Be Like Disney: Reimagining Campus Visits w/ Dr. Tony Turner

WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.879 --> 00:00:07.190 You were listening to the Higher Ed Marketer, a podcast geared towards marketing professionals 2 00:00:07.230 --> 00:00:11.910 in higher education. This show will tackle all sorts of questions related to student 3 00:00:11.949 --> 00:00:16.230 recruitment, donor relations, marketing trends, new technologies and so much more. 4 00:00:16.989 --> 00:00:20.789 If you are looking for conversations centered around where the industry is going, this 5 00:00:20.989 --> 00:00:31.100 podcast is for you. Let's get into the show. Welcome to the High 6 00:00:31.140 --> 00:00:36.289 Ed Marketer podcast. I'm troy singer here with Bart Taylor, where we interview 7 00:00:36.369 --> 00:00:41.250 weekly High Ed marketers that we admire for the benefit and hopefully the betterment of 8 00:00:41.329 --> 00:00:46.649 the entire Higher Ed community. Usually we know the people that we are interviewing 9 00:00:46.729 --> 00:00:52.640 beforehand, but this next gentleman came to US recommended. His name is Dr 10 00:00:52.840 --> 00:00:57.799 Anthony Turner and he's currently the vice president of enrollment and marketing at Charleston Southern 11 00:00:57.840 --> 00:01:00.479 University. Bart, can you tell us a little bit about our guest today? 12 00:01:00.799 --> 00:01:06.390 Yeah, Tony came to US via James Steen on episode seventeen with Houston 13 00:01:06.430 --> 00:01:10.109 Baptist University. When we interviewed James he said, Hey, I think that 14 00:01:10.430 --> 00:01:12.349 I think this podcast is great, and here's some other folks that I think 15 00:01:12.349 --> 00:01:15.950 you ought to talk to and and Tony was one of them that he introduced 16 00:01:15.989 --> 00:01:19.180 us to, and Tony was in the midst of the transition. Every summer 17 00:01:19.219 --> 00:01:23.500 there's the musical chairs that starts in High Ed and you know, Tony grabbed 18 00:01:23.540 --> 00:01:29.379 his seat at southern Charleston Southern in South Carolina, and so we've had some 19 00:01:29.459 --> 00:01:32.500 pre interviews with him and one of the things I really like about Tony as 20 00:01:32.540 --> 00:01:36.250 he's very personable, he's down to Earth and I think a lot of what 21 00:01:36.370 --> 00:01:40.250 he's going to talk about. Not only is it practical and pragmatic that really 22 00:01:40.290 --> 00:01:42.290 anybody can do it any size of institution, but I really like the fact 23 00:01:42.290 --> 00:01:48.159 that he is just so authentic and and that really comes across in his personality, 24 00:01:48.519 --> 00:01:52.760 but it also comes across and how he leverages that authenticity for the marketing 25 00:01:52.840 --> 00:01:56.519 of of the institution. And so I think there's some really good points to 26 00:01:56.599 --> 00:02:01.829 take away from this particular podcast. Wonderful. Now let's bring into the conversation 27 00:02:02.430 --> 00:02:08.990 Dr Anthony Turner. Bart and I would like to welcome Dr Anthony Turner, 28 00:02:09.030 --> 00:02:15.469 Vice President of enrollment in marketing at Charleston Southern University, to the High Ed 29 00:02:15.550 --> 00:02:21.460 Marketer podcast and earlier Anthony told us that most of his friends refer to him 30 00:02:21.500 --> 00:02:24.379 ass Tony, and he gave me permission to do that too. So welcome 31 00:02:24.460 --> 00:02:29.939 to the PODCAST, Tony Hey, thanks for having me. Troy and bar 32 00:02:30.169 --> 00:02:34.009 thank you for having me here. I'm looking forward to our conversation together, 33 00:02:34.969 --> 00:02:38.770 as are we, and what we had talked about earlier I can't wait to 34 00:02:38.889 --> 00:02:43.490 share with our listeners. And if you would, Tony, give us a 35 00:02:43.530 --> 00:02:49.319 little bit about yourself and your role at Charleston southern. Sure. So, 36 00:02:49.919 --> 00:02:55.560 I recently transition to Charleston Southern and universe city, and so some people would 37 00:02:55.560 --> 00:03:00.550 say I'm wet behind the ears here at Charleston southern. So I'm still getting 38 00:03:00.590 --> 00:03:06.310 my bearings or whatnot. But when it comes to enrollment, I've been in 39 00:03:06.389 --> 00:03:12.310 the enrollment field for about twelve years. I've worked at two, actually three 40 00:03:12.310 --> 00:03:16.900 other institutions, and so one in Pennsylvania, one in Chicago, and actually 41 00:03:17.340 --> 00:03:23.180 worked at a for profit school, also in Chicago, and so there are 42 00:03:23.340 --> 00:03:28.930 distinct differences between working a for profit school and a nonprofit school, and that's 43 00:03:28.969 --> 00:03:32.689 for a different day and a different segment and time. But but I've been 44 00:03:32.729 --> 00:03:39.129 in the enrollment field ever since really early two thousands working as a missions counselor 45 00:03:39.169 --> 00:03:43.479 all the way to a vice president. So I feel like I've been in 46 00:03:43.599 --> 00:03:47.400 every single role and have a pretty good graphs of just enrollment in general. 