How Universities Can Use Social Media to Reach Students Worldwide
The time when companies could get away with using brochures and promotional videos to attract
talent from all over the world is over.
Mobile-first Gen Z and Gen Alpha, which make up the next talent pool, would most likely say that the answer is
never.
Presently, the digital front door of your university is your social media presence. This is where the very first
impressions happen, trust is established, and eventually, the choices for applications are made. If you are
still using old methods, then your Global student recruitment strategy is not going to be effective anymore. To
really get in touch with international students online, you shouldn't think of social media as a marketing task
that you have to do, but rather as your most influential international campus.
This is your actual guide on how to create a successful, human-centred
university social media marketing
strategy that can effectively lead followers to become students who enroll.
Why Social Media Is Essential for Global Student Recruitment?
Think about the student's decision-making process whose location is the other side of the world.
This is a massive spend of time, money, and future success. It is not only a comparison of programs that they
are making; risk and cultural fit are also part of their assessment.
Social media is bridging this huge gap. Studies keep showing that students are very dependent on digital means
when they have to choose universities, and thus, the first contact with your institution is most of the time
made through a rapid look at your Instagram or a short TikTok video. For colleges and universities that are
involved in Higher education marketing, this change is a must.
It is the quickest, most efficient method for a university to be able to take part in the complicated worldwide
education market, which currently involves over
6.9 million
internationally mobile students globally, according to
UNESCO data.
Understanding the Global Student Audience on Social Media
We are talking about a generation which prefers genuine qualities rather than things being too
perfect. They do not like the formal language of a corporation and nice, but unrealistic pictures. As a matter
of fact, they want universities to be very easy, immediate, and truly supportive.
The main problem of using social media for student recruitment is understanding that preferences for different
platforms change a lot depending on the region. For example, in some developing countries, Facebook may still be
very important for communicating with parents, whereas in others, the recruitment discussion is going on only at
platforms such as Instagram and YouTube. Your plan should still be very flexible to be able to come to these
students who already have their different places, and thus be able to send them such content that they will
consider as being their own and that you have promptly replied to them.
Best Social Media Platforms for Universities: A Platform Breakdown
You don't have to be everywhere, but you do have to be very strategic in the places you choose to
go. An effective university digital marketing plan adjusts the content depending on the channel.
Instagram
Instagram is ideally suited for the presentation of
life on campus, student takeovers, and stunning visuals that effectively demonstrate the experience. Fast,
attractive, and easy-to-understand shots of dorm life, labs, or cultural events can be found in Reels. It’s a
must for the rebranding of a University on social media in the modern world.
TikTok
Here, you reveal your true personality.
TikTok is not about the production of commercials with
high quality; rather, it is about short and snappy videos with the involvement of student ambassadors who are
giving the most relatable and honest views of the university experience. Being a little silly is not something
you should be afraid of—authenticity wins over perfection in this case.
YouTube
When serious research is needed,
YouTube is the place to go. To attract the audience,
create beautiful content such as complete campus tours, in-depth program explainer videos, and International
students' Vlogs. It’s very important to give such kind of high-quality information at the stage when the
decision is being made.
LinkedIn
Do not omit
LinkedIn from your marketing plan. The platform is ideal
for targeting parents, counsellors, and students who are career-oriented. Employ the platform to feature the
stories of the success of graduates, the breakthrough research of the university, and networking opportunities
via alumni.
Content Strategies That Help Universities Reach Students Worldwide
Your content has to be not only visually appealing but also culturally intelligent. Here is what
works the best:
Showcase Authentic Student Stories
Peer-to-peer communication is the best way of getting the point across. Create "Day in the Life"
videos, Q&A sessions, and international student profiles. Students who are already there can tell other
students what is good and what is bad about studying abroad. This is the heart of the university's efficient
social media marketing, which is mostly the case since parents are often part of the decision: QS research
indicates that as much as
60% of students say their parents are the ones who have the most influence on their
final decision.
Use Localized and Culturally Relevant Content
Worldwide content is not targeted at anyone specifically. You have to be absolutely certain that you will tailor
your messages. Present the educational programs that will lead to career paths that will be attractive in the
student's local area, and also make sure that your photos show the diversity of your international student
community. Speaking the student's language - both literally and culturally - is the basis. We have already
talked about the importance of language in our related guide:
Why Universities Must Speak Students' Languages .
