Meeting Students Where They Are: An In-Depth Look at RNL’s Enable Service

Picture this…Sally Smith is a professional in a specialized career and wishes to continue her education. Through a search (and some magic algorithmics) she has found the perfect niche program at ABC University and requests more information. To her surprise, she is contacted within minutes about her interest and is then transferred to an ABC University enrollment coach, whom she will work with for the remainder of her experience. This coach will be by Sally’s side walking her through the admission process, helping her register for classes, aiding in identifying issues that may cause friction, and ultimately coaching her to graduation and beyond. This example is the premier standard for the delivery of graduate and online education, and RNL is the leading provider.

In today’s rapidly evolving educational landscape, colleges and universities are facing both unprecedented challenges and exponential growth opportunities. As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, traditional models of higher education are being reimagined to meet the diverse needs of learners from all walks of life. One of the most significant transformations taking place is the exploration and expansion of graduate and online education.

When colleges and universities begin the daunting process of understanding how to meet the unique needs of adult and online students, university leadership is often guilty of ignoring market trends and expectations, and then applying engagement and communication strategies that fit the academic environment rather than the needs and demands of prospective students.

In the current market of savvy customers, students expect personalization, authenticity, and speed. And we, as higher education professionals, have a great opportunity to adapt and centralize the student journey.

So, how do we meet these students, like Sally, where they are? Meet RNL Enable.

Premier solutions, exclusive access

RNL Enableis a fully managed recruitment option that provides your institution with a comprehensive suite of services and technology to power enrollment growth and shaping across the student lifecycle. Outlined below are several factors that make Enable unique to the graduate and online landscape in higher education.

Enrollment focused, rather than being driven by lead generation

We focus on enrollment data and not just lead generation. That means that we optimize and focus our strategy on getting you inquiries that match your ideal applicants. We then move them through the funnel by focusing on engaging marketing techniques and strategies that make enrolling an enjoyable and streamlined experience for the student.

An aligned, omnichannel approach to marketing

When it comes to a robust marketing strategy, we use it all! We tailor a portfolio of strategies to reach your students, so they are getting the appropriate messaging, engagement, and information all the way from when they first request information to when they enroll.

High utilization of in-house services

Through Enable, we will staff a team of RNL representatives who are responsible for acting on behalf of the client in multiple aspects of campus administration including strategic planning, enrollment marketing, enrollment operations, retention services, and academic services.

Agile strategies that can be adjusted to fit goals

The most important aspect of enable is that this is not a “set it and forget it” partnership. We are constantly evaluating data and optimizing our strategy to ensure we are getting the absolute best performance and enhanced student satisfaction during the tenure of our partnership.

Centralizing the student journey

Now that you have a general understanding of Enable, let’s break down the main areas of focus—lead conversion, engagement, yield, and student success.

We begin our process with strategy and consulting to determine the optimal strategies for meeting market demand, assessing your programs, and reaching your enrollment goals. We also use market research and insights to uncover which graduate and online programs are in demand and which will be the most successful programs for your college or university.

Phase 1: Maximizing lead conversion

From the first point of contact, timely response is a hugely important factor in the enrollment decision, with more than 60 percent of graduate and online students indicating that they are likely to enroll at the institution that first responds to their RFI. RNL Enable partners boast an average speed-to-lead time of 60 seconds. That immediate contact yields major results.

Enable supports an increase in qualified leads through compelling digital marketing that engages the right students for your programs. We focus on enrollment marketing—not just lead generation—putting the right students into the funnel for producing high quality inquiries and high down funnel conversion rates. We do this through an omnichannel marketing strategy including digital display ads, retargeting, social media ads, SEM and SEO, location-based ads, and landing pages or microsites.

Phase 2: Focusing on engagement

Once a student is qualified for the program, our experienced recruitment team engages prospective graduate and online students with relevant personalized messaging, inspired digital marketing, and high-touch coaching strategies that align with your enrollment goals.

As students begin exploring opportunities and features of the program, we are focused on guiding them along their path with the ultimate goal of applying. At RNL, our focus is on coaching for academics, coaching for career, and coaching for life. We take pride in a structured coaching model with RNL Enable coaches who get to know the students, their goals, and what may be holding them back from achievement.

Our enrollment team touts a 30-day qualified inquiry-to-application submit window with 45 percent of inquiries submitting and application, and 70 percent of those applicants completing their application process.

Phase 3: Optimizing yield and enrollment

Once a prospective student has been admitted to the institution, RNL coaches provide the proactive outreach and support to ensure students are armed with the knowledge and information to be successful and prepare to start classes. We make this a warm, friendly, and individualized experience for each student.

In this phase, the enrollment team will walk through academic planning with each student so they can see what is ahead and grasp the big picture of their entire degree plan. Due to the relationship that coaches forge with students, we see an 85 percent admit-to-registration rate.

Phase 4: Enhancing retention and persistence to graduation

RNL Enable maximizes student persistence through academic advising and student success coaching that covers academics and career advancement. We incorporate enrollment, academic, and behavioral data into predictive retention models to identify which students are most likely to struggle. Similarly, our success coaches will proactively reach out to those students before they are at risk of stopping out, ensuring that more persist and continue toward their educational goals.

Again, through our coaching, level of persistence, and student support our enrollment teams have produced persistence from semester to semester at an average rate of 89 percent, which leads to an overall new start to graduation rate of 70 percent.

These metrics and examples are just a few illustrations of how our brand direct marketing, high touch enrollment and success coaching process, and agility in strategy have demonstrated results for our partners and successful futures for students across the country.