47 00:03:47.919 --> 00:03:53.879 And then my educational background is least my doctorates in higher read, and so 48 00:03:53.599 --> 00:03:57.990 I guess you can say I have been bitten by the Higher Ed bug. 49 00:03:58.430 --> 00:04:04.110 In so it's my life and I thoroughly enjoy working in higher education. That's 50 00:04:04.110 --> 00:04:06.870 great. Thanks, Tony, for kind of that introduction and I think that 51 00:04:08.030 --> 00:04:10.419 you know, we have, we always have a pre conversation with our guests 52 00:04:10.500 --> 00:04:14.300 and I know we talked earlier just about some of the things that you drive 53 00:04:14.419 --> 00:04:15.819 that passion that you have a high ed and I think one of them that 54 00:04:16.339 --> 00:04:20.100 really stuck out to troy and I was this idea of being authentic with your 55 00:04:20.139 --> 00:04:24.100 inner actions with your future students, and I think a lot of people would, 56 00:04:24.449 --> 00:04:27.209 you know, certainly you know not their head to that pretty quickly, 57 00:04:27.329 --> 00:04:29.649 but tell us a little bit about what you mean by that, because I 58 00:04:29.689 --> 00:04:33.009 think that sometimes that's not always the case, even in our best intentions. 59 00:04:33.050 --> 00:04:38.680 Yeah, yeah, I'd love to talk about that, and so I think 60 00:04:38.920 --> 00:04:41.800 you know all of us that work in enrollment. You know, we work 61 00:04:41.879 --> 00:04:46.439 with numbers all the time and I often tell my staff, you know, 62 00:04:46.600 --> 00:04:49.560 enrollment is one of those areas where on a college campus you feel like you 63 00:04:49.680 --> 00:04:53.829 live in a fish poll. Everybody knows your business. It could be, 64 00:04:54.189 --> 00:04:57.870 you know, the president or the janitor or whoever they say. They might 65 00:04:57.949 --> 00:05:00.670 come up to you say I hear enrollments down or you know, whatever you 66 00:05:00.790 --> 00:05:04.550 want to add to that. Everybody knows Your Business and so it's easy to 67 00:05:05.189 --> 00:05:09.060 get in this mode where you feel like, well, we've got to have 68 00:05:09.180 --> 00:05:13.139 so many students and you know and follow the math and the conversion rates and 69 00:05:13.180 --> 00:05:15.939 all those numbers, and so sometimes you get in this pattern of just one 70 00:05:15.980 --> 00:05:19.660 family after another and trying to get those deposits, which are important, but 71 00:05:19.779 --> 00:05:24.970 then you kind of lose kind of that uniqueness of each family. And so 72 00:05:25.689 --> 00:05:31.329 what I hope to accomplish with with my team is that each individual student matters 73 00:05:31.529 --> 00:05:35.279 and and what I mean by that is that each student is a person. 74 00:05:35.360 --> 00:05:41.879 I'm sure all of you can remember a time, or maybe you have multiple 75 00:05:41.879 --> 00:05:46.480 experiences where when you go to a business or restaurant or somewhere fun where someone 76 00:05:46.560 --> 00:05:50.670 took particular interest in you and how that made you feel. I'm sure all 77 00:05:50.709 --> 00:05:54.550 of us have been in a place where we just feel like we're just a 78 00:05:54.629 --> 00:05:58.870 number, but when someone takes that time and is really personable with you, 79 00:05:59.550 --> 00:06:02.829 that makes you feel really special and you remember that experience in many times. 80 00:06:02.829 --> 00:06:06.579 You talk about that for many, many years and I'm sure we all have 81 00:06:06.740 --> 00:06:11.620 those unique experiences, whether it's that special cheacher that you had in high school 82 00:06:11.620 --> 00:06:15.540 or college or some personal front or whatever it is, you remember those moments. 