I have had a lot of marketing conversations lately that have led me back to sharing my foundamental marketing belief - it's all about your current customers.
I don't care what industry you are in. The core of your business are your current customers and they always need to be an audience of focus. They are your brand. They know your value proposition better than you do. They are your best marketing strategy. Their referrals, their word of mouth, and even their bad reviews can make or break your year.
In thinking of my current industry, this has been a weakness in many higher ed institutions for many, many years. The focus has always been on the prospective student, the alumni base, recruiters, the foundation, etc. At the end of the day, what are each of those audiences looking at? The current student experience. It all comes back to the current students. Are they happy? Are they thriving? Are they valuing their investment? Are they worth an investment?
So why do so many businesses and institutions ignore this important audience? Why do they refuse to focus any marketing efforts on the service provided to and the experience of their current customers?
It's understandable to want to move forward and look for that next big sale and grow your customer base. At the end of the day, it obviously needs to grow. It just cannot be at the sacrifice of your current customers. Losing one current customer with that bad experience can have a far more negative impact than the benefit of gaining one new customer.
Agreed. But how do you influence all the relevant facets of the "total student experience" (which essentially incorporates all aspects of the university) as well as focus on your own portfolio to your satisfaction?
ReplyDeleteIt has to start from the top. A strong leader, with buy-in from a just as strong leadership team of deans and directors within the school, can positively influence all facets. With this cooperation, a truly integrated and strategic communication effort school wide can impact the entire student experience. It NEEDS to be an intentional, concerted marketing effort, with the understanding that some other pieces will be pushed to the back burner. All departments and functions with the school (whether academic-related, student affairs, service groups) must be on board. If so, the effort will pay off and impact all other pieces of the portfolio. It makes the other aspects of your marketing strategy much, much easier when your best word of mouth marketers are happy.
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