Big enrollments in Big Rapids

A bull-dogged pursuit of better students with the right software pays off

The electronic newsletter

Dog Bites provides a third "point of engagement." It's a weekly electronic newsletter, which is purchased from and sent by Hobsons 20 weeks to 70,000 prospects. Each newsletter is just three to five paragraphs long with information about campus living vs. commuting, financial aid and other topics of general interest.

"We track down to the engagement level," Mikesell says. "At the end of 20 weeks we know how many people read it, and how many jumped forward to read upcoming newsletters in response to a teaser." Each e-letter gives prospects the option to click through to apply, log on to their VIP page or ask a question.

"We don't need to worry about those who are fully engaged, who read eight to 12 weeks of newsletters," Mikesell says. "And we're not going to get to those who opt out at week one. We work on the middle level. Those who have a 40-to-60 percent probability of attending are the ones you want to spend your marketing dollars on. That's what Craig does and that's why the numbers at Ferris State have gone up."

Automated answers

To complement the steady outbound communications stream, prospective students produce a steady volume of questions, primarily submitted via the university's web site.

Hobsons' EMT Answer module automatically responds to most inquiries. One Ferris State staffer used to answer 100 to 150 e-mails a day. Today, only the complex and the very personal questions are answered individually. EMT Answer sent 19,113 responses from August 2003 through June 2004. EMT Answer improves with age. Questions that are not already part of the system can be archived for future use.

Two governors Woodbridge Nathan Ferris, founder of Ferris State University, was both an educator and a politician. Born in Spencer, N.Y., he served as principal and superintendent of various schools in Illinois from 1874 to 1884 before settling in Big Rapids, Michigan. He served as president of Big Rapids Institute, renamed Ferris Institute in 1885, until his death in 1928. Active in Democratic party politics, he served as Michigan's governor from 1913 to 1916, earning the title "Good Gray Governor." He was the first Democratic senator from his district since 1863, serving from 1923 until his death. He wasn't the only Governor at Ferris State. The other was his bulldog, Governor, who was adopted as the school mascot.

Integration

Given the many points of contact, integration is of great importance. "When a student signs up for a VIP page, applies online or takes any other action," Westman says, "everything is integrated into a single database. Integration leverages the information."

Campus tours

As the school's admissions operation became more high tech, it also became more high touch. The ultimate goal of electronic recruitment, according to Westman, is to get prospects not only to apply, but to tour the campus. Once toured, a prospect's chances of attending increase.

Ferris State offers 18 to 22 visitation days between September and May. In past years, some 300 prospects might visit, of whom 11 percent enrolled. Now the school attracts 2,500 to 3,000 visitors, and 76 percent of them enroll.

E-mails prepare visitors in advance. "What used to be a very impersonal day is now a very personal day," Westman says. "Once we became able to get prospects to visit the campus, faculty and staff became involved. They see how their involvement can influence the student's decision. Since enrolling students are admitted directly into a major,each college is also helping itself."

The built-in plan

Ferris State and Hobsons have worked so closely together during the past few years, according to Mikesell, that the next version of EMT Connect will include a targeted marketing plan based on Westman's work. "Craig has taken the lead on it," says Mikesell. "When we were redesigning Connect, he sent us an Excel spreadsheet outlining 10 to 15 tracks he uses to personalize his communications. He targets students who would be the first generation at the school, kids who would be close to home, parents, high-ability students, athletes. There are 10 to15 touch points in each track. He has this matrix of messages and he color-codes them as the school year proceeds. Using Excel is inefficient. He inspired us to include what he's doing inside our product."

One student's perspective During the winter of Noah Angele's senior year in high school, he got nervous. Needing financial aid for college, his 24 ACT score was a point short of the level needed for a scholarship, so he e-mailed Ferris State for advice. A quick response advised him to retake the ACT test. He did and earned himself a scholarship worth about $14,000. Scholarship aside, Angele believes Ferris State was a good choice. "I love it here," he says. In fact, he likes the school so well, he regularly discusses campus life with prospective students during campus visitation days.

Connectivity

Meanwhile, Higgs appreciates the ease with which information can be transferred from EMT Connect to the school's student information system. A 20-year-old SCT system is being upgraded to an SCT Banner system at Ferris State. Because EMT Connect and Banner reside on an Oracle 9i database, data can be easily exported.

While the Banner upgrade will consumer much of the school's resources for now, Westman and Higgs don't expect to ease up their recruitment efforts. Westman is concerned that competitors on other campuses will catch on and try to lure students away from Ferris State. But he adds that, "higher education moves slowly."

As proof, he says that Ferris State's principal competitors are still marketing by mail with view books and catalogs. The longer that practice continues, the more Ferris State's enrollment is likely to increase.