83 00:06:15.779 --> 00:06:23.250 And so when it comes to enrollment, you have families that are different, 84 00:06:23.529 --> 00:06:28.569 you know, sizes, have different backgrounds, have different experiences, particularly 85 00:06:28.649 --> 00:06:32.279 those that are first generation families who have never embarked on this journey of a 86 00:06:32.360 --> 00:06:39.519 college search. In these families are overwhelmed, particularly today when you have college 87 00:06:39.639 --> 00:06:46.040 costs that seemed to continue to rise. There's over fourzero institutions in the US, 88 00:06:46.199 --> 00:06:49.509 all different shapes and sizes, so it's easy to be lost in that. 89 00:06:50.430 --> 00:06:55.029 And so how to use an institution stand out, and I really do 90 00:06:55.230 --> 00:07:00.110 believe that institutions really stand out when they start looking at families as as really 91 00:07:00.149 --> 00:07:04.339 as special people, in treating them in such a way that they feel like 92 00:07:04.459 --> 00:07:09.779 they're partnering with you in the process where they feel value, that they know 93 00:07:09.980 --> 00:07:12.339 that you know, you really did my best interest at heart, and not 94 00:07:12.540 --> 00:07:15.129 just looking at them as what we need, one more deposit, and so 95 00:07:15.490 --> 00:07:19.769 going the extra mile and making them feel special, because I guarantee you, 96 00:07:20.009 --> 00:07:25.209 when they're at home and they've visited four five colleges and they're at the kitchen 97 00:07:25.290 --> 00:07:28.850 table looking at the different colleges they visit, they're going to go down a 98 00:07:28.889 --> 00:07:30.360 list and when they see your school, that made me. went the extra 99 00:07:30.439 --> 00:07:33.680 mile, made them feel special, they're going to remember you say, you 100 00:07:33.720 --> 00:07:38.800 know what, that was a great experience. They really treating me as a 101 00:07:38.839 --> 00:07:42.160 person and there's a likelihood they're going to want to go with you because you 102 00:07:42.279 --> 00:07:46.029 saw them past then just a number, and being real and authentic with them, 103 00:07:46.069 --> 00:07:49.269 I think entails with that, and that one of the comment with that. 104 00:07:49.709 --> 00:07:55.430 It's also being really open and honest with them, and not saying you 105 00:07:55.509 --> 00:08:01.060 wouldn't be, but when you sit down talk about finances and and really explain 106 00:08:01.100 --> 00:08:01.779 to them, look, this is what the cause is going to be. 107 00:08:03.420 --> 00:08:05.300 You know, you might have a tenzero dollar gap and we would love for 108 00:08:05.339 --> 00:08:07.579 you to be here. How can we work through this and you have to 109 00:08:07.660 --> 00:08:11.660 be okay and say you know what, with what you're telling me, it 110 00:08:11.740 --> 00:08:16.569 might be a stretch and that's okay. Families would really appreciate you being open 111 00:08:16.649 --> 00:08:20.209 and honest with them and working with them then saying you know what, we'll 112 00:08:20.250 --> 00:08:22.649 figure it out. And then they get here, they had a bad experience 113 00:08:22.769 --> 00:08:26.160 and then they're going to feel like that you really did a bang switch on 114 00:08:26.279 --> 00:08:31.279 them, and so that's all part of being authentic with with families as you 115 00:08:31.399 --> 00:08:35.279 work with them. Tony, I really like what you said there because I 116 00:08:35.320 --> 00:08:39.399 think that that authenticity is so critical. It reminds me of a conversation we 117 00:08:39.519 --> 00:08:43.509 had in episode twenty two with Phil Cook. He's the new neck up executive 118 00:08:43.509 --> 00:08:46.509 director and was at Lee University and he really talked about, you know, 119 00:08:46.590 --> 00:08:50.950 the idea of selling that for your experience to the the future of students and 120 00:08:50.029 --> 00:08:54.940 families and the importance of that experience, and he also kind of talked about 121 00:08:54.940 --> 00:09:00.779 authenticity and talked about the idea of really making sure that you are genuine with 122 00:09:00.860 --> 00:09:03.860 them, because, I mean, he invites every family after they do the 123 00:09:03.179 --> 00:09:07.139 campus tour into his office just to kind of have a conversation with them and 124 00:09:07.179 --> 00:09:09.169 get to know them. And I think you're right. I think sometimes it's 125 00:09:09.210 --> 00:09:13.610 so easy when we're looking at numbers or feeling the heat from being in that 126 00:09:13.690 --> 00:09:18.889 fish bowl and having everybody kind of say, hey, how's enrollment? Where 127 00:09:18.889 --> 00:09:20.570 are the numbers at? You know, every week, that gets to be 128 00:09:20.610 --> 00:09:24.320 a little all but but I think being intentional, to being authentic, I 129 00:09:24.440 --> 00:09:28.840 think is a really good thing. And and are there things that that, 130 00:09:28.159 --> 00:09:31.639 as a at your level, advice president level, that you try to really 131 00:09:31.639 --> 00:09:35.360 go out of your way to make sure that happens? I mean, I'm 132 00:09:35.360 --> 00:09:37.559 not sure. Are you inviting everybody into your office or are you just making 133 00:09:37.590 --> 00:09:43.309 sure that you're around on those visit days and things like that? Usually I 134 00:09:43.549 --> 00:09:48.309 try to. So here's a perfect example. This morning we had we had 135 00:09:48.350 --> 00:09:52.590 about five guests that were that came in for visit today. I'm had a 136 00:09:52.669 --> 00:09:54.340 bunch of I had bunch of business cards and went out to the lobby. 