Over the last couple months, we’ve been exploring what years of GradComm’s propriety research tells us about the audiences community colleges are trying to reach and retain. One of my recurring obsessions is the truism that marketing, at its core, is all about getting the right message to the right audience.
To do this, there are three things that have to happen: 1. You need to identify and understand your audience. 2. You need collateral with messages and images that speak to that audience. 3. And finally, you need to get those messages in front of that audience.
Good research can help inform all of these steps and help you market more effectively and save time and money.
One particular audience we’re watching closely is older adults.
According to CalMatters, in 2022 “…the state’s 116 community colleges saw an 11% increase in students over the age of 50 compared to the previous year — the highest percentage increase of any age group and just above the rate for students under 20. In contrast, students 20 to 29 continued to leave.” More recently, Community College Daily reported that enrollment of students age 25 to 29 has increased 20 percent across the nation.
These numbers represent an important shift for a demographic that left college at record rates during the pandemic. This is important because it shows us that this audience is more receptive than ever to the offerings and opportunities community colleges have to offer. All we have to do now as marketers is figure out how to reach them.
So, how do we do that? Data!
In support of the Inland Empire Desert Regional Consortium’s (IEDRC) career education marketing efforts, GradComm recently deployed our proprietary media habits surveys. Like the data that has informed my recent blog posts, this survey included questions about media habits, student satisfaction, communication preferences, and more. It was completed by 3,000+ community college students.
For a recent presentation to IEDRC stakeholders, we analyzed data specific to students 40 years and older to identify differences in media habits from younger students.
The differences between this group’s preferences and others are distinctive and provide useful guidance about where best to spend your media dollars when trying to capture this audience.
Unlike younger demographics, older students are more likely to…
- Choose Facebook as their preferred social media platform
- Use LinkedIn
- Listen to Pandora and traditional radio
- Want materials in the mail
As older demographics continue to return to community colleges, understanding their media habits is more important than ever. As with all marketing, failure to do so can mean wasted time and money.
But the good news is, your IR department is there to help you collect the data you need to succeed. And if they aren’t, GradComm is.
To see how these preferences compare to more traditional student demographics, check out my previous blog post, Media Habits of Community College Students.
