If you read our recent article in HE Professional about the student decision-making journey, we outlined the stages of awareness, consideration and decision.
We highlighted the importance of research for students, especially in the consideration phase of their journey:
“For universities, accommodation teams, and PBSA providers, that consideration stage is really important to capture attention and showcase offerings.
Research shows that 89% of consumers check reviews online before making purchases. Students, specifically, understand the importance of research in making decisions about higher education and, ultimately, their future.
The breadth of student research is reflected in the data, too, showing that, after the UCAS Hub and university open days, students rely on reviews most to help them make choices. And here at StudentCrowd, we receive more than 1.9 million user sessions per year, a testament to the student need for peer-to-peer feedback.”
As a natural follow-up, this article explores the value of trust in higher education marketing and how marketers can build this using third party reviews.
Students trust user-generated content more than traditional marketing
Like many of us when we make a big purchase, students are going to wade through a mass of press and marketing to find what’s relevant to their specific needs, both broad and granular. Everything from ‘does this university offer the course I want?’ to ‘does it have a Lacrosse team I can join?’ may be considered.
And students know how to differentiate between marketing and user-generated content, with 55% of consumers trusting the latter over traditional marketing. Ultimately, authentic peer experiences are going to be the most accurate predictor of a prospective student’s own potential experience. Therefore, traditional marketing is simply not enough to influence decisions.
The most influential content is that which is created by a real person, rather than an institution or brand. So beyond open days and glossy prospectuses, students will be most influenced by what their peers have to say.
Building trust with students through genuine experiences
You’re confident that your university or accommodation option offers a great experience, but how do you prove that and show it off to prospective students? How can you leverage user-generated content as a marketing tool?
Well, what was the last piece of user-generated content that influenced you? It may well have been a review, which serve as social proof of great student experiences and engender trust with both prospective and current students.
Not only do positive reviews add an additional layer of authenticity to your value proposition, but even less-than-favourable reviews can demonstrate your commitment to the student voice if you respond to them constructively — 64% of consumers globally would prefer to buy from a responsive company over one that appears perfect.
StudentCrowd profiles
Students share their experiences via a multitude of different channels and it can feel like a bit of a wild west — but StudentCrowd is the only platform that focuses solely on verified reviews, weighted specifically for relevance and authenticity. With 357 HE Providers, 3,144 accommodation options and over 86,000 courses listed, our website studentcrowd.com is the place to explore real student experiences. 99% of our users find us organically, 66% are domestic and 34% are international.
To help students, every university, course and accommodation option has a profile on studentcrowd.com. But by claiming your profile and/or purchasing our API, you can use your profile on StudentCrowd as your most powerful marketing tool, whether it’s to create brand awareness, generate recruitment leads or research student sentiment.
Enhanced profiles also offer:
- Branded responses to reviews & questions, facilitating a valuable feedback loop to drive business decisions and improve the student experience
- More content space to communicate your value to prospective students
- Links to encourage referrals to your website
- Video tour & image gallery to showcase what you can offer students
How StudentCrowd profiles have helped our partners
University partners
When StudentCrowd first started working with the University of Greenwich, they were rated number 79 in the our UK university league table and had just 39 reviews on the platform. The university were confident that they were delivering an exceptional student experience and have worked with us to optimise their profile and maximise review generation activities.
Once they had claimed their profile and executed a review generation campaign, Greenwich generated 250+ reviews in 18 months, achieved an overall rating of 4.48 out of 5 and ranked #2 university in the UK that year (2023).
Read the full case study on our web page.
Accommodation team partners
The University of Derby’s relationship with StudentCrowd has seen their average rankings skyrocket from 3.32 to 4.17 in less than 10 months, as well as earning more of their properties a place on the league table. This has helped them to maintain their position as a market leader. Additionally, feedback from our dataset has given the university valuable insights into their own accommodation and the performance of their competitors.
Whilst staff had reservations about asking students for reviews, the digital tool kit and branded assets provided enabled them to connect with students digitally initially. With the likelihood of new market entrants emerging in the future, reviews will remain a key aspect of Derby’s marketing armoury.
“Reviews are the best way for consumers to get an honest, real-life, no-frills overview of a product or service, so being on a respected review platform like StudentCrowd and ranking highly on it can only enhance and augment our reputation as an accommodation provider and more widely as a university.”
