Transcript Document

CCCU
Critical Concerns
Conference
Tampa 2003
CCCU Market Research 101
January 16, 2003
Formal Research
“Attitudinal Study of Prospects,
Inquirers, Parents of Inquirers, Nonmatriculants, and Matriculants”
Conducted in 1986 and again in 2000
for the CCCU
Goals of the Workshop
 Explain the goals of the research
 Brief description of methodology
 Summarize highlights of findings
 Recommendations from Maguire Associates
Goals of the Research
 Gain longitudinal perspective of the college search
process
 Monitor shifts since 1986 in family priorities in
making college choices
 Track changes in the overall image of Christian
colleges and universities since 1986
 Assess market perceptions of the quality of Christcentered colleges in 1986 and today
 Determine how families define value in education
 Provide “big picture” themes and identify the most
powerful messages to portray what is distinctive
about Christian colleges and universities
Research Audiences
R is in g
J u n io rs
R is in g
S e n io rs
2002
2001
H ig h
School
G ra d u a te s
2000
In q u ire rs /
P a re n ts
In q u ire rs /
P a re n ts
P ro s p e c ts
A d m itte d
S tu d e n ts
1986
P ro s p e c ts
1986
In q u ire rs
5
“We know these things for sure.”
 The college search is starting earlier for families.
 The use and influence of the Web represents a
major change in market behavior.
 Public universities are major competitors of
Christian colleges and universities.
 The phrase “liberal arts” is not helpful in clarifying
image or communicating value.
 The Christian mission plays a major role in the
college decision-making process.
“We know these things for sure.”
 Because of its perceived fragmentation, a Christian
campus experience is an underdeveloped building
block of the Christian identity.
 Prospective students have concerns about the
relationship between the Christian influence and
intellectual life.
 Academic excellence is intertwined with preparation
for the future.
 Parents are more involved in the college search in
the CCCU market.
 Perceptions of value are shaped by impressions of
an institution’s ability to offer tangible outcomes and
cultivate character development.
Research Highlights:
Timing for Admissions
Marketing
 Prospective students are beginning the
search process earlier, many before the
junior year in high school.
 Parents are starting even earlier.
Timing of College Search (2000)
50
40
28.2%
27.4%
30
21.0%
21.0%
18.0%
20
10
0
19.6%
17.1%
8.8% 8.8%
5.9%
6.0%
B e f o re F re s hm a n
Year
3.5%
B e f o re F re s hm a n
Year
D uring S o pho m o re
Year
Inquirers
B e f o re m id- po int
o f J unio r Y e a r
S pring o f J unio r
Year
S um m e r a f t e r
J unio r Y e a r
Parents of Inquirers
5.8%
2.4%
F a ll o f S e nio r Y e a r
Research Highlights:
Use of Information Sources
 Personal contacts and printed materials are
the most popular sources of information.
 The campus visit is the most powerful
recruitment tool at all stages of the search.
 Parents are more influential in the college
search than typically seen in the collegebound student marketplace.
Parents’ Influence in Choice of
College/University (2000)
(Very
Influential)
5
4
3.49
3.49
3.34
3.41
3.44
3
2
(Not at All
Influential)
1
Prospects
Inquirers
Parents of
Inquirers
NonMatriculants
Matriculants
Research Highlights:
Use of Information Sources
 Most prospective students are using the
Web at all levels of the college search.
 Students think of email and chat rooms as
“personal” communications.
Use of Source
100
93.0%
94.9%
80.7%
80
51.8%
60
47.3%
40
20
0
18.9%
7.0%
Printed materials
4.7%
The Internet
Yes
Personal
contacts
No
Personal
communication
via e-mail/chat
rooms
Research Highlights:
2000 and 1986 Comparisons
 The CCCU colleges and universities are
somewhat more visible in 2000 than they
were in 1986.
 The overall image of the CCCU colleges
and universities has improved slightly in
academic quality.
 Quality-of-life issues emerged as the most
positive feature of the CCCU schools in
1986 and in 2000.
Familiarity with Christian Liberal Arts
Colleges and Universities
(1986 vs. 2000)
(Totally 5
Familiar)
4
2.73
3.08
3.34
3.53
3.28
3
2.42
1.79 1.97
2
(Not at All
1
Familiar)
Prospects
Inquirers
1986
Non-Matriculants
2000
Matriculants
Research Highlights:
“Big Picture” Image Issues
 Students have a narrower and less positive
view than their parents of a Christian
educational experience.
 Christian-related issues affect prospective
students’ decisions throughout the
admissions funnel.
Research Highlights:
“Big Picture” Image Issues
 The concept of the liberal arts is not wellunderstood by the CCCU market.
 Top negatives focus on concerns about
small size and a sheltered, protected
environment.
Research Highlights:
Academic Quality Image Issues
 Prospective students and their parents think
about specific majors and future outcomes
when they measure academic quality.
 Prospective students tend to assume the
CCCU colleges and universities lack
academic rigor and intellectual freedom.
 An all-Christian faculty is less appealing to
prospective students than to their parents.
Research Highlights:
Student Life Image Issues
 Prospective students have a “siloed” image
of student life on Christian campuses.
 Prospective students are becoming
increasingly interested in:
Personal growth
Development of moral character
Community service
Research Highlights:
Student Life Image Issues
 Impressions of social life become more
influential at the enrollment decision stage.
 Understanding of the integration of faith and
living as well as faith and learning evolves; it
is not immediately grasped by prospective
students.
Research Highlights:
Financial Issues
 Prospective students tend to think about
“sticker price;” parents about net cost.
 Perceptions of value are closely linked to
academic quality, preparation for the future,
and character development.
 Parents want evidence of the marketability
of the degree and personal growth.
