This document discusses how an interactive campus map is an essential recruitment tool for colleges and universities. It provides 5 key reasons: 1) It is vital for recruitment as prospective students use virtual tours to help narrow down college choices. 2) It is one of the most important web features according to research. 3) It provides a tangible return on investment if it drives more student visits and applications. 4) It is important for engaging external audiences like alumni and fans. 5) Developing an interactive map is essential to stay competitive as most other schools already have them. The document provides examples and ROI calculations to demonstrate the recruitment and financial value of an interactive campus map.

1. The Interactive Campus Map
An Essential Recruitment Tool
Kyle James
@KyleJames
CEO @nuCloud
Founder @eduGuru

2. Interactive Map vs Virtual Tour
Virtual Tour
• Creating a virtual experience without
actually being there
• Picture, video, audio
Interactive Map
• Interacting with a user
• Providing a means to give input and
get results

3. So an interactive map is
always a virtual tour, but a
virtual tour isn’t always an
interactive map.

4. 5 Reasons an Interactive Map is Essential

5. 1. Vital to
Recruitment

6. It’s All About Recruitment!
• USA Today - instructs prospective students
to take virtual tours as the #1 step before
actually visiting a college.
• Open up the top of your
recruitment funnel with a
virtual tour of your campus
http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/college/2008-08-13-control-costs-of-college-visits_N.htm

7. The Prospective Decision Process

8. Lots of Choices

9. How to Narrow the List?

10. Visit Campuses!

11. You Can’t Visit Every School

12. Too Expensive & Too Much Time

13. Most Important Web Features
Data from Noel-Levitz – www.noellevitz.com

14. Most Used Social Media Resources
Data from Noel-Levitz – www.noellevitz.com

15. Credible Sources in Decision Process
Data from Hobsons - www.hobsons.com

16. 2. Vital web feature

17. How Important is a Virtual Tour?
• A tour is “singlehandedly
the most important element” of a college
website.
--Ron Reis, Co-founder YOUniversity
• Students will “get frustrated very quickly if
they can’t get the 10,000-foot view.”
--Chris Carson, President CampusTours
*Quote from - http://www.universitybusiness.com/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=1122

18. Suite of Killer Web Apps
Interactive Tours
Course Catalogs
Common App
Net Price Calculator
Event Calendar
Online Videos
Blogs

19. 3. Tangible Return
on Investment

20. Establishing ROI
If we can work backwards from the value
of a student we can establish the value
of an Interactive Campus Map.
*All numbers are created as examples

21. Let’s Do Some Math
• Average Years = 3
• Cost Per Year = $20,000
• Average Yearly Discount = $10,000
• Student Value = 3 * ($20,000 - $10,000)
• So a Student is worth
$30,000!

22. Let’s Do Some Math
• Student Value = $30,000
• Conversion Rate in Applicant = 20%
• App Value = $30,000 * .2
• So an Applicant is worth
$6,000!

23. Value Of Campus Tour

24. Let’s Do Some Math
• Application Value = $6,000
• Conversion Rate of Visits to Applicant = 20%
• Value of Visit = $6,000 * .2
• So Each Student Visit is Worth
$1,200!

25. Drive More Campus Visitors
Interactive Campus Map
Visit Campus
Application

26. Let’s Do Some Math
• Visit Value = $1,200
• Conversion of Map to Visit = 5%
• Value of a Map View = $1,200 * .05
• So Each Map View is Worth
$60!

27. Do You Think 1,000
People Would View Your
Map In A Month?

28. Then Having A Map Is
Worth $60,000!
Per Month!

29. ROI Spreadsheet
http://bit.ly/map-roi

30. 4. Important for all
external audiences

31. Alumni

32. Current Students

33. Athletic Fans

34. Event Speakers

35. Conferences

36. Campers

37. Other Events

38. Prospective Students

39. 5. Everyone else
has one already

40. Research - See what others are doing

41. Things Not To Do

42. Things Not To Do With A Map
• Use Flash – it’s inaccessible and creates a
maintenance nightmare
• Only images – Include more content than just
a map with some photo galleries. Tours need
context.
• Ignore updates – Keep building information
and imagery fresh. You virtual tour needs the
power to entice real visits.

43. Where Do I Start?
http://www.uky.edu/CampusGuide/

44. Too Many Options
http://map.emory.edu/

45. Slow Load Times
http://www.campustours.com/prodfeatures/suffolk/

46. Confusing
http://www.virtualtour.potsdam.edu/index.php

47. Questions?
Kyle James
@KyleJames
kyle@nucloud.com