The document discusses enhancing the student and alumni experience through communities. It provides an overview of 7Summits, an award-winning Salesforce partner with extensive experience building communities for higher education. It outlines the opportunity for higher ed communities across the student lifecycle from prospective students to alumni. Key value drivers of communities for recruitment, students/faculty, and alumni are also summarized.
1. #DF16#DF16
Enhancing the Prospect, Student &
Alumni Experience with
Communities
James Davidson
VP of Community Solutions, Higher Ed
7Summits
james@7summitsinc.com
@7summitsinc
2. Confidential 22
An Award Winning
Salesforce Partner
Extensive Experience
in Higher Ed
A Deep Understanding
of Large, Complex
Enterprises
The World’s Leading
Community Solution
Provider
200+Communities and
Portals
Advisory
User
Experience
Technology &
Integrations
Founded in
2009
Design
Awards25
Our team brings
together the best
in strategy, user
experience, and
technology to
maximize your
success.
7SUMMITS AT A GLANCE
Winner of the Salesforce Partner
Innovation Award for Community Cloud
3. Confidential 3
Community Templates /
Components /
Accelerators
Advisory & Consulting
User Experience & Design
Migrations & Integrations
Custom Development
Community strategy, need
help measuring ROI, training
your team, or managing your
community, our social
sherpas are here to help.
7SUMMITS AT A GLANCE
Innovation powered by communities, brought to life by 7Summits.
Pre-built solutions means less
time building, more time
engaging your audiences.
Great out-of-the-box, but
tailored where you need it.
We’re here to be your guide.
CUSTOMER SUCCESSACCELERATORS SERVICES
4. ◆Experienced across the full lifecycle:
admissions, student and faculty
engagement, and alumni relations
◆Experienced with a variety of technology
platforms. Changing the Communities
world with Salesforce
◆Forrester Groundswell award winner, and
six Design awards in Higher Education
◆Work drives significant and measurable
business impact
7SUMMITS EDUCATION PORTFOLIO
#DF16
6. #DF16#DF16
Marketing
Recruitment
Engagement
GL Housing HCM SIS LMS Degree
Audit
Financial
Aid
Meal
Plans
Payroll
Student Success Advancement
Prospects
Donors
Faculty & Staff
Parents
Corporations
Students
Alumni
The Connected Campus Platform
System of
Record
System of
Intelligence
System of
Engagement
Analytics
Build AppsHEDA
7. #DF16
• Digital natives 3
• Social media is their default state 1
• Rely on user-generated content to
make life decisions 1
• They absorb and manage
information differently than other
generations 1
• Universities that create their own
open communities have a much
greater degree of credibility 2
Sources: 1Bazaarvoice. 2 Onlinecolleges.net 3 Ad Age
The Biggest Shift in a Generation
8. #DF16
A typical prospective student now
receives 12-18 emails from 2-4
year public/ private institutions. 1
CRM is a top priority for 4-year
public/private schools1
75-90% of 2-4 year institutions
spend less than 25k annually on
their institutions website1
4-year universities are
experiencing very high attrition —
up to 50% in some cases. 2
Higher Ed IT is seeking to
consolidate platforms (Intranet,
websites, portals, etc). 2
Classroom delivery models are
shifting to incorporate more
online/digital
Use of accurate data to drive
alumni outreach strategies is one of
the biggest needs to improving
Alumni Relations 3
Alumni Relations frequently find
themselves without the support,
resources or staff needed to perform
effectively 4
Recruitment / Admissions Student Success / Faculty Alumni / Advancement Mgt.
Digital Trends and Insights in Higher Education
Sources: Noel Levitz 1 ACT 2 Hartford 3 Council for Aid to Education 4
10. #DF16
Desktop
Centered
Multiple Paths Into
External Systems
Isolated
Process
CONTENT
AND FILES
CONTACTS
TOOLS
MARKETING
AND
COMMS
RESOURCES
No central
a gateway
Current State Digital Experience
?
End User Confusion
Inefficient Processes due a
Number of Disconnected
Technical Environments
Lack of Simplified Online
Registration
Incomplete Functionality
Expectations
Inconsistent Branding &
Cumbersome User Interface
Abandonment and Low
Engagement
Missed Revenue
Opportunities and
Operational
Efficiencies
11. #DF16
News, Events
and
Multimedia
Quick access
to people,
content and
tools
Self
Service
and
Support
Profile &
Preferences
Knowledge
Capture
and SharingStudent
Community
Mobile First /
Device Agnostic Interface
to Engage Students when
and where they choose
Community incorporates a view
of other systems and is
a platform for engagement
Anytime / Anywhere
Access
Centralize people,
processes, content, and
tools to become a system of
engagement
A Better Way: A Student Community Built on your System of Record
12. #DF16
Community
Opportunity
Our Perspective: The Student Lifecycle
Snapchat LinkedIn
Prospective Student Qualified Prospect Accepted Student Enrolled Student Graduate Alumni
Personally Social Professionally Social
Student lifecycle continuum
13. #DF16
Community
Opportunity
Higher Ed Communities: Targeted Value Drivers
Snapchat LinkedIn
Prospective Student Qualified Prospect Accepted Student Enrolled Student Graduate Alumni
Personally Social Professionally Social
Student lifecycle continuum
Recruitment and Admissions
• Increase qualified students
• Reduce traditional media spend
• Enhance referrals / WOM
• Streamline enrollment processes
• Enhance reputation / perception
• Increase enrollment (fill seats)
• Reduce application processing time
• Increase students starts
Students and Faculty
• Improve student retention
• Improve grades and satisfaction
• Streamlined student onboarding
• Improved graduation rates
• Reduced support costs (self-serve)
• Facilitate student / faculty collaboration
• Enable study groups / peer support
• Crowdsource research and ideas
Alumni
• Engage Alumni
• Reduce marketing costs
• Improve alumni directory accuracy
• Increased donations
• Drive event participation
• Drive student referrals
• Facilitate student mentoring
• Capture student success stories
• Support professional networking
14. #DF16
Salesforce Community Cloud
7Summits Higher Ed Solutions
Admissions Community Student Community Alumni Community
Comprehensive Approach: Modules across Student lifecycle continuum
7Summits Solution Approach: Pre-built, targeted, configurable
15. 7SUMMITS
• Communities: Personalized, Mobile, Social & Integrated
Social Communities
+
Portals
Expose data
to customers
and partners
+ =
Websites
Custom
branding and
slick UI
Direct connection
to other customers
and experts
19. #DF16
1. Invest in a Strategic Roadmap to sell your Vision (WHY, WHO, WHAT, HOW, WHEN)
2. Ensure Executive Sponsorship (Guidance and Regular touch points)
3. Embrace an Agile mindset and delivery approach (Iterative vs Waterfall)
4. Play to the Strengths of the Salesforce Platform and Community Product (Groups vs email)
5. Launch early and often, and test with REAL users (Versus big bang)
6. Grow the Solution based on needs of the Community (User driven feedback)
7. Invest in Change Mgt Day 1: Training, Community Mgt, Content Activation + Adoption
Where to Start? Implementing a Community
7Summits has seen great success with the following best practices:
