What Makes Online Leaders Successful?
It seems like all we hear is doom and gloom—rising student expectations, increased competition, the demographic cliff, reduced ROI on ad spending, digital ad fatigue, and more. Yet, dominant online universities like SNHU, Liberty, WGU, and GCU continue to thrive. Why? What sets them apart from universities struggling to grow their programs?
The answer lies in their execution of best practices—capturing interest and converting that interest into leads.
The Missed Opportunity in Higher Ed
Have you ever wondered why 98% of your web traffic leaves without submitting any information? No form fills, no chats, no inbound calls—nothing.
We wondered the same thing. So, we conducted research on 100+ nonprofit universities offering and advertising online or graduate programs. Our evaluation plan focused on:
- Identifying opportunities to increase organic leads
- Measuring inquiry response time and persistence with live humans
- Evaluating nurturing channels and frequency
Key Finding: Weak Inbound Quality Scores
When it comes to capturing organic traffic and optimizing on-page conversion, most universities fall short. We created an “Inbound Quality Score” to assess how well schools are converting their existing traffic. The results?
- 84% of schools had a Weak Inbound Quality Score, missing out on up to 20% of their organic lead volume.
Despite investing heavily in paid media, SEO, and technology, many universities fail to see results because they overlook Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO). CRO is the process of increasing the percentage of website visitors who take a desired action, like submitting a lead form.
The Potential for Growth
Based on our findings, universities that optimize their CRO can achieve:
- A 25% increase in unpaid, high-intent organic inquiries for graduate and online programs
- Increased web traffic and reach across all audience types
- Higher returns on marketing investment
We know these results are possible because we’ve helped several universities achieve them.
Why Speed Matters
Another major differentiator for successful online universities is their speed and persistence in responding to inquiries. Our research found that:
- 60% of schools failed to make even one attempt to respond to inquiries.
This is a critical misstep. According to the Harvard Business Review, organizations that respond to customers within the first hour are seven times more likely to convert leads than those that delay.
Every moment that passes between a prospect’s inquiry and your response increases the likelihood they’ll lose interest—or worse, that a competitor will reach them first.
Opportunities abound for universities to grow enrollment without spending more money. However, many schools miss these opportunities due to poor response times and weak CRO. At Education Connex, we recommend prioritizing:
- Speed-to-lead—Engage inquiries immediately.
- Persistent follow-up—Stay front-of-mind through nurturing and multiple touchpoints.
Since 2008, we’ve helped colleges grow enrollment by turning web traffic into inquiries and inquiries into enrolled students. Let us help you do the same.
Call us at 877-434-1828 or email Greg at gswinhart@educationconnex.com. We’re here to help your university succeed!