According to research email marketing measures a Return of Investment at 4300%, and converts at a rate three times higher than social media. Recipients are three times more likely to respond to a request or call to action, such as a prompt to apply for admission or to connect with an admissions advisor. Targeted emails may be your first strategy for promoting a new course.
Linked to effective email marketing is having a website that is engaging and has great content. Include on your webpages an opt-in pop up box to contact an admissions advisor or to enroll.
Source: Endurance
Take a critical look at your website. Does it reflect your school? Has it been updated to include additional programs? If you are branching out into new markets, does it appeal to the students, parents and agents in these new markets? Ask people for feedback about your website and if necessary, pay a professional to revamp it.
- The best tool in your marketing campaign is well-polished, professional website. This will enhance your professionalism. Your website can show prospective students that you are a trustworthy language course provider
- A website allows you to develop your brand in a more aggressive way than ad placements will permit.
- Emails are your sales tools in conjunction with your website promoting your school.
- Make sure you have an opt-in pop up box to capture prospective students who visit your website. (We use SumoMe)
Effective emails are short and to the point. Nobody likes to read long wordy emails so you need to get your message across effectively. What do your students want most from your services? Tell them this in as few words as possible and have an eye-catching title in your subject heading
Your school most likely has a list of students who have already attended your school. You can start with these. Be careful not to sound impersonal, when writing your emails.
Tips on creating effective emails for you language school marketing:
- Use bulleted lists, headline and short paragraphs so it is easy to scan
- Use a person’s name and don’t sound too formal
- Segment your and send emails directly targeted for their needs. Analyse customer data. Segment your students by proficiency level and other factors. Which students have a higher value?
- Concentrate on the benefits to your students, not the features, for example compare: “Our program is 10 weeks long and we offer classes at the beginning, intermediate or advanced levels” to “Whether your level is beginner, intermediate or advance we have a 10 week comprehensive program to fit your needs”
- Proofread for typos and you are giving the correct information
- Do a test run, making sure all the links work and it can be read on a mobile phone
- Have links to social media
- Email a newsletter at least monthly
Automated Emails
In general automated emails are used when a series of emails are sent out automatically, referred to as drip email marketing. They can segment your students and others so that the right people get the appropriate emails. Different emails have different features. However it may take an IT savvy person, or your website develop to integrate your emails with your website’s “opt in” or “contact us” pages or pop up boxes. Capturing new email addresses from your website means you can contact prospective new students who visit your website.
We recommend Mailchimp, & Drip both have a free trial period so you can work out which product best suits your needs.