137 00:09:54.379 --> 00:09:58.860 I said Hey, thank you for being here at CSU and I gave every 138 00:09:58.940 --> 00:10:01.100 single one of them one of my business cards. I said if you have 139 00:10:01.139 --> 00:10:05.779 any proms or issues, please let me know. And so, just being 140 00:10:05.899 --> 00:10:09.370 that personal, I'm just asking questions where you from and and asking those questions, 141 00:10:09.409 --> 00:10:13.450 even down to if they have like a little kid with them. You 142 00:10:13.529 --> 00:10:16.610 know, one of my counselors went and grabbed we have these eye patches that 143 00:10:16.730 --> 00:10:20.289 we give too because we're the buccaneers, and so we have an eye patches. 144 00:10:20.370 --> 00:10:26.000 So Hey, giving the little kid those patches and so making everybody feel 145 00:10:26.360 --> 00:10:30.440 welcome because even though that that little child is not going to enroll in college 146 00:10:30.480 --> 00:10:35.990 for a very long time, but just taking notice even in them makes the 147 00:10:35.070 --> 00:10:39.830 family feel like wow, they really are taking interest in the entire family and 148 00:10:39.029 --> 00:10:43.710 not just my son or daughter who's looking to enroll. So yeah, those 149 00:10:43.830 --> 00:10:48.389 those days. I try to get out. I still go out and recruit 150 00:10:48.909 --> 00:10:52.019 still so I will be at a fair or two Fars. Do I have 151 00:10:52.139 --> 00:10:54.059 to do? No, but I love doing it for arriety reasons, and 152 00:10:54.179 --> 00:11:00.659 so I'm still out there and I'm still recruiting. And just yesterday, I'm 153 00:11:00.659 --> 00:11:05.289 another example. I was at a restaurant with another peer of mine, one 154 00:11:05.289 --> 00:11:09.049 of the VP's, and we're describing a burger and as talking to the waitress 155 00:11:09.409 --> 00:11:13.769 just kind of sharing her story with me, and she's going back home on 156 00:11:13.970 --> 00:11:16.490 Sunday to take a gap year and I said, well, what are you 157 00:11:16.570 --> 00:11:18.120 interested in? And just start talking. I say, you know what, 158 00:11:18.320 --> 00:11:22.159 before you go home, you really should come to our school for a visit. 159 00:11:22.519 --> 00:11:24.879 Here on my business cards. While I got back to the office, 160 00:11:24.919 --> 00:11:26.000 she had emailed me and said, Hey, I really want to take up 161 00:11:26.000 --> 00:11:28.480 in an offer, and she was here at ten o'clock in the morning and 162 00:11:28.799 --> 00:11:33.830 went on at campus to her and so it's just those things that I think 163 00:11:33.870 --> 00:11:37.750 we need to take notice to be conscious of that really make a big difference. 164 00:11:37.789 --> 00:11:39.909 Yeah, yeah, I love that and I love the fact that we 165 00:11:39.990 --> 00:11:43.830 talked to so many of our guests about the idea of personalization. Than that, 166 00:11:43.950 --> 00:11:46.740 especially, everybody wants to be known, I mean especially generation Z. 167 00:11:46.899 --> 00:11:50.019 I think they really have that that kind of hardwired into them, and when 168 00:11:50.059 --> 00:11:54.139 we take the chance to be authentic and and intentional with them, I think 169 00:11:54.179 --> 00:11:58.659 that really does really pay off in big ways. So I'll go ahead and 170 00:11:58.179 --> 00:12:01.529 think troy has another question. Yes, along the lines of what we've talked 171 00:12:01.570 --> 00:12:07.970 about of being authentic. I also know that you like to create unique experiences 172 00:12:07.129 --> 00:12:13.490 when potential students come onto your campus for a visit, and you've even described 173 00:12:13.490 --> 00:12:18.879 it as creating a Disney experience. If you could described everyone what you mean 174 00:12:18.960 --> 00:12:22.759 by that. Yeah, it's great. So, you know, you hear 175 00:12:22.879 --> 00:12:26.720 the the saying that Disney is the most magical place on earth and you know, 176 00:12:26.759 --> 00:12:30.549 I think it is, until you're on the long lines waiting to get 177 00:12:30.549 --> 00:12:33.389 on a ride or something. Then you know, my opinion changes a little 178 00:12:33.429 --> 00:12:37.590 bit. But but you know, when you go there, everybody's smiling. 