TAG - content marketing

Post pandemic, amidst widespread cuts across the university sector - especially in the UK, finding a stable and consistent identity from which to market one’s institution from, can create challenge and uncertainty for universities and schools, in a forever changing industry.

Quality content has never been a more valuable currency for business schools.

As the ‘professional’ social media platform, with around a billion members, LinkedIn has solidified its position as the place for networking and thought leadership content distribution. Which is one of the reasons why adding LinkedIn newsletters into your marketing and communications mix can significantly elevate your outreach strategy. Let's explore why LinkedIn newsletters deserve your attention and how to harness their full potential…

Video content has boomed more than ever before, and it’s no surprise! It is an easy-to-digest format that often gives our eyes a break from the overwhelming amount of text we look at all day long.

In today’s digital age, traditional marketing strategies alone are no longer sufficient to capture the attention of prospective students. As a result, business schools and universities around the world are embracing newer approaches to engage with their target audience and stand out in a competitive landscape, and they’ve discovered content marketing.

To borrow a phrase from Bill Gates, “Content is King”. Content marketing and copywriting are commonly used terms in a marketing context, but they often get confused for each other. While they are related activities, it’s helpful to draw a sharp line between them. So, what are the differences, and where do they overlap?

Effective PR is about generating those opportunities for fruitful publicity; the proof is always in the pudding.

Wondering how PR and marketing work hand in hand? There is often confusion if PR is a part of marketing or is it an independent function. How much do they differ? Or is there a fine line between the two?

When it comes to writing online content we know we face stiff competition.

In recent years Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) has become a term that we have all heard more and more. Indeed, SEO is an essential digital marketing tool that businesses benefit from massively, yet even if you have a basic understanding of what it involves, it is still hard to grasp just how effective it can be, and what makes good content/SEO.

One of the first things you’re told when trying to create an online presence – whether for an institution, for a programme or for an individual, is that, to create an impact, you need content.

According to HubSpot’s State of Marketing Report, 82% of marketers actively use content marketing to achieve their branding goals. Up 17% since 2020, content marketing is recognised by many professionals as an effective, tried and tested means of attracting, engaging and retaining new audiences and customers – and in the case of business schools, prospective applicants.

Many people only know what PR is from Mad Men or Sex and the City and, even then, it is a vague and often inaccurate understanding of what it really is. In fact, many people should look to better understand the real impact public relations can have for a brand or institution.

Having a winning PR strategy is vital to the broader success of any organisation, in any field, providing any service.

The early days of PR largely involved networking with journalists over the phone, face-to-face meetings, and building relationships with them in order to get companies, institutions and clients into newspapers and magazines. As such, prior to the internet, PR traditionally focused on print-based publications, TV and radio. But is it even PR now if we don’t include online media? With the growth of online marketing, the majority of PR professionals both in-house and in agencies today have shifted their focus further towards digital PR, with online publications becoming more and more influential.

In the first episode of season two of the BlueSky Education Thinking Podcast, International BizEd Guru Matt Symonds, BlueSky Education’s Stephanie Mullins, Kerry Ruffle and Olivia Nieberg discuss how the pandemic has heralded the age of the expert, along with Jonathan L. Simon, Director of Marketing and Communications at The Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa.

As with any other service you purchase; you want to be able to measure if it has been worth the cost. But with PR, this may not always be easy or obvious. PR works by attempting to influence and change the behaviour, thoughts, and decisions of others. This can be a hard thing to measure, but it’s a lot easier to see the results of a PR campaign if you first outline the impact you want your campaign to have.

Truly understanding and being able to measure the impact of PR is key for anyone working in or around the communications space.

There’s no doubt that the role of a PR and communications expert within a higher education institution is a demanding one. Having to keep one foot firmly entrenched within all the comings and goings of their institution and the other foot in the wider world outside, and trying to marry the two. With multiple stakeholders to keep satisfied; students, applicants, faculty, Deans, corporate partners and alumni. It’s an exhaustive list.

Not long-ago PR and SEO were two different methods of engaging the public or stakeholders, but things have changed. Now that the media landscape has become more digital and Google has placed more of a focus on the quality and relevance of your content, as well as the quality of the site – it is so important for institutions to use both PR and SEO to promote their content even further.

When looking for information on a university, or for a specific course to study, or even for how to boil an egg, we would all probably do the same thing: Google it. Then, when we choose which website to visit, it’s probably going to be from the first page of results. The top results you see depend on the SEO ranking of the content on that site. But what exactly is SEO?

If you’re familiar with business schools you will know just how important accreditations are. Speak to any business school students and they would advise you to seek out and apply to an accredited business school. Speak to any business school Dean and they will talk about the importance of the ‘triple accreditation’.

Institutions can highlight their successful partnerships through PR activity – and attract new ones in the process Business schools are natural partners for many organisations, from big corporate companies to charities and non-profits. These partnerships work both ways – from the partner’s side of things, many organisations see partnering with business schools as an opportunity to give themselves an edge over the competition, as well as giving them access to some of the world’s best business talent of the future. From a business school perspective, big partnerships can bring successful internship opportunities for their students, international study trips, consulting projects as part of courses, and ultimately recruitment opportunities for their graduates. It is therefore essential that business schools highlight their successful partnerships through PR activity so they can not only showcase the fantastic work they are doing together, but to also attract further partners in the future, and potential students.

Business schools and universities are successful for a whole host of reasons – their longevity, their location, their contribution to the society around them, but their life blood is the quality of their teaching and research – and for this they need the best academics.

You might not answer work calls or respond to emails after 5pm, but you are probably unable to escape the presence of social media. Even after clocking off from work, most of us will spend some time in the evening scrolling through the multitude of platforms available. And that’s not the only time we’ll find ourselves scrolling throughout the day.