lead scoring helps admissions teams identify the factors that most often lead to conversion. They can then effectively rank leads using those factors.
To establish an effective lead scoring model, teams must determine the factors that indicate a prospect’s likelihood of enrolling. Then, they can assign values for the relevance of each predictor. For example, a student’s intended major and location may be higher indicators of a good match than test scores and academic achievements. Behavioral indicators like website visits and email open rates can also be high-ranking factors in a student’s interest level.
College admissions teams can leverage historical yield and enrollment data to identify traits in students most likely to be a good fit with the school’s criteria. Matching these traits with student profiles can then help admissions professionals develop a strong lead-scoring system to recognize high-quality leads. Regularly updating your scoring criteria based on new data and admissions outcomes will help you improve accuracy over time.
Why Lead Quality Matters More than Lead Volume
The misconception that more applications bring better results often means more work for admissions teams with lower enrollment yield and minimal time for personalized communication. When students apply to ten schools, nine have higher application rates but no increased yield. Even worse, the extra applications bog down busy admissions teams with paperwork. This reduces the amount of time they have to make authentic connections with students more likely to convert. Without a process to evaluate lead quality, these institutions can see enrollment rates drop even further.
Focusing on well-matched students and direct admissions lead numbers will increase staff efficiency, improve communication outcomes, and boost yield. By concentrating your entire admissions process on students most likely to enroll, you can better apply your efforts and budget to strategies most likely to result in conversion.
The cost of acquisition should always be weighed against actual enrollment outcomes. Chasing leads with little distinction between student interests wastes funds and does little to improve yields. Prioritizing personalized digital interactions over one-size-fits-all marketing approaches improves effectiveness while cutting marketing costs, resulting in higher ROI.
Tools and Strategies for Evaluating and Prioritizing Leads
Most college admissions teams generate leads with a strong social media presence and an informative website. But without the right tools and strategies, teams may still struggle to categorize admissions lead quality. To avoid drowning in data, admissions teams must develop strategies. Also, they must adopt tools to collect and prioritize the information most relevant to their decision-making process.
Segmenting Leads by Source
Tracking enrollments is crucial to measuring ROI on your marketing efforts. But failing to consider source impact leaves you with little understanding of which channels bring the best results. Segmenting leads by source helps teams identify which channels attract the most prospects. You can then use this data to influence marketing spend and prioritize spending on each direct admissions lead. Tracking the conversion data from each source can clarify how different groups of students move through the funnel from awareness to enrollment.
Using CRM Insights and Predictive Modeling to Identify Strong-Fit Students
Your CRM is a valuable tool for storing student data. When used for tracking interactions, CRMs can recognize communication preferences based on actions and automatically update for improved personalization.
When teams use student data collected over time in tandem with algorithms, they can better predict which students are most likely to be a good fit. Predictive modeling compares the characteristics and behaviors of prospects with those of past students. They use this data to identify people most likely to align with the school’s offerings and environment.
Using Digital Tools to Improve Results
As digital technology evolves, admissions teams can take advantage of software designed to improve the college admissions process. For example, FlippedApp is a platform that creates detailed student profiles that can be matched with your institution’s criteria. Customizable features allow you to find students who match with your school’s unique characteristics and initiate direct communications to remove barriers in the application process. By using pre-qualified student profiles that match institutional criteria, teams can focus their efforts on high-value leads from the start.
Turning High-Quality Leads into Enrolled Students
High-quality direct admissions leads don’t guarantee conversions. Once a valuable lead is identified, you must keep them engaged with relevant information and personalized communications. Supporting students throughout the enrollment process can help you turn quality leads into enrolled students.
The following actions can help you engage students from the first point of contact through enrollment.
Personalized Communication
As students research various aspects of your institution, they provide information about their interests and why they might be a good fit. Reaching out with personalized communications to follow up and increase engagement with added information helps students feel connected to your school. Digital tools like FlippedApp can even automate the process to ensure timely responses to student activity.
Leveraging Digital Tools
A chatbot on your website can give students more insight into how your institution can meet their needs. These tools answer common questions about financial aid, academics, and other topics. Quick answers can help students maintain momentum in their search instead of turning to other schools while they wait for answers.
Prioritizing Personal Outreach
Each prospective student has different goals and concerns regarding their ideal school. Sending students timely and relevant information can make all the difference in easing fears about financial barriers, campus life, and academic pursuits. Message automation tools can send out specific brochures, forms, or other critical information following a specific search.
Utilizing Interactive Virtual Platforms
Locational barriers can make visiting campus difficult for out-of-state or international students. Modern virtual platforms provide a lifelike experience that allows students to tour the campus. They can also gather insight into the academic and social environment. Virtual events, interactive campus maps, and virtual tours allow students to explore the campus and interact with faculty and students.
Providing Accessible Resources
Clear, accessible resources on your institution’s website or social media platforms help students immediately find the information they’re looking for at any point in the research process. Resources like FAQs about the topics most relevant to your student’s decision-making process, downloadable forms, and quick links to academic program information should be easy for every direct admissions lead to use.
Employing Peer-to-Peer Engagement
Student ambassador programs connect applicants with enrolled students or alums to help them learn more about your institution. The programs foster community through shared interests and give prospective students a sense of belonging.
Focus on Quality Over Quantity to Improve Enrollment Yield
Unfortunately, increased applications don’t always lead to higher enrollment numbers for most higher education institutions. By assessing the value of direct admissions leads, teams can cater to the needs of students most likely to enroll, increasing yield while reducing admissions costs.
Revamping your admissions strategy to focus on high-conversion potential students—your direct admissions lead numbers—can help ease the burden on staff members and help you meet enrollment goals. Using digital tools like FlippedApp can enhance your success rates by integrating detailed student data and personalized communications into the process.
Want to learn more about how FlippedApp from Concept3D can help you close the gap between application numbers and enrollment yield? Contact us today to learn more about how our digital schools can help you improve your communications with students throughout admissions and after enrollment.