179 00:12:37.909 --> 00:12:43.190 You know, it doesn't matter what their job is, that there's this almost 180 00:12:43.230 --> 00:12:46.779 seems like a euphoria, almost, that they're all just really excited to be 181 00:12:46.980 --> 00:12:50.139 there. And kids, it doesn't matter what their ages are, they're just 182 00:12:50.340 --> 00:12:54.659 really excited to be there. And so Disney's done a really good job of 183 00:12:54.899 --> 00:12:58.370 just sharing with people, Hey, this is who we are, and when 184 00:12:58.409 --> 00:13:03.730 you go there you just feel the energy, in the excitement and that you 185 00:13:03.929 --> 00:13:07.370 just want to want to be there those magical moments. And I just remember 186 00:13:07.409 --> 00:13:11.889 my kids. You know, we're there, it's hot and kids start complaining. 187 00:13:11.009 --> 00:13:13.200 Then someone comes up to us, Hey, you guys, look like 188 00:13:13.480 --> 00:13:18.080 you could use some water. Just pass out bottle waters. Those little details 189 00:13:18.440 --> 00:13:22.440 to make our experience better. And so if you take that mindset of just 190 00:13:22.759 --> 00:13:28.509 you know how everyone is special and how can you look at your campus visits 191 00:13:28.149 --> 00:13:33.309 and those those events and make that unique experience for them? So I'm sure 192 00:13:33.309 --> 00:13:37.110 a lot of you have signs, you know, in your driveways, on 193 00:13:37.230 --> 00:13:39.590 your the parking lot, but if you don't, I mean that's something you 194 00:13:39.669 --> 00:13:43.379 can easily do, is like put a sign out when they get there that 195 00:13:43.460 --> 00:13:46.220 they know this is their spot and you're welcome to that and that's really easy 196 00:13:46.259 --> 00:13:48.460 to do. Many of US already have that. But even just maybe, 197 00:13:48.580 --> 00:13:52.539 just as are coming into campus, you know, having science saying hey, 198 00:13:52.620 --> 00:13:56.409 we really really appreciate you, we welcome you to campus, so they know 199 00:13:56.610 --> 00:14:00.409 that they are the VIP's coming to campus, and that's really what you want 200 00:14:00.409 --> 00:14:03.730 to create tow when they walk in. You know you might have something ready 201 00:14:03.769 --> 00:14:07.690 for them, but just so that they know that you're going above and beyond 202 00:14:07.889 --> 00:14:11.120 and that they just feel that that warmth and that's really that's really important. 203 00:14:11.120 --> 00:14:15.879 And I don't, and you might not be a fuzzy person, but everybody 204 00:14:16.399 --> 00:14:22.120 likes that, that type of feeling special, and so there's those small things 205 00:14:22.159 --> 00:14:26.470 that you can do, getting that information beforehand as much as you can, 206 00:14:26.590 --> 00:14:30.350 and it isn't to be intrusive, but just you know, small things such 207 00:14:30.389 --> 00:14:33.990 as, you know, are there certain colors you like? You know, 208 00:14:33.110 --> 00:14:37.470 and so or is there like even is there certain candy bars that you like, 209 00:14:37.620 --> 00:14:41.100 or things like that? So when they when they show up, you 210 00:14:41.179 --> 00:14:46.379 have maybe their favorite color shirt and you have a favorite candy bar or things 211 00:14:46.419 --> 00:14:50.659 like that, favorite drink, those things the really personalized the experience for them 212 00:14:52.019 --> 00:14:54.649 and those details will smaller details. They seem like a lot of work, 213 00:14:56.210 --> 00:15:01.730 but in the long run the yield is a lot higher because those families see 214 00:15:01.850 --> 00:15:05.730 that you are actually real and that you're going all out to make them feel 215 00:15:05.769 --> 00:15:11.480 feel welcome. Yeah, I think that's a great point and I remember taking 216 00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:13.919 my family to Disney for the first time, you know, ten years ago, 217 00:15:13.919 --> 00:15:16.159 and my daughter was, I guess she would have been four or five 218 00:15:16.200 --> 00:15:20.840 at the time, and so she had her princess bell dress on and we 219 00:15:20.919 --> 00:15:24.950 were going to the breakfast with the princesses in Epcot. And part of the 220 00:15:26.070 --> 00:15:28.029 strategy that Disney does, and I don't think we necessarily have to do this 221 00:15:28.110 --> 00:15:33.269 as as college is because when we have visitors, visiting families on campus, 222 00:15:33.269 --> 00:15:37.179 it's pretty easy to see the difference between a visiting family and regular students. 