Rapid trained response win’s out
For years now people have been talking about how to improve conversions on leads. People have postured that brands, available programs or tuition price have led to an uneven playing field. That’s not the case for the most part. What it really comes down to is rapid trained response. We have all heard the term first responders, and rapid responders, well in EDU it’s rapid trained responders who win out. If your school can be the first well trained responder to the prospect then you will likely win out over the competition. It’s relatively simple. The first admissions person to establish a report with the prospective student will win out 9 out of ten times. Regardless of brand, regardless of tuition price. I have seen this time after time. I have spoken with many in admissions who offer the same programs as their peers but at significantly lower tuition’s and are baffled as to why. It’s clear the reason is that the prospect is likely not to either answer a call or return a call from an admissions person if they have already had a pleasant and fulfilling conversation and established a rapport with another admissions person. Now to be clear I said rapid “trained response” as simply rapid response is not the answer, the person responding to an inquiry needs to be trained, seasoned and competent at their job.
Absolutely correct regarding first in…
First in puts the ball in play and, if a strong admissions professional with stellar telephone techniques for setting appointments or conducting an online interview, will have home court advantage. However, we have worked with schools that are nearly always first in but not meeting enrollment goals. This means that there is more to it than just rapid response but yes, rapid response is vital.