News & Events

As colleges and universities find new ways to utilize technology to communicate with students, and Esports and gaming emerges in the United States, it’s important that everyone involved feels seen, included, and protected– even the gamers. Virtual spaces and digital places can provide a fun and educational experience, but institutions need to ensure these spaces are safe for all.

The greatest tech stack in the world is only as effective as the higher ed staff members using it.  Building relationships with current and prospective students, their families, and alumni is paramount to your institution’s mission, but doing so takes empathy and understanding.The more you ensure the student journey is not a task-driven maze, the more you’ll connect with your audience.

Mongoose works with over 750 colleges and universities, and staff members across the country have told us that one of their favorite features offered in our engagement platform, Cadence, is the ability to create texting templates. 

There is a potential 10-15% drop in “traditional” incoming college students projected to occur starting in 2025. It is being called the Enrollment Cliff or the Demographic Cliff, but no matter what you call it, higher education will be affected. The 2008 economic recession caused a decline in U.S. birth rates as people either put off starting a family or had fewer kids.

Institutions that dictate what a student’s journey should be are alienating their audiences. 

During Mongoose’s first review cycle, Cadence, the companies engagement platform, earned it’s spot as a high performer in the G2 Fall 2022 Grid^® Reports. 

Cadence, our engagement platform, is a powerful tool that connects colleges and universities with their audiences. Like any tool, it can be mastered. 

Giving Tuesday, a worldwide generosity movement, raised more than $2.7 billion in 2021, and all signs point to that number increasing in 2022. There will be thousands of organizations asking people to participate in giving to their individual campaigns, including higher ed institutions. 

Most people know Mongoose as higher ed’s premiere texting platform, aka Cadence. However, as industry trends evolve and schools seek efficiency and all-in-one solutions, we knew that we also had to elevate our products to continue providing much needed support and value to the higher ed industry. 

Graduate student enrollment is following the same pattern as undergrad enrollment - a steady decline. Colleges and universities that utilize data and technology can drastically improve graduate student recruitment efforts, and it’s important to choose the correct audience. Reaching out to graduating undergrads and recent alumni is an obvious move.

A tremendous amount of work goes into preparing your institution for visits from prospective students and their families. And, there are small details that can be the difference between a good and bad impression with visitors. Having the unique perspective of a parent’s feedback and experience can help.

Orchard Park, New York – September 22, 2022 – Mongoose, a pioneer in conversational software for the higher education industry, today announced the launch of Cadence Chat, an online engagement solution that helps colleges and universities build authentic relationships with website visitors. Cadence Chat is a new solution that’s built into Mongoose’s Cadence product suite, which is focused on helping higher education institutions streamline communications and enhance relationships throughout the student lifecycle, in part to combat declining enrollment and retention rates.

Not only is the process of finding and enrolling in a college or university confusing for prospective students, the process is also different at every institution. Terminology changes, websites differ, requirements vary, and the process itself can be so confusing that someone decides not to apply to that college altogether.

With a juggling act of life, family, and work, communicating effectively with post-traditional learners can seem daunting. But, once you recognize their unique needs, your communication strategy is easier to tailor to make the journey smoother for staff and students alike.

The isolation and physical limitations of the pandemic heightened the need for digital engagement in higher ed. And, even though COVID restrictions have lessened and in-person classes and visits have resumed, the bell cannot be un-rung. Students want quick answers and instant gratification from the college and universities they’re looking into.

An impactful communication strategy and it’s execution are important elements of any higher ed engagement. Lena Miltiello and Jenn Diethorn from Mongoose’s Client Success team joined Mike Kochczynski for a For Your Institution Live episode to discuss key ways to engage audiences in the upcoming academic year. 

It’s likely that you won’t answer your phone when it rings, but if your phone buzzes from an incoming text, it has your full attention. 

While texting is the preferred form of communication these days, the medium is underutilized in advancement. Texting alumni and donors can be a game-changer if done correctly.

Orchard Park, New York – August 19, 2022 – Leading higher education institutions are modernizing their approaches to admissions outreach according to the 2022 Admissions Outlook: The Role of Digital Transformation in Prospective Student Engagement, a survey conducted by Mongoose, a leader in student engagement solutions, and Higher Ed Dive.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) are rightly important topics on college campuses throughout the United States. 

The moment students walk across that stage to accept a diploma, they’re alumni. But as the alumni relations department, you shouldn’t wait for that milestone to start a relationship. In fact, it’s smart to begin engaging with young alumni well before graduation day.