223 00:15:37.460 --> 00:15:41.899 But at Disney they gave us all these first visit buttons to wear with our 224 00:15:41.899 --> 00:15:46.460 lanyards and everything, and so it was very clear to just anybody that was 225 00:15:46.539 --> 00:15:48.980 a Disney cast member to be able to say that family, this is their 226 00:15:50.049 --> 00:15:52.129 first time visiting, so let's make sure we go out of our way to 227 00:15:52.250 --> 00:15:56.649 do even more. And so I remember walking across Epcott. You know, 228 00:15:56.690 --> 00:15:58.889 early in the morning nobody's there. You know a lot of the gardeners are 229 00:15:58.929 --> 00:16:03.169 outtending the gardens, and the one woman stopped and she just stood up and 230 00:16:03.250 --> 00:16:07.120 said, well, look at you, Princess, you are just gorgeous this 231 00:16:07.240 --> 00:16:11.399 morning and just kind of laid all these compliments on my daughter and she's blushing 232 00:16:11.519 --> 00:16:15.279 and and wants to spend for her and show her dress off. But that 233 00:16:15.679 --> 00:16:19.230 that gardener. It was not her job necessarily to do that. But I 234 00:16:19.350 --> 00:16:23.230 think that Disney has done such a good job of recognizing that everybody plays into 235 00:16:23.269 --> 00:16:27.029 that magical experience and I've heard a lot of people. I know Tim Fuller's 236 00:16:27.070 --> 00:16:30.110 one that often speaks to you know, it takes a campus to recruit a 237 00:16:30.149 --> 00:16:33.620 student and I think that you know, even if you have somebody, if 238 00:16:33.659 --> 00:16:37.460 it's a faculty member or if it's a if it's a gardener or a groundskeeper 239 00:16:38.179 --> 00:16:41.899 out on the on the tour route, who takes the time to just welcome 240 00:16:42.019 --> 00:16:45.500 them on campus and thank them for coming. That does say a lot and 241 00:16:45.580 --> 00:16:49.929 I think it gives that it gives that magical experience to to that people go 242 00:16:51.049 --> 00:16:53.570 home and they talk about and I think that that that idea of being authentic 243 00:16:53.649 --> 00:16:57.610 and creating those experiences for the families. I think it does make a difference 244 00:16:57.610 --> 00:17:00.639 and it doesn't take a lot of resources, but I think, to your 245 00:17:00.679 --> 00:17:04.880 point, it just takes some some thought and it takes some intentionality and it 246 00:17:06.000 --> 00:17:07.559 takes just being authentic and I think that. I think that most of the 247 00:17:07.599 --> 00:17:11.079 schools that are listening to this that's well within their reach. Something that I 248 00:17:11.279 --> 00:17:15.829 would like to add is on a project that Bart and I are working on, 249 00:17:15.390 --> 00:17:22.829 there's a mechanism where we do get information from the potential students, like 250 00:17:22.029 --> 00:17:26.349 what their favorite color is, what their favorite music to study two is and 251 00:17:26.829 --> 00:17:33.539 what their favorite snack to have when they are studying and all different types of 252 00:17:33.700 --> 00:17:37.339 things. We get that so we could put it in our outreach. What 253 00:17:37.460 --> 00:17:41.539 a good idea to utilize some of that information, like you said, for 254 00:17:41.660 --> 00:17:45.690 when they're coming into campus, having some of those things available, maybe having 255 00:17:45.730 --> 00:17:49.170 country music in a background. Again personalizing it. Bart and I do it 256 00:17:49.410 --> 00:17:56.089 from a outreached perspective. Yeah, but that's certainly information that can be utilized 257 00:17:56.410 --> 00:18:00.319 during those campus visits. So I think you've probably given Bart and I and 258 00:18:00.319 --> 00:18:04.200 nugget that we're going to take away from this. Speaking of Tony, as 259 00:18:04.240 --> 00:18:08.400 we come to a close, would love to ask you if there was another 260 00:18:08.440 --> 00:18:15.869 nugget or a tidbit, something that someone listening could take an implement right away 261 00:18:15.910 --> 00:18:21.950 and actuable item idea that you have. Yeah, so something that I've been 262 00:18:21.990 --> 00:18:26.460 working on for last couple of years. It's not a hundred percent perfect, 263 00:18:26.940 --> 00:18:32.819 but it's pretty close. Is All of us, you know, have hundreds 264 00:18:33.099 --> 00:18:37.259 and sometimes thousands of prospects and inquiries and you know the whole drill and you 265 00:18:37.380 --> 00:18:41.329 know it's easy to get all those names, work them all and and call 266 00:18:41.730 --> 00:18:45.809 and that takes up a lot of time. And haven't been in a missions 267 00:18:45.890 --> 00:18:51.890 counselor I remember those days and in the office making semi five a hundred calls 268 00:18:51.930 --> 00:18:55.410 a day and try to call through and getting a lot of nose and how 269 00:18:55.450 --> 00:18:59.960 did you get my name and all those different things, and so you know 270 00:19:00.079 --> 00:19:02.759 you're burning up a lot of time. And one of the things that I've 271 00:19:02.839 --> 00:19:07.920 done at my first institution, I started, implemented my second institution and here 272 00:19:07.319 --> 00:19:11.390 that I will be working on is is this idea of scoring. And so 273 