University branding strategy

3 key challenges for Universities and how branding can help

Education institutes like yours have had 12 months to navigate to the ‘new normal’ and ensure they continue to provide excellent levels of education to their students.

3 key challenges for Universities

From increased digitalisation to rising domestic demand for places, here are some key issues facing higher education leaders this year and how your brand can help you overcome them.

#1. The digital revolution

Universities had to switch to online teaching and learning in early 2020. EdTech got the starring role that digital education specialists and CIOs had been predicting for a long time. The challenge came when IT departments had to deliver a four-year digital strategy plan in six weeks.

Now the dust has settled, what happens? Well, online learning is here to stay but there are a few points to be considered by higher education leaders in the digitalisation of their institutes:

What teaching will now be online and what should remain face-to-face?
Which parts of the university have legacy systems and now need to catch up?
What tools are here to stay and which ones didn’t cut the mustard? What is the EdTech equivalent of Kahoot?
Does the existing brand message and story align with the new ways we are delivering education? Is it meeting the change in demand from prospective students?

#2. Growing local demand

What seemed the end of Australian Universities with a drop of over 99.7% of incoming international students, might have become an opportunity to reinvent our higher education offering.

Universities face turning away hundreds of thousands of students next year as applications to study surge but available places remain fixed, as the pandemic hits employment and higher education policy.

Although Australian State Governments are working on different plans to trial the return of some students with quarantine arrangements in place, going back to 2019 standards seems unlikely at this point.

That said, an uncertain job market, higher unemployment, online education availability and the inability to have an overseas gap year has contributed to a growth in local demand for higher education opportunities in 2021.

Does a shift in demand require a shift in brand?

Demand has not only shifted in terms of the origin of students but also in what types of studies are now the ones that are experiencing the biggest growth.

Up until now a significant portion of marketing budgets would go into promoting Australian Universities to international markets. That isn’t a great option anymore and universities may need to turn their focus on the domestic market and their specific needs.

To meet this new demand the old approach simply won’t have the same impact or return. A critical shift in brand marketing and communication strategies may give universities the edge they are looking for.

#3. Marketing budgets slashed

Over the last decade, most universities have been upping their marketing spend to attract new students.

Given that government funding largely depends on how many students universities attract, it is not surprising that they are constantly turning up the heat to get more students to enrol in their institutions.

Has the pandemic put an end to this?

The pressure of the pandemic

The pandemic has put a number of internal marketing teams and their efforts in a state of flux.

Marketing teams have been hit hard
Many have been reduced to skeleton crews, yet still required to meet their usual KPI’s and expectations.
Marketing budgets have been stripped bare
Lavish marketing campaign budgets are under scrutiny as finances once relied upon are being shifted around to assist other internal departments, faculties and areas of focus deemed more important.

The pressure is rising and CMO’s and their marketing teams are feeling it.

In some cases, the pandemic has left internal teams with reduced capabilities and less capacity to deliver. Resulting in a need to look outwards for external support and different approaches. This is where having the right branding and marketing partner can make all the difference. Not only in continually building the right brand but also in using reduced budgets more effectively.

Students are now choosing where they study based on different criteria. It’s now critical for the success of educational institutes to align their brand messaging to the new needs of prospective students.

We can help

How Alto helps Universities

Alto have over 15 years of experience helping organisations in the education and knowledge sector transform their brand. Amongst others, we have helped transform Universities, TAFE’s and Registered Training Organisations in:

Student Recruitment Campaigns

Position yourself as the best option for prospects

Brand Awareness Campaigns

Build more recognion around your brand offering

Market Positioning

Own a unique place in the competitive landscape

Brand Differentiation

Stand out in a hyper-competitive marketplace

Good friends of Alto

“This is the campaign that the industry has been talking about creating for years”

Karen Hook – Former Chief Marketing Officer / William Angliss Institute

Find out more

We’d love to help!

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ALTO

Creative Brand, Marketing and Communications for Universities

Creative Marketing Campaigns

Reach more students. Build brand awareness.

There’s no lack of choice when it comes to study options and pathways. Want to position your courses as the best option for prospective students? Or is your aim to build more brand awareness in the hyper-competitive tertiary landscape? Alto has the expertise to create campaigns that have real impact.

Positioning and Differentiation

Stand out or stand aside.

Where you study is no longer defined by where you live. Meaning today’s students have almost endless options available to them both locally and internationally. What’s this mean for your brand? It has to connect and resonate with prospective students like never before. Alto’s team of brand strategists can help you develop your brand, its story and its unique place in the market.