International Education Company: audience research and customer journey mapping

In 2020, we worked with an International Education Company on a programme of audience research and customer journey mapping with international audiences. They were finding that they had successful and effective application and recruitment numbers, but they were keen to encourage long-term engagement and advocacy from this audience once they had completed their course.

The first phase of the work was an immediate assessment of their positioning in the employability sphere – what did prospective students want and expect from them in terms of career preparation? What did current students think of their experiences? How were alumni of their courses finding the graduate job market? We conducted online surveys and online focus groups with different audience groups to understand the appeal of - and desire for – courses in various personal and professional skills.

Our audience groups were broken down into:

• Prospective students (primarily those in China, India and other Asia-Pacific countries)

• Students currently studying one of their courses

• Students who had moved from one of their courses to a university degree

• University alumni who had formerly studied on of their courses

For all audiences, we also looked at existing analytics data such as website behaviour, email interactions, engagement with the company’s platforms throughout their university career, and more.

This then formed the basis of journey research with the same audiences. Again we used online surveys and focus groups, this time adding one-to-one interviews to our methods to allow us to delve more deeply into students’ experiences – particularly how the COVID-19 pandemic might have affected them as international students.

Our research allowed us to map out the journeys of different audience types, including variations by location, motivation and financial situation. We then integrated these journeys into the company’s overarching plan for the student lifecycle, from initial contact through to working life. By doing this we were able to help the team identify where students might need most help, what help would be required at different times, and when they might be most receptive to offers of additional products or services.

Through this work we also conducted a review of the company’s content, including online and offline materials, to identify strengths and weaknesses in existing communications. We then created a content strategy for them designed at helping them encourage ongoing engagement with students and to generate advocacy from alumni in the long term.They are now implementing the strategy

If you need help in audience research and customer mapping for your institution, get in touch!