Highlight Programs, Careers & Outcomes
Students and their parents are extremely practical. Put the statistics on job placements, the number of industry
partnerships and accreditations in infographics and carousels. Such content leads the student to move from the
"dream" to the "planning" stage.
Create Highly Engaging Visual Content
On Instagram and TikTok, for example, visuals that can stop a user from scrolling through his/her feed are the
main thing. Bring into play the high-impact Reels, Stories, and animated infographics. Top Universities suggests
that colleges utilise these visually-driven formats not only to quickly grab the attention but also to
efficiently communicate the complex information.
Real-Time Engagement
Must be very quick. Live Q&A sessions with the admissions officers and students who are currently enrolled
are a good idea. Use DMs and comments as recruitment tools that are always on. The difference between a timely
human response leading to a further inquiry and then suddenly being ghosted can be as small as a
DM.
Paid Social Media Advertising to Reach Global Students
Organic reach is difficult, but well-executed paid campaigns can bring your university to the
exact audience that you need. Digital marketing for universities is a matter of extreme precision.
There are platform tools that you can use to target students based on very exact factors:
Geotargeting: It allows you to be very specific about which cities or regions you want to focus on in
the markets that are most important to you.
Interest-Based Targeting: The ads could be shown to those users who are following the competitors or
are indicating, as a by-product of their activities, that they are interested in certain academic subjects
(for instance, engineering, film studies).
Retargeting: The idea is to keep in touch with those students who have looked through your program
pages and, however, have not yet applied.
Custom Audiences: Impart the information regarding the scholarship campaign or, if it
is the case, remind the deadline of the application directly to those users who have a profile similar to
that of your best applicants.
The accuracy is extremely important; in fact, one of the main points made by marketing experts is that the basis
for successful digital advertising is to
link your social
media KPIs (such as Cost-per-Lead) directly to higher-level business objectives.
Role of Student Ambassadors & User-Generated Content
Students trust each other more than institutions. That's the reality of the digital world.
Therefore, your international students are the best brand storytellers for you.
Try to introduce a formal ambassador program where the students of today make platform-specific content that
looks real and as if it were done by a peer. They can handle regional takeovers, answer DMs in the local time
zone, and make culturally specific campaigns. This not only relieves your content team of the heavy workload
but, at the same time, student engagement and credibility skyrocket.
Research
shows that student ambassador programs significantly boost digital interactions and build trust, with
prospective students frequently reporting that peer-to-peer connections were the most helpful part of their
decision process.
Challenges Universities Face and How to Overcome Them
The problem of operating a worldwide social media machine is that it is not easy.
The challenge of Content Consistency: How can you keep the voice of your university the same while
changing the content for two completely different cultures?
Solution: Create a brand guide that is both strict and flexible. Establish the very core of the
mission, which is never changed, but still allows the regional teams or ambassadors to alter the tone and
use different examples.
Resource Management: Handling 5-10 platforms in numerous regions with a small staff of people is very
tiring.
Solution: Bringing together management tools in one place. Employ a scheduling platform and direct
your energies towards the 2-3 platforms that yield the highest ROI for your target markets.
Cultural Adaptation: The wrong cultural move can result in a disaster. We have already talked about
the localization necessity, but it is worth repeating: The success of your digital campaign depends on
whether you get this right or not. Read more information about how you can be sure that your message is
delivered properly:
How Localized Digital Campaigns Help Universities Win Over Global Students .
Conclusion
Social media can no longer be considered a 'nice-to-have' accessory in higher education
marketing. In fact, it is the most vital part of your global recruitment strategy. If you want to achieve great
success, it is necessary to combine imaginative and genuine content with a rigorous and data-driven
approach.
Don’t keep asking students to come to your digital door. Use student recruitment through social media as a way to
meet them exactly where they are on their phone, in their language, talking about their future.
Be a part of the latest change in the way higher education is marketed. Stay connected from
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changing landscape of higher education and valuable information about how to stay on top of your international
competition.
26-05-2023
American University of Ras Al Khaimah 
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