American Marketing Association presentation on social media strategy: TWG Plus and Morehouse College

1. MARCH MADNESS: SOCIAL MEDIA ROI FOR
COLLEGE ADMISSIONS, BRAND RESEARCH, AND
CUSTOMER SERVICE

2. Introduction
“If speaking is silver, then listening is gold.”
-
Turkish proverb
“Seek first to understand, then to be understood.”
-
Stephen R. Covey, author of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
“We listened to what our customers wanted and acted on
what they said. Good things happen when you pay
attention.”
--
John F Smith, Former CEO and President General Motors

3. Introduction
The conversations that are taking place on
social media and online channels are
important to collect and analyze
•How institutional brands are perceived
•How schools rate against their competition
•What matters to current and prospective students
When social media and online conversation is
monitored strategically and effectively,
colleges and universities gain access to
24/7, real-time qualitative research that can
inform
•Marketing messages
•Recruitment and engagement strategies
•Branding efforts
•Day-to-day customer service practices

4. Introduction
(Potentially) Distracting Metrics:
•Likes
•Retweets
•Shares
•Fans

5. Morehouse Goals
•
Highlight tradition, leadership, rigorous academics, and other key messages
•
Provide a more behind-the-scenes look at how things are actually being done on
campus
•
Depict what it takes to recruit an incoming class
•
Make prospective students feel valued and “part of the process” so that college
choice becomes a lifestyle choice
•
Sell the essence of attending Morehouse
•
Use social media to document the Morehouse experience
•
Make messages timely, relevant, and targeted
•
Monitor conversation to inform outbound communication strategy

6. Social Media ROI:
Admissions

7. Social Media ROI:
Admissions

8. Social Media ROI:
Admissions

9. Social Media ROI:
College Choice Drivers

10. Social Media ROI:
College Choice Drivers

11. Social Media ROI:
College Choice Drivers

12. Social Media ROI:
College Choice Drivers

13. Social Media ROI:
College Choice Drivers

14. Social Media ROI:
Customer Service

15. Social Media ROI:
How to Make the Data Actionable
• Utilize social media monitoring to:
• Set up broad queries (institutional name, athletic
mascot, etc.) to develop an ongoing understanding of:
• How brand is perceived
• How school is discussed vis a vis competitors
• How prospects and others discuss important attributes
of the college choice process
• Set up specific queries (Morehouse + accepted/applied)
to identify prospective students at various points in
the funnel and then to engage with these prospects using
various channels and people
• Analyze all social media data to develop an ongoing
understanding of:
• Key themes and topics of conversation
• What channels and sentiment people use to discuss
your institution
• Who discusses your school frequently and are they
advocates or critics