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Connecting through chat

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A few weeks ago TargetX hosted Client Advisory Board meetings at our headquarters to discuss topics and trends in higher education. Since those meetings I have been spending a lot of time reflecting on the great conversations and feedback gathered from our clients. One topic in particular seemed to bring about mixed emotions — Is chat dead?

There was a clear divide surrounding the topic. Some people have abandoned the practice completely while others are still finding success, having fun with it and making it a regular part of their recruitment cycle. Being that I am a former Admissions Counselor myself, it got me thinking about best practices for hosting a successful chat:

Promote, Promote, Promote. Many chat events fail because they’re ...

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Categories: Best Practice Documents, Chat

XpertTip No. 107: Mad Chatters

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“How can I contact my roommate? What are the dates for orientation? Can I register for classes yet?”

May 1 might be history — but there are still plenty of questions left on the minds of interested prospects and newly-deposited students. And online chats can be a great tool to help answer them.

Thousands of prospective students are already registered to participate in online chat events over the next few weeks. I’ll bet most of them will have “POS” syndrome as well (that’s “Parent Over Shoulder” in chat-lingo btw;)

Sometimes these events can draw such a crowd that it makes keeping up with the conversation pretty difficult.

Here’s a tip that could help you manage things a little better: Try adding “frequently-used links” ...

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Categories: Chat

XpertTip No. 94: Yield Better Results

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“This is one time where television really fails to capture the true excitement of a large squirrel predicting the weather.” – Bill Murray as Phil Connors in Groundhog Day (1993)

We’re officially into the second month of the new year — and already another Super Bowl is history and the soothsaying rodent has had his moment in the sun (literally).

But regardless of the prediction from Punxsutawney, on campus, the Spring semester is well under way.  And for us admissions folks, that means on to more important things — like yield.

Have you given much thought to your upcoming yield initiatives?

If you’ve been in the field for some time, you already know that around this time of year, prospective students ...

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Categories: Chat, Communication Plans, Email Campaign Ideas, Lists, Student Yield, Twitter

XpertTip No. 71: What guidance counselors want

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Two of my best friends and college roommates are high school guidance counselors.

When they aren’t working with students on the college selection process (or wearing one of the myriad other hats that come with the counselor gig), they rely heavily on technology to keep up with their personal lives.

They text message, share YouTube videos and post to photo-sharing sites. And they’re on Facebook. A lot.

Is this your image of the school counselor? If it isn’t, perhaps the way we communicate with prospects isn’t the only thing that needs to change.

Modern guidance offices want what we all want — a better way to keep up. That means making it easier for them to stay updated on important things like new ...

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Categories: Blogs, Chat, Communication Plans, Email, Email Campaign Ideas, eXpressNet, Invitations and Reminders, Lists, Misc., Summer Projects, Uncategorized

XpertTip No. 55: Be a gracious chat host

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I’ve heard from a few clients this year who have had success hosting online chats the evening before admissions deadlines.

They’ve cited record attendance and great results for events aimed at answering those last-minute questions related to the application and financial aid process.

Why not adopt that strategy for the week before May 1?

Consider hosting at least one chat event on the days leading up to that all-important first day of May. If you can, host more than one and make use of the three business days before the big day (which is a Thursday this year — but I’m sure you already knew that;)

In your promotion, be sure to push the benefits. Prospects not only get answers to their questions — ...

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Categories: Chat, Email Campaign Ideas, eXpressSUITE, Millennials, Student Yield

XpertTip No. 46: Six ways to embrace parents

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The intimate (and co-purchasing) relationship between Millennials and their parents is, well, kind of old news at this point.

These days, admissions professionals are regularly called on to take part in their own version of “Meet the Parents” (hopefully with much more poise than Ben Stiller;)

But all joking aside — the importance of parents in the college selection process has forced most offices to stand up and take notice.

Many of you have adjusted inquiry forms to include parent first names and email addresses. Gold stars to those of you who have even created a parallel “Parent Communication Plan.”

We’ve definitely gotten pretty savvy about collecting the 4-1-1 on Mom and Dad — but what are you doing with all of that info?

Here ...

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Categories: Blogs, Chat, Email Campaign Ideas, eXpressNet, eXpressSUITE, Lists, Millennials, Student Yield, Uncategorized, Your Website

XpertTip No. 24: Enhance your efforts this year

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Well, for most of us, it’s back to school time. In the midst of planning travel schedules and going to meetings, don’t forget your friends at TargetX. Fall is the perfect time to do some housekeeping with us or get some ideas for new initiatives.

I’ve compiled a list that should help you prepare to head into another year of recruiting. As a TargetX client, have you thought about:

  • Scheduling training for any new staff members?
  • Printing out copies of my “Top 10 XpertTips for Student Bloggers” to use for blog training?
  • Sending me drafts of email messages to look over?
  • Adding/Subtracting bloggers?
  • Talking to Jeff Kallay, TargetX’s Experience Evangelist, about a campus visit audit?
  • Modifying ...
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Categories: Best Practice Documents, Blogs, Chat, Client Concierge, Database Fields, Email, Email Campaign Ideas, eXpressNet

XpertTip No. 17: Your Fall chat schedule

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I’m sure many of you are busy updating communication plans and planning travel for the Fall. If I may, I’d ask you to take a break from daydreaming about your Marriott points for a moment and allow me to make a suggestion.

If you are incorporating online chats into your recruiting mix, it’s time to put together (or revise) your chat schedule now.

The most common problem I encounter in working with clients on chat initiatives is lack of promotion. Truly effective (and sustainable) chat programs have integrated web, print and email campaigns to drive attendance to these events.

Make sure you set your schedule early and you’ll have plenty of time to promote it! You should be adding it ...

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Categories: Chat, Summer Projects

XpertTip No.2: When to invite your chatters

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A comment posted here after my first XpertTip prompted me to ask clients, “How far in advance do you send online chat invitations and reminders?”

The responses were clear: the most successful schools are inviting students much closer to the actual chat event and then sending “day of” reminders. With integrated tools, it’s easy to setup a chat and schedule related emails in advance. This way you’re not scrambling to send messages at the last minute when you should be ordering pizza for your chatters;)

Cisco Griffin from Philadelphia’s University of the Arts notes: “When sending out email invitations for chats, we have had better responses when they go out closer to the event than even a week out.” He has led ...

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Categories: Chat, Invitations and Reminders