What comes first, the message or the audience?

The more engaged your audience is, the more alumni members will participate in your donation efforts. Your audience is out there but it’s up to you to make them interested in what you have to say.

If your institution’s marketing team sends out an email, is the goal to have that email read or to spark an actual conversation? 

Integration improves the effectiveness of both your texting platform AND your CRM.

Without accurate, up-to-date information, your school could be wasting time texting wrong numbers.  And if your school uses Ellucian Recruit, having the most accurate and current data is essential to ensuring that when you’re texting students, you are able to make a meaningful connection.

A majority of higher education institutions tout a certain key message when recruiting prospective students: You belong here.

However, once a student determines where to enroll and begins their first year, the message quickly changes. Freshman get bombarded with prompts to "get out there" by joining clubs, sports teams, study groups, etc., or “find where you fit in.” In reality, they're unsure what interests them and if any of the options will actually work out.

So, how can university staff and faculty foster authentic relationships with their students? How can they increase the sense of belonging on campus, socially, and academically?

Dr. Lisa Nunn, who teaches at the University of San Diego, is a cultural sociologist and an organizations scholar studying students’ experiences, students' identities, and their overall success and wellbeing. Her most recent book, College Belonging, follows first-year college students for two years to see how they navigate their new campus homes and what kinds of obstacles they face in developing a sense of belonging.

She joined For Your Institution Live to share her insight how higher ed professionals can create authentic belonging across their institutions. Watch or listen to the full recording below.

A student's first year of college is never easy, and deeply understanding their emotional experience helps your institution guide them with extra support when they need it most.

This is where the W-Curve theory comes in handy.

There are terms for overly protective and aggressive parents - helicopter parents, stealth parents, and bulldozer parents. They tend to hover around their children, complete tasks on their child’s behalf, and move mountains to ensure their child’s needs are met. 

Stories are engaging. Stories demonstrate the value of obtaining a degree by providing students with a real world example of someone who has walked in their shoes and reached similar goals.

It’s no secret that effective communication is key for institutions to engage prospective and current college students, but community colleges face unique obstacles. With a diverse population, including first-generation college students and non-traditional students who may be balancing family, work, and school, reaching every student where they are is a challenge. 

It’s not difficult to understand why a student may melt when you consider their perspective on the enrollment process. Student melt refers to prospective college students who choose to attend a college, apply, make a deposit, and then change their mind. 

Generation Z students were born after 1995, so much of their lives have been spent holding mobile phones. Those phones hold hundreds of apps and icons that can be used to reach Gen Z students.

Recruitment tools continue to evolve. What started with punch cards and simple lists has grown to Zoom calls and pocket super computers (aka smart phones). The schools that best utilize their tools and information systems will have success communicating with and actually reaching students. 

Community colleges and their students are faced with unique challenges. 

It is no secret that parents play a big role in the college search process with their children. 

Mongoose is excited to announce a helpful new feature, Cadence Analytics!

Many higher ed professionals run student engagement campaigns, but most are cutting corners on a very important part - the planning bit. 

Whether you're communicating with prospective students, current students, parents, or alumni, you need to have a strategy in place. Let's walk through the steps to executing a successful higher ed engagement campaign. 

🎙️ Watch the For Your Institution episode on Planning Successful Engagement Campaigns with Greg Bauch, Jessica Stonish and Lexi Croisdale.

First, let's touch on why it's so important to plan.

Best practices indicate that message senders should gain contact consent and maintain their preferences in order to text through platforms like Cadence (including all third-party texting platforms and CRMs)

You already manage student privacy when it comes to emails, phone calls and other channels. Look at texting as another channel to be treated with the same care. Yes, there are a few unique things to keep in mind, but it’s fairly simple to be compliant.

Here’s what you need to know.

Parents are very involved in their children's college search process. According to a recent study by Niche, parental involvement has grown five-fold since the pandemic. 

Planning a Giving Day this spring semester? Looking for new ways to engage with alumni, and connect with your current students during the event?

At Mongoose, we love helping our clients develop creative and unique ways to hit their fundraising goals on Giving Day. Having a strategic texting plan can not only get the word out, but generate excitement and allow your team to connect directly with your community.

If there’s one thing to take away from this blog, it’s this: Before you hit send, ask yourself, “Is this valuable information for students?”

