Archive for 'Web Traffic'

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Forget Facebook, if you want to yield students you should be on YouTube

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Any dyed-in-the-wool Gen Xer can tell you that the first video MTV played when it launched on August 8, 1981 was Video Killed the Radio Star by The Buggles. Not as many can tell you the second video played on MTV. Do you know?

Video facts you need to know:
-43% of current prime time internet traffic is real time entertainment ( 12.2.2010)
-Netflix streaming accounts for 20% of internet traffic on any given evening (BusinessWeek 12.2.2010)
-Cisco predicts that by 2013 video will be 90% of consumer internet traffic (TechCrunch 7.9.2009)
-YouTube is a top “search engine” accounting for 28% of Google searches (Google 1.31.2011)
-There are 500 million monthly YouTube ...

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FEB
1

Categories: Authenticity, Branding/Marketing/Recruiting, College Recruiting, Communication, Communication Plans, Did You Know?, Facebook, Free on Friday Webcasts, Social Media, Social Networking, Storytelling, Student Yield, Videos, Web Traffic, Webcast, Your Website

XpertTip No. 161: High fashion, higher ed

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Over breakfast this morning I took a rare opportunity to enjoy a cup of coffee while reading The New York Times (the actual ink-on-paper version).

As expected, an article jumped out at me that made me think about higher ed — specifically the evolution of college websites.  Clearly I need a vacation;)

It was called High Fashion Relents to Web’s Pull and details how fashion’s most established brands are reluctantly (and finally) being forced to change their websites.

These historically passive, flash-based sites are typically very visually stunning but offer little-to-no opportunity to actually do anything except read and look at photos (including make a purchase).

The article cites the pressure of market demands and the need for additional revenue streams in ...

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12
JUL
1

Categories: Web Traffic, Website, Websites, Your Website

Be more social, be more…corporate?

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Corporate websites need to make an effort to be more social — does yours?

A recent blog entry from Hubspot.com says corporate websites are guilty of producing boring content. “These sites end up being a time and financial drain without delivering the appropriate value to current and potential customers.” Sound familiar?

If you have heard comments like this around your campus or by prospective students, then you should sit down with others and reevaluate your site’s priorities. Hubspot’s suggestion: “Four Ways to Make Your Corporate Website More Social.”

Focused on engaging customers and empowering them to share with others, Hubspot suggests a level of interaction between the customers and the organization that does not exist when the website spews one-way messages.

While the article ...

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21
MAY
5

Categories: College Recruiting, Communication, Communication Plans, Online Experiences, Social Media, Social Networking, Summer Projects, Web Traffic, Websites, Your Website

XpertTip No.117: How many clicks does it take?

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Today I have a simple but important tip for those of you looking to increase traffic to your student blog site.

Sounds totally elementary — but make sure it’s not hidden!

Location is the first thing I check when clients ask me for help with their blogs.  Unfortunately, it often takes me longer to find the page than to offer my suggestions.

Always leaves me thinking “If I do this all the time and know the ‘usual’ places to look — and I can’t even find them — how is a prospect supposed to?”  Never bodes well for traffic.

One client even had their blogs about 12 clicks in — student blog suicide if you ask me.  I can get to weekend ...

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20
JUL
1

Categories: Web Traffic, Website

XpertTip No. 61: Ice cream and social media

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Struggling to understand what all the social media fuss is about?

Today’s tip is for you.

I wanted to share a video that does a great job of explaining the social media phenomenon. Even better, they do it in — get this — plain English (insert sigh of relief here).

This video cuts through the techno-babble to provide a simple analogy that explains a very complex movement.

Social media is no flash-in-the-pan trend; it has completely changed the way brands interact with consumers (read: the way schools need to interact with prospects).

The video is posted in the TargetX Knowledge Center so we can keep the discussion going. I’ve already posted a comment about my favorite part;)

So grab a cup of ...

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JUN
0

Categories: Social Media, Social Networking, Uncategorized, Videos, Web Traffic, Your Website

XpertTip No. 60: Social networks combat summer melt

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“You just don’t know for sure whether students are coming until you see the whites of their eyes and their butts in the seats.”

The May issue of Lawlor Focus addresses a dreaded phenomenon in the “battle” for enrolled students: summer melt.

