Virtual Conference: Marketing in Higher Education

The Heartwork of Higher Ed Marketing and Communications

In an era of rapid technological advancements, from the rise of TikTok to the advent of ChatGPT, keeping pace with marketing and communication trends can be exhausting. The complexities of the higher education landscape further amplify this challenge. But what if, instead of using social media solely as a marketing and comms tool, we harness its potential to create more meaningful connections, build stronger communities, and cultivate a sense of belonging?

This keynote explores how marketing and communications professionals can leverage the power of digital engagement to meet enrollment goals but integrate purpose-driven strategies to build a deeper sense of belonging for students to alumni, and even staff and faculty. We’ll explore the “why” to our work, the heartwork, and the community-centered and humanizing strategies necessary going forward.

Key Takeaways:

• The Intersection of Marketing and Community: Learn how strategic communication can serve both enrollment goals and foster a sense of belonging.
• Practical Strategies for Humanizing Digital Engagement: Discover actionable tactics to create authentic content and build meaningful online connections.
• Building a Culture of Belonging: Gain insights from real-world examples on how to integrate student support services into your communication strategy.

Harnessing the Power of Technology for Good: Walk away with a framework for using digital tools to strengthen your community and support student success.

Dr. Josie Ahlquist

Higher Education Digital Leadership Consultant, Speaker & Author

Uncovering the Blind Spot in Your Content Strategy

In the competitive landscape of higher education, universities are meticulously curating their digital experiences, from choosing the right CMS to crafting compelling content. Yet, a crucial element often remains in the shadows – the strategy behind site search. It’s time to uncover the blind spot that could revolutionize your approach to attracting prospective students.

This session will equip you with the insights to:

• Break Down Content Silos: Learn innovative strategies to integrate and optimize your digital assets, ensuring that your content works together seamlessly, enhancing your university’s online visibility and accessibility.
• Align with Student Expectations: Understand the digital-first mindset of today’s students. We’ll delve into how their search behaviors and expectations shape their academic journey, and how you can meet them where they are – online.
• Maximize Your Digital Assets: Discover how to leverage your content as a strategic asset, transforming it into a magnet that attracts and engages prospective students through targeted, effective search optimization.

Don’t let your university’s digital potential remain untapped. This session is an essential roadmap for marketing decision-makers eager to navigate the complexities of the digital world, ensuring their institution stands out in a crowded and competitive landscape, where the next generation of students expects an intuitive online experience.

Join us to transform your approach and connect with those students like never before.

Jeff Dillon

Digital Strategist, SearchStax

Spurring Content Success: UWyo’s Digital Asset Management Journey

Join us for this session where we’ll delve into the transformative journey of the University of Wyoming (UWyo) in the realm of digital asset management (DAM) and content utilization, offering actionable insights for your own higher education marketing endeavors.

You’ll discover how UWyo harnessed DAM to eliminate bottlenecks in their content management workflows. From the initial challenges of moving from an on-premise system to a cloud-based DAM system, the resulting improvements in productivity and ease of access, to showcasing the power of self-service content access through portals, you’ll learn how DAM has impacted every part of their content management process.

In this session, we’ll cover:

• How marketers at UWyo used DAM to successfully orchestrate a website rebrand, empowering site authors to maintain brand consistency with ease across hundreds of pages.
• How the team leverages metadata for content discovery, and its impact on achieving a more diverse image library and the ability to produce hyper-targeted campaigns.
• How streamlining content access reduced photography costs, saved time, improved morale, and empowered creatives from across campus to participate in the university’s marketing mission.

Ariana Kei

Growth Marketing Manager, North America, Canto

How Columbia Business School Creates Educational Experiences with Video Management

Explore how Columbia Business School Executive Education leverages its vast array of video assets to streamline the educational experience for business professionals enrolled in their Executive Education programs and other online offerings.

See how the Executive Education team at Columbia Business School is using digital asset management to:

• Streamline access to videos while reducing overhead costs: In an effort to reduce administrative overheads, Columbia Business School Executive Education centralized their video asset library. The result? Streamlined access to videos across teams within their department, faculty, participants, and potential clients and a reduction in spend through the elimination of multiple disparate storage solutions and significantly reduced administrative overhead.
  
• Enhance content relevancy and accessibility: Using advanced search functionalities, the team is able to quickly identify and update outdated materials, fill content gaps, and tailor educational content to meet specific needs, ensuring high-quality and relevant learning resources are always at hand.
  
• Offer bespoke educational experiences: With enhanced sharing capabilities, Columbia Business School Executive Education is able to curate and customize content for specific programs and user groups such as–business leaders, senior executives, and corporate clients–thereby enhancing the learning experience for professionals seeking to advance their education while continuing their careers.
• This session is more than a showcase of Columbia Business School Executive Education’s achievements; it’s a roadmap for leveraging video and digital asset management to elevate educational engagement. You’ll leave with actionable insights on how to foster a more organized, accessible, and impactful learning environment.
  

Lindsey Varghese

Director of Content Strategy, Online and Digital Programs, Columbia Business School Executive Education

Carlie Hill

Director of Growth Marketing, MediaValet