While texting is a powerful way to engage prospective and current college students, there are right and wrong ways to do it. Here are some tips for effective SMS texting at your college or university.

Personalizing your communications helps increase student engagement. The more you know about your audience, the more you can personalize messages. The admissions department at East Tennessee State University (ETSU) has had success reaching prospective students by using data when texting them.

Need a texting plan to engage your current students? We've got you covered.

Your success depends on your ability to communicate with students, and a good strategy creates the best results. This guide will help you identify attainable goals for your department and then show you how to implement a plan to reach them, including important best practices to avoid pitfalls and increase your reach.

Disrupting the startup industry in Western New York, Mongoose is making waves in the local news.

Spring is right around the corner, which most likely means your institution has a Giving Day on the horizon. 

Colleges and universities spend the majority of their marketing budgets driving people to their websites. But what happens once they get there?

College websites received less traffic in 2021 than in 2020, and the majority of visitors are leaving right away. The latest study by Niche on 2021 Higher Ed Website Benchmarks shows bounce rates (the rate at which visitors jump right off your site without taking action) are up across the board. 

Retaining an audience is as important as attracting an audience. So what should you do?

Higher education is a competitive landscape, which has only escalated in recent years. 

It’s no secret: Community colleges have borne the brunt of enrollment fallouts in the higher ed industry, with a 6% decrease in 2021. 

Higher ed has evolved dramatically in the past several years. Schools raced to adapt to unforeseen changes like closed campuses, flex learning, digital outreach, and new communication channels. Colleges and universities are just now finding opportunities to be proactive, rather than reactive, in their strategies for 2022. A look at current trends can help guide you in making the right decisions for your students and faculty.

Year after year, colleges and universities are expected to meet loftier goals with tighter budgets. With smaller teams, more staff turnover, and less money to spend, higher ed institutions are forced to look more strategically at annual budget planning.

“When is the best time to text students?” 
“How often should our school use texting?”
“How do we make sure we don’t come across as spam?"

Your college's CRM is a powerful tool in your communication strategy. But using your CRM instead of a texting platform to engage with students can get complicated... and costly.

It's important to know if CRM texting will help, or hinder your student engagement efforts and whether you're going to see a return on your investment.

Texting is a powerful medium for reaching students, parents, and alumni, but you need proper governance to ensure your staff uses your texting platform to its full potential. 

What do students want from your school?

You've got to ask them to get an answer.

The future of parent and family engagement is here, and parent involvement in the college experience is at an all-time high. If your school is looking for ways to leverage this involvement into positive student outcomes and giving goals, you're not alone.

Move over helicopter parents, we've officially entered the reign of the bulldozer parent. And as bulldozer parents enter the scene, you need to revisit your student recruitment strategy.

Helping students cope with Mental Health is difficult for a number of reasons.

It’s hard to get the word out to all students and make them aware of potential resources available on your campus. Many students are likely to be reluctant to seek help in the first place.

A new study by Juji names student engagement and recruitment as top priorities for online program success after interviewing 42 higher ed leaders. Colleges and institutions need to adopt tech solutions to streamline their strategies and personalize at scale.

First-generation students are among the most highly sought in higher ed, and competition is fierce between colleges and universities looking to attract them.

So what strategies should you use?

New data from Niche offers some insight:

Two years ago, the hustle culture of life was constantly present. Then the pandemic stepped in and flipped everything upside down. Homes became offices, classrooms, gyms, bakeries, etc. as countries confided to home.

Combining work with education is even tougher these days. If your job is helping community college students, you may have noticed their list of hardships has only increased in recent years. 

Colleges across the country are preparing for Giving Day but there are plenty of other important headlines.

Some folks need 8 friends to convince them what to eat for lunch. Other people pursue exhaustive deep-dives into online reviews to make a choice on purchases.

When a student chooses a school, they’re usually influenced in that decision by many outside sources.

Your school is ready to text students but the question is: Are students ready to receive texts from you?

Parents are involved in the process of picking a college for more than 60% of High School Juniors and Seniors. Reaching those parents and making a good impression gives your institution an upper hand in recruitment.

Here are some tips on how to identify who you’re talking to and how to best earn parents’ trust.

Do you browse the internet during banking hours or are you on your phone at night watching ‘The Office’ for the 50th time?

Most college students visit your website outside of the 9-to-5 timeframe. If you’re searching for the best ways to engage with students and potential students, a chatbot is the best way to make sure someone is there to greet them at all hours of the day or night.