Research Highlights:
Competitive Positioning Issues
 Among prospects, top competitors tend to
be public universities.
 Among inquirers, there is a shift toward
private universities.
 Among accepted students, they hone in on
Christian colleges and universities.
Research Highlights:
Competitive Positioning Issues
 Comparative CCCU assets are:
Spiritual growth and spiritual character of
fellow students
Academic quality of students
Overall quality of education
Academic reputation
Preparation for careers
Research Highlights:
Competitive Positioning Issues
 Comparative CCCU liabilities are:
Cost
Recreational opportunities
Research Highlights:
Competitive Positioning Issues
 Prospect to inquirer conversions are
stimulated by positive impressions of:
Opportunities for spiritual growth
Spiritual characteristics of fellow students
Research Highlights:
Competitive Positioning Issues
 Inquirer to accepted student conversions
are stimulated by positive impressions of:
Overall quality of education
Social life
 Cost was the only feature of Christian
colleges and universities that was not
perceived more positively by matriculants.
Hallmark Themes for the CCCU
 Academic Quality: A high-quality education
in a secular world.
 Christian-centered Community: A close-knit,
Christian community that emphasizes
character development and spiritual growth.
 Future Orientation: Preparation for life as
well as a living.
 Financial Investment: The value proposition.
Academic Quality
 Theme: A high-quality education in a secular world.
 Introduces the Christian focus
 Positions against public and private secular
competitors
 Acknowledges concerns about invasion of
voiceless/faceless world
 Can convey freedom of intellectual inquiry
 Sets foundation for integration of faith and
learning
Christian-centered Community
 Theme: A close-knit, Christian community
that emphasizes character development
and spiritual growth.
Highlights character development
Distinguishes spiritual growth opportunities
Enhances appreciation for value
Develops understanding of integration of
faith and living
Future Orientation
 Theme: Preparation for life as well as a
living.
Addresses interest in careers
Advances concept of development of
whole person
Provides foundation for moral and spiritual
lifestyle
Raises the bar for definition of success
Financial Investment
 Theme: The value proposition.
Create a succinct statement
Fold in essential elements of first three
hallmark statements
Write to parent audience
Connect to cost discussions at all times
Short-term Strategies:
Admissions Marketing
 Begin direct marketing efforts to prospective
students early.
 Build communications flows based on the first point
of contact, not the calendar.
 Develop a parent communications plan.
 Offer a service orientation to early inquirers.
 Anticipate the composition of the competition set at
each stage of the admissions funnel in developing
strategic communications.
Short-term Strategies:
Admissions Marketing
 Be bold in defining the uniqueness of the
Christian experience, but use “cascading”
language.
 Monitor the effectiveness of on-campus
visits at all stages of the recruitment cycle.
 Increase emphasis on all dimensions of the
social experience, especially at the
acceptance stage.
Short-term Strategies:
Communications/PR
 Use the hallmark themes from the research
to develop a distinctive institutional identity.
 Prepare a signature statement that both
captures the institutional identity and
supports the CCCU organization.
 Develop a definition of academic quality that
best describes the institution.
Short-term Strategies:
Communications/PR
 Create a distinctive, multi-dimensional
description of student life at the institution.
 Write a value proposition that augments the
signature statement.
Mid-term Strategies:
Admissions Marketing
 Collect tangible examples of academic quality from
the community:
 Challenge
 Student, faculty, and alumni achievements
 Positive changes in student profiles
 Emphasize faculty commitment to the development
of the whole person.
 Present evidence of quality and faculty commitment
at all stages of the recruitment cycle.
Mid-term Strategies:
Admissions Marketing
 Demonstrate how students get “real world”
experiences while still enrolled.
 Illustrate ways that students work together in
Christian and community service activities.
Mid-term Strategies:
Admissions Marketing
 Collect tangible evidence of outcomes.
 Talk about value in terms of investment in
preparation for future careers, character
development, and preparation for leading
responsible and fulfilling lives.
 Advance families’ understanding of net cost.
 Bring new technological systems to the financial aid
process.
Mid-term Strategies:
Communications/PR
 Adapt the CCCU hallmark themes to
develop institutional communications that
apply to all key stakeholder audiences.
 Choose a consistent institutional “look” to be
used for all constituencies.
 Use the CCCU logo to add visibility to the
organization.
Mid-term Strategies:
Communications/PR
 Develop messages describing Christian
fellowship on campus and its impact on all
aspects of student life.
 Align personal growth with spiritual
development to distinguish the Christian
environment.
Long-term Strategies:
Admissions Marketing
 Develop awareness among prospective students
and their parents of the larger community of
Christian colleges and universities.
 Continue to develop electronic recruitment vehicles
and strategies.
 Seek compatible organizations for hyperlinking
opportunities.
Long-term Strategies:
Communications/PR
 Strengthen the bond between the CCCU
and the institution for coordinated promotion
of a Christian education.
 Increase the public’s perception of the
overall value of a Christian education.
List long-term, value-added benefits
Link social life and social responsibility
Short-term Strategies:
Campus Team Activities
 Develop student and faculty profiles to be
used for various outreach activities.
Advantages of Christian faculty
Portrayal of whole person (students and
faculty)
 Develop a unique description of the intimacy
and the atmosphere of the campus
community.
Mid-term Strategies:
Campus Team Activities
 Begin re-allocating resources toward the
Web and other electronic communications.
 Make careful decisions about which print
media should be continued.
 Build a depth-and-breadth Web site for
admissions marketing and for key
audiences.
Long-term Strategies:
Campus Team Activities
 Create a distinctive set of messages for
campus-wide communication of the
institution’s approach to the liberal arts.
 Develop an ongoing institutional strategy for
communicating the concepts of:
Faith and learning
Faith and living