00:19:12.309 --> 00:19:18.589 oftentimes maybe in your crum solution, whatever you use, you can start scoring 274 00:19:18.670 --> 00:19:23.109 your inquiries based upon their behavior. And so you know, for example, 275 00:19:23.700 --> 00:19:29.460 you maybe you sign an you sign a number to a person who turns an 276 00:19:29.539 --> 00:19:33.660 application. Maybe they come and visit, they click on four or five emails 277 00:19:33.740 --> 00:19:40.130 or and you would establish those parameters and based on their their interaction with your 278 00:19:40.170 --> 00:19:44.930 school, that pretty much tells me at they're really engaged person that they would 279 00:19:44.970 --> 00:19:47.529 want to move the funnel. They want to move further in the funnel. 280 00:19:47.970 --> 00:19:52.769 And so what I would I do is I put all those metrics at the 281 00:19:52.809 --> 00:19:56.519 beginning of the funnel and so once they hit a certain number that I established, 282 00:19:56.880 --> 00:20:00.319 and let's just say for the sake of our conversation it's ten. They 283 00:20:00.400 --> 00:20:04.000 hit that ten number, well then now I know that person is a qualified 284 00:20:04.359 --> 00:20:10.589 inquiry or qualified applicant and I move them along the process, and so am 285 00:20:10.630 --> 00:20:12.670 my interaction with them is a little bit more intentional because I know they're highly 286 00:20:12.710 --> 00:20:21.069 engaged versus someone maybe they click on one out of seven emails and maybe they 287 00:20:21.539 --> 00:20:25.059 submit their fast fun I'm still going to, you know, put them in 288 00:20:25.099 --> 00:20:29.259 a nurturing campaign, but I might not spend as much time with them right 289 00:20:29.339 --> 00:20:33.099 now because they're not showing that great deal of interest. And so it's a 290 00:20:33.220 --> 00:20:38.250 great way to do that to help not only your counselors prioritize who's really engage, 291 00:20:38.690 --> 00:20:44.849 but also it's a great way to really truncate your funnel and work with 292 00:20:44.890 --> 00:20:48.410 those who are highly engage and so you'll increase your yield, your yield rate. 293 00:20:48.690 --> 00:20:52.079 Why? Because you're working with people who are really interested. So it's 294 00:20:52.079 --> 00:20:56.480 kind of like the idea of if I need a hundred students ten roll, 295 00:20:57.400 --> 00:21:03.720 I could knock on tenzero doors and find a hundred students, or would you 296 00:21:03.799 --> 00:21:06.950 rather go to the street and say, you know what, all the students 297 00:21:06.990 --> 00:21:10.589 on this particular street are going to say? Yes, I'd rather do that 298 00:21:11.029 --> 00:21:15.190 and then work at Tenzero. And that's the whole idea of that scoring model 299 00:21:15.349 --> 00:21:21.180 is so each campus can identify what are those trigger points, things that you 300 00:21:21.259 --> 00:21:23.420 would score and certain activities might score a little bit higher than others, like 301 00:21:23.420 --> 00:21:27.299 a campus visit versus open up an email. But whatever that is, you 302 00:21:27.500 --> 00:21:32.579 telly that up and you would determine what that score is and that you would 303 00:21:32.579 --> 00:21:36.769 pass them on as a qualified in quire how do you want to qualify them? 304 00:21:37.250 --> 00:21:41.490 And that will lead to a higher yield rate because you're working with engaged 305 00:21:41.730 --> 00:21:45.170 people versus working with a bunch of people and you're not really sure who's engaging 306 00:21:45.210 --> 00:21:49.119 who's not engage. Thank you, Tony, and I think that's something that 307 00:21:51.079 --> 00:21:57.440 any emissions counselor or admissions department could implement based on their particular parameters, their 308 00:21:57.519 --> 00:22:03.589 experience, what happens at their school. We appreciate you sharing your time and 309 00:22:03.670 --> 00:22:06.589 your wisdom with us today. If someone would like to reach out to you, 310 00:22:07.029 --> 00:22:11.069 what would the best way for them to do so be? Yeah, 311 00:22:11.589 --> 00:22:15.059 you know, they can always email me. So my email address is a 312 00:22:15.940 --> 00:22:25.700 turner. So at you are, any are at CSU and I the EEDU, 313 00:22:26.500 --> 00:22:29.660 and so that's the best way to get ahold of me. I'm always 314 00:22:29.700 --> 00:22:33.970 checking emails and most like all enrolling people, morning, afternoon and night. 