Over the holiday break, I had a moment to catch up and review a great deal of higher education marketing materials: newsletters, blogs, videos, and Linkedin posts. Watch out 2013! Based on the number of times the words “Disruption”, “Interruption,” and “Innovation” appeared, I would say that the evolution of higher education marketing is continuing and that we are in for some major changes this year!

Here are my predictions for 2013 regarding what will impact recruitment marketing significantly.

Prediction #1: PPC, PPL, and CPC are Out

As we talk to many of our clients and examine what is working on the marketing front (not just getting leads into the front end of the funnel, but actually looking at what leads are converting), I believe that dependence on lead aggregators will dwindle.  Topics such as inbound marketing will surge to the forefront of conversation in regards to recruitment marketing.

Prediction #2: Big Data, Analytics, and SEO are In

‘Tis the year of getting your house in order via big data.  More colleges and universities will invest in training for their teams on how to best use analytics to understand web site traffic and overall prospective student engagement. SEO will no longer only be whispered in the interactive media department, but admissions marketing teams across the country will start asking for keyword rankings/reports and use this information strategically to further their marketing efforts.  Higher education institutions across the country will line item a position in the budget or find a partner who can assist them with this effort.

Prediction #3: Mobile, Mobile, Mobile

Mobile technology, tablet viewership of web sites, and smartphone usage will become pillars of your marketing conversations.  Giving thought to mobile access, mobile viewership, mobile ads, and what types of mobile devices are most important to your users will be paramount.  Determining the form in which you allow prospective students to engage, whether it be via mobile app or mobile-optimized web sites, will be key.

It is an exciting time to lead the charge as a higher education marketer.  The tools and technologies that exist to target and communicate with our prospective students more effectively are here.  Let’s embrace those tools strategically and vow that 2013 is the year of data-driven decision making.