The newsletter outlined some of the major factors influencing decisions these days, including economic instability, student loan woes and the much-talked-about “wait-list shuffle.”

Their recommendation for those of you seeking to “minimize the melt” this summer? “Stay in touch with your prospects.”

I’d add that social networks take “staying in touch” to the next level; providing dynamic, interactive opportunities for prospects to make connections with you and each other.

Have you considered the power of social networking to combat summer melt?

Online ...

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19
MAY
0

Categories: eXpressNet, Millennials, Social Networking, Summer Projects, Web Traffic, Your Website

XpertTip No. 54: Is your website working?

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Research shows that 84% of students are using the college’s website most heavily in their college search (Eduventures, 2007).

These days, you can’t deny the importance of investing heavily in your school’s web presence.

But tracking the return on your website investment isn’t easy; comparatively it can make filing your taxes seem simple and straightforward.

While tools like Google Analytics and WebTrends can help, page visits and click-throughs only tell us part of the story.

Sometimes anecdotal feedback can help fill in the blanks when it comes to the effectiveness of your website. Are you asking for it?

Here are a few opportunities you may be missing to invite feedback:

  • Provide a link right on the page for visitors to comment and/or make content requests.
  • Ask visiting ...
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APR
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Categories: Data, Research, Tracking, Uncategorized, Web Traffic, Your Website

XpertTip No. 52: Don't be an ostrich

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That’s right — you read the headline correctly.

These days, too many of us are ostriches; hiding our heads in the sand and pretending that viewbooks and emails are the only messages getting out about our schools.

The truth is, “the message” doesn’t just come from you anymore. Web 2.0 and the social web have turned traditional marketing messages into a conversation that can’t be controlled.

And that conversation is going on right now. Even as you read this tip, someone is posting a question to College Confidential, joining a Facebook group, or writing their own blog about an experience on your campus (not to mention talking to friends, neighbors, etc).

As a perfect medium for leveraging the collective wisdom ...

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24
MAR
2

Categories: Misc., Research, Summer Projects, Web Traffic, Your Website

XpertTip No. 47: The social media election

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Ok — let me just start by saying I’m no political analyst.

While I certainly follow election coverage enough to educate myself as a voter, most times the political pundits’ affection for talking in circles leaves me nothing but dizzy.

What I am quite clear on, however, is the role that social media has played in this election.

Last July saw our very first YouTube debate and Facebook didn’t take long to get in on the act. Bloggers (both paid and unpaid) have become a political tour de force-to-be-reckoned-with. And let’s not forget how candidates across the political spectrum are learning to respect the power of viral video and Twitter.

Yes, it’s web warfare out there — and we’re just scratching the surface.

So what ...

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FEB
0

Categories: Blogs, Lists, Misc., Outside Resources, Web Traffic, Your Website

XpertTip No. 22: Content ideas for social networks

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Something interesting happened to me last week: I received “save-the-dates” for my high school reunion this year — via MySpace and Facebook.

I smiled, of course, thinking of this series of tips on social networking. I not only got the date, time and location for the event, but also a way to connect with other classmates and forward the information along. A paper invitation will follow in the coming weeks, but for now I’ve got it on the calendar and have participated in online conversations on everything from “Who’s Going?” to “Favorite High School Memory.” Social networking technology has truly changed the way I communicate and stay in touch.

Social networks aren’t just for the kids, either. Jeff Kallay, Experience ...

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AUG
0

Categories: eXpressNet, Lists, Social Networking, Tracking, Web Traffic

XpertTip No.7: Don't take a vacation from student blogs

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The spring semester has come to a close.  Have you talked to your student bloggers about plans for the summer?

While your bloggers may not be on campus, their student experiences certainly continue well after the caffeine from finals week has worn off.

I bet many of your bloggers will keep busy this summer with resume builders like internships, study abroad, research with faculty and summer service programs.  These are some of the most important topics for the Millennials you are looking to recruit and provide dynamite material for student blogs.

Additionally, prospective students (and their helicopter parents of course) will be browsing your website frequently in the summer — scheduling campus visits, checking application deadlines, etc.  Take advantage of this time of ...

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APR
0

Categories: Blogs, Millennials, Web Traffic