315 00:22:34.009 --> 00:22:37.849 You're checking emails. So more than like I'll get back to you a lot 316 00:22:37.890 --> 00:22:41.450 quicker on email that I wore over the phone, so that's really the best 317 00:22:41.450 --> 00:22:45.759 way to get a hold of me. Thank you, Dr Turner. Bar 318 00:22:45.920 --> 00:22:49.559 Do you have any partying words for us? Yeah, I just wanted to 319 00:22:49.599 --> 00:22:52.359 kind of just kind of point out a few things, and I kind of 320 00:22:52.400 --> 00:22:56.319 point this out because I think that we have heard this and on many of 321 00:22:56.440 --> 00:23:02.069 the episodes. I mean we've gotten nearly twenty five, twenty six episodes in 322 00:23:02.230 --> 00:23:04.950 now and but what we're hearing over and over and over again, whether it's 323 00:23:06.029 --> 00:23:10.190 Ethan Braden at produe, Jamie Hudd at University of Miami, you know, 324 00:23:10.269 --> 00:23:15.380 Phil Cook at Lee, or even today with with Tony Turner at Charleston Southern, 325 00:23:15.859 --> 00:23:21.380 this idea of being intentional on the way that we engage with prospective students 326 00:23:21.420 --> 00:23:25.220 and families, the fact that we need to be personalized, we need to 327 00:23:25.259 --> 00:23:29.089 be humans. I think that, even to the scoring conversation here at the 328 00:23:29.089 --> 00:23:32.329 very end, it's so important for us to understand that. You know, 329 00:23:32.369 --> 00:23:36.130 there are things that the computers do really well, automation, being able to 330 00:23:36.170 --> 00:23:40.490 do nurturing campaigns, follow up, keep people engaged. Those of the tasks 331 00:23:40.569 --> 00:23:44.759 and the and the tools that computers and automation are really, really well made 332 00:23:44.880 --> 00:23:48.000 for. But when we start getting into that smaller end of the funnel, 333 00:23:48.000 --> 00:23:52.039 when we're talking about the hundreds rather than the thousands or the tens of thousands, 334 00:23:52.880 --> 00:23:57.309 that's when we can really start to roll out that individualized, authentic engagement 335 00:23:57.349 --> 00:24:00.390 that's really going to make the difference with people and I think those are the 336 00:24:00.470 --> 00:24:04.470 things that especially a lot of the listening schools that are smaller or midsize, 337 00:24:04.750 --> 00:24:08.430 very similar to Charleston Southern, those are the different things it's going to set 338 00:24:08.509 --> 00:24:12.180 you apart from the other schools that are bigger, maybe the maybe the state 339 00:24:12.220 --> 00:24:17.660 or or community colleges that just cannot afford to be able to do that personalized 340 00:24:17.740 --> 00:24:19.660 touch, as well as, most of the time it's going to reflect who 341 00:24:19.660 --> 00:24:22.940 you already are, whether you're a faith based school or a private institution, 342 00:24:23.609 --> 00:24:29.609 most of the characteristics of those types of schools are already extremely personal and so 343 00:24:29.890 --> 00:24:33.529 really be able to leverage the computers and the automation to be able to do 344 00:24:33.569 --> 00:24:37.769 a lot of the things that are overwhelming for your admissions team, but then 345 00:24:37.289 --> 00:24:41.359 really sorting and parsing out the things that only people can do and the people 346 00:24:41.440 --> 00:24:45.720 do best, and so I think that a lot of what Tony's talked about 347 00:24:45.720 --> 00:24:48.839 today, from the scoring to the the authenticity and the way that the engages 348 00:24:48.880 --> 00:24:52.670 with their families to just the Disney experience, it's so important to kind of 349 00:24:52.670 --> 00:24:56.950 remember that only you and your people can do that. You can't rely on 350 00:24:56.069 --> 00:25:00.789 any programs or systems to do that. So that would be my takeaway. 351 00:25:00.789 --> 00:25:03.829 Try Well said, Bart and thank you. That brings us to the end 352 00:25:03.829 --> 00:25:07.940 of our podcast and I encourage you to reach out to any of us if 353 00:25:07.980 --> 00:25:11.700 you have a question or would just like to connect. Each week we are 354 00:25:11.740 --> 00:25:18.859 brought to you by two companies. Barts team at Klo solutions and they are 355 00:25:18.940 --> 00:25:23.609 a marketing and branding agency dealing a lot with strategy and, I think, 356 00:25:23.690 --> 00:25:29.650 patented. We are a marketing, execution, printing and mailing provider of Higher 357 00:25:29.890 --> 00:25:33.450 Ed Solutions. On behalf of Bart and I thank you so much for joining 358 00:25:33.569 --> 00:25:40.519 the podcast. You've been listening to the Higher Ed Marketer. To ensure that 359 00:25:40.640 --> 00:25:44.680 you never miss an episode, subscribe to the show in your favorite podcast player. 360 00:25:45.559 --> 00:25:48.799 If you're listening with apple podcasts. We'd love for you to leave a 361 00:25:48.839 --> 00:25:52.309 quick rating of the show. Simply tap the number of stars you think the 362 00:25:52.349 --> 00:25:53.869 podcast deserves. Until next time,