Enrollment professionals have long been skilled at reengaging students through multiple platforms to include telecounseling, direct mail, and repeat high school visits. With continuing advances in technology, we have to be equally savvy about our digital endeavors—to include ramping up our retargeting efforts.
Retargeting is a direct response marketing tactic that keeps you in front of potential students. It targets individuals who have previously expressed interest in your school, online or off, and exposes them to additional display advertising messages. These could include email opens, landing page abandons, and website visits.
Retargeting relies on the use of tracking tags, also known as tracking pixels. A small piece of JavaScript code is embedded within the source code for a web page. When someone visits your website, the tracking tag places an anonymous cookie in their browser.
The cookie captures anonymous data such as IP addresses, type of web browser, and how the visitor was referred to the site (search, click-through from an ad, etc.), along with on-site behaviors. No personal information about the visitor is collected.
Once the visitor leaves, the cookie allows you the opportunity to display additional ads on their device. Re-exposure through advertising keeps your school top-of-mind and can prompt students to take the next step.
There are many different types of retargeting opportunities:
When designing a retargeting campaign, it’s important to include a frequency cap and a burn code. A frequency cap restricts the number of times that a potential student is shown ads within a defined time frame. A burn code identifies respondents who have taken a specific action such as requesting information, so they are no longer served ads.
Two other best practices for retargeting campaigns are A-B testing and creative ad rotation. A-B testing identifies what works best, and creative ad rotation ensures that your audience does not get tired of seeing your ads.
Patrick Blanchard, Principal of Full View Marketing in Atlanta, Georgia, says that your plan must be adaptive. “Each market is a bit different, and we tend to get different results from different platforms—whether display ads or social media. These campaigns should integrate with your entire strategy and be supported by research, and then a pause to evaluate what is going on.”
He also suggests being wary of vendors who attempt to sell you volume. “It’s not about impressions. It’s about finding where eyes are and being on those platforms.”
If you are wanting to ramp up your enrollment strategy, look at your coming year and identify how retargeting and display advertising can help you achieve your goals.
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