Best Practices for Texting in Higher Ed
Virtually every single adult aged 18-29 in the United States owns a cell phone.
As a college, that’s your core demographic, and you know the importance of meeting students where they are. So it’s no wonder that more and more colleges are texting their students.
At Unibuddy, we’ve dedicated a lot of time to researching how your applicants and prospective students want to be communicated with, and we’ve learned a lot from our over 300 worldwide partners.
The ability to send texts to your future students is a useful tool! You can text your future students to:
- Send appointment reminders
- Communicate important deadlines
- Share links with important information
- Send deposit reminders
- Announce tests and exams dates
- Outline housing requirements and rules
- Provide helpful tips
- Send a celebratory message and an orientation reminder.
What do those things have in common? They’re easy to send to a large number of prospective students, even if you customize them a little bit by state or region of their area code. And sometimes, you don’t need to personalize the messaging – texting students is perfect.
No substitute for personal connections
But texting students isn’t a substitute for personal connections. Just because it’s traditionally a 1-1 channel, your students know those texts aren’t being sent directly to them.
They are very much aware of the technological capabilities that admissions offices have access to and they are probably receiving similar texts from all the admissions offices where they have submitted inquiries or applications.
I’m not suggesting that you stop texting prospective students, but that your team should work to supplement these texts with more personalized and authentic content.
For example – have you got a system in place for prospects to build relationships with members of the admissions team and your current students?
At the end of the day, it is the personal connections that drive enrollment throughout Higher Education.
Here at Unibuddy we empower the prospective students to chat directly with your current students, staff, and even alumni. And we know it has an impact.
Feeling worthwhile and validated
When Fairleigh Dickinson implemented Unibuddy to connect their current students with future students, one prospective student said to an ambassador, “It’s made my decision feel worthwhile and validated. I don’t know how many times I was anxious or cried over the process to transfer here but you helped me through it all with patience. I am eternally grateful for all you have done to assist me and provide me with your words of wisdom, and can’t wait to meet you on campus next year.”
This is what Unibuddy is all about. Easing the concerns, fears and worries of prospective students by allowing their peers to ensure them of their college choice.
Your students want to hear from you! And in this time, you can’t overcommunicate. Whether it’s via text, email marketing or social media. But whichever channels you are speaking to them, you can’t neglect the personal and 1-1 connections that will have the biggest impact on their decision-making.
Best Practices for Texting Prospective Students
When diving into the world of SMS communications with students, establishing a Texting Style is paramount. Your institution can opt for casual, emoji-laden messages or maintain a more formal tone. The key is authenticity; your texts should reflect your institution’s brand and culture, and consistency is essential—avoid giving students mixed messages.
Creating engaging messages involves personalization and relevance. Use student information to tailor your messages, which can increase engagement by up to 75%. Remember, if the message isn’t relevant to the student’s current needs, it’s likely to be ignored.
The timing of your messages can significantly impact their effectiveness. Schedule nudges 3-5 days before a deadline to avoid overwhelming students or causing them to procrastinate. Also, be mindful of students’ schedules; their response times can vary greatly depending on their daily routines.
Lastly, set clear, achievable goals for your messages. Each should have a specific purpose, whether it’s to inform, nudge, encourage, or introduce. Overloading students with information or calls to action can be counterproductive.
Crafting your campaign plan
A well-structured campaign is proactive, not reactive. It anticipates the students’ needs and addresses them before they become urgent. Use analytics to adapt and improve your strategies over time.
When scheduling your campaign:
- Send reminders just before critical deadlines.
- Adapt your texting times to when prospective students are most likely to respond.
- Limit the number of texts to avoid communication fatigue.
Incorporate time savers like a bank of FAQs for quick replies and use features like auto-responders and response management to keep the conversation flowing without constant manual input.
By adhering to these best practices and strategically planning your campaign, you’ll be able to connect with students in a way that’s both effective and respectful of their time and attention.
Admissions and enrollment management texting examples
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“Hello Martin, Meghan here from XYZ College! 😊 It’s fantastic to see you’ve begun your application process. I’ll be sending you further instructions via text. Feel free to respond with any queries you might have, or text “stop” if you prefer not to receive these messages.”
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Exciting update, Martin! Sam, one of our admissions representatives, is scheduled to stop by your high school this coming Tuesday. He’s eager to assist you with completing your application and to address any questions you may have about XYZ College. Are you available to meet with him?
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Hey Martin! Just a heads-up, our student ambassadors at XYZ College are ready to chat and share their experiences with you. Take a look at the ambassador list and reach out if you have any queries or need insights about life at XYZ. Looking forward to your chat! link.com/to-ambassador-page
