How to Make a Higher-Ed Website More Enrollment Focused - an episode with Bart Caylor

My latest guest first appeared in my car’s speakers as I headed southbound on Georgia SR 400, ready to start a new career. I needed to learn about higher-ed marketing fast, and The Higher Ed Marketer podcast, co-hosted by Bart Caylor, gave me practical higher-ed marketing insights I could use immediately. Bart, a graduate of Anderson University with a degree in graphic design, always knew he wanted to help people succeed and help them solve complex problems. A career in marketing gave him that outlet as he built his first website for his alma mater in 1997. Bart worked for major corporations and various nonprofit organizations throughout his marketing career. However, no project gave him more joy than the one he completed for Anderson U in ’97. In 2011, after the great recession, Bart started Caylor Solutions. His marketing agency works with education organizations to improve communication, enrollment, and development efforts through strategic brand, marketing, websites, print, and digital collateral.He’s a serial content creator, and when I asked him about his approach to cranking out consistent, relevant content, he said: “You want to be useful to people, as opposed to just promotional. The organizations who educate are the ones who succeed, not the ones who promote.” He meets with his team twice a year to brainstorm higher-ed marketing trends and concerns and creates an editorial calendar from the information gathered. His editorial calendar, however, is a living document, and he’s been known to call audibles from time to time depending on the latest technology changes that may affect the industry, e.g., ChatGPT and generative AI.AdvertisementsREPORT THIS ADAlways on the pulse of what’s going on in higher-ed marking, Bart knows that a school’s website is the first and most important tool for enrollment marketing.Four ways to make a website more enrollment-focused:Know who’s it for (students, caretakers, etc.)Tailor it to your prospect’s needsMake it understandable (cut academic jargon)Show outcomes (ROI/social proof)Three ways prospects get to a higher-ed website:Legacy (family members attended)Influencers (teacher, coach, or pastor told them)Discovery (people find a school through searchOf course, given the nature of this platform, be sure to follow Bart on LinkedIn for the latest higher-ed marketing news, updates, and content strategy tips, and listen to his podcast, The Higher Ed Marketer Podcast, which releases new episodes every Tuesday morning. Remember to listen to the full interview on my YouTube channel by visiting the link in the comments below for more insights on making your website more enrollment focused. Bart, thank you for your continued support and the value you bring to the higher-ed industry. Until next time. ✌️Advertisements