Because websites for universities and colleges hold so much information, a chatbot can be a useful tool in helping visitors navigate.

You want to help students, but you don’t want them throwing their phones in a river because they’re so sick of the constant buzzing from your outreach. There’s a fine line to balance.

According to RNL's 2021 E-Expectations Report, a college's website is the most influential source in a student's college search process. So they're putting a lot of weight on the content you serve up on your website. And if you create a frustrating experience, they're going to find a school that can provide a better one.

Give students what they're looking for - as easily as possible.

That search bar on your website is being put to work. Prospective students need to know first and foremost if they can afford your institution - and if you offer the program they're interested in.

Don't bury costs and tuition information pages deep on your website, and don't crowd your homepage with everything a student may be looking for. Because chances are, they're spending their time on your program and financial aid pages instead. 

Students can buy cars out of a vending machine in minutes. The pedestal on which we’ve placed a higher education is not quite as tall as it was twenty years ago. Your audience is discerning, intelligent, and plenty used to convenience. 

Online and community college students are typically self-starters looking to progress faster in their careers. Now due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a growing segment of online learners who may choose not to return to campus and are new to remote learning. Online students want flexibility and need a college support system.

No pressure, Advancement teams! Just reach all of your fundraising goals during yet another wave of a pandemic and national crisis. COVID and the subsequent Delta variants aren’t giving your team a free pass from reaching fundraising goals. So how do you raise appropriate funds? Texting can help.

Schools that provide students a better website experience will thrive.

Every time you turn on the news or open up Twitter, there it is: a new story or development about COVID-19.

Colleges and universities have been planning all summer for what they hoped would be a “back to normal” fall semester, but with COVID cases back on the rise and the Delta variant causing concerns, we are faced with yet another challenging school year.

And higher ed staff aren’t the only ones stressing: students are, too.

• Do I need to be wearing a mask everywhere I go on campus?
• What is my school’s stance on vaccination requirements?
• Is it safe to be living in a dorm?

The current state of affairs with coronavirus dominating the headlines calls for a smart communication strategy for colleges and universities.

What should advancement teams do as a crisis reemerges?

The Delta variant of COVID continues to dominate the news, putting plans in jeopardy. That impacts each department on college campuses, including advancement. While this is usually the season for Giving Days and fundraising drives, the daily news cycle is giving departments pause.

Whether or not you use Cadence, Mongoose’s texting platform, is irrelevant right now. The ongoing crisis with COVID and the Delta variant will continue to make things difficult for students across the country. Your staff will need solutions and collaboration.

As COVID numbers continue to fluctuate with the Delta variant, the higher ed community preps for an uncertain semester. Some schools are planning for students to study remotely, while others are waiting to see what the coming months bring. It’s important to develop a communications plan and determine how your school will stay in touch with students when you don’t have the benefit of daily contact.

Mongoose Client Success will Miyagi you to the All Valley Tournament Texting Championship.

The pressure of studies combined with the freight train of anxiety that comes with everyday life will cause many students to burn out. It’s your job to help students, but if they’ve reached their physical or emotional limit, there’s not a lot you can do.

Questions from students, forms to be filed, and an inbox packed like a thruway at rush hour -  your to-do list doesn’t leave a lot of time to actually engage with students. And, we all know how important it is to actually reach and engage with students.

Why would a student choose a college to attend, pay a deposit, then change their minds about attending that institution (or attending school altogether)? 

So much work goes into your college or university's communications strategy, from deciding which departments should text, to planning a schedule for timely messages, composing the messages themselves, and monitoring the inbox for replies.

This deep dive into the dos and don’ts of writing messages will help you create texts that reach more students, make them feel supported, and get them to take a desired action.

When planning your next texting campaign, keep these 6 tips in mind:

There is value in authenticity - and students trust other students.

Students might leave your institution if they’re performing poorly in academics or if they just don’t feel supported. But you can avoid this by providing them with more resources and reaching out to them on a personalized basis that makes them know you care. 

Getting in touch with seniors is harder than AP Calculus.

RNL clients have raised millions of dollars using texting and RNL's remote engagement center tools.

Your staff’s time is limited - let the automation features in Cadence do the heavy lifting

When developing a texting campaign for any of your constituents - prospective applicants, current students, alumni, or parents - finding a happy medium between personalization and time management is key. Texting with Cadence makes it easy to do both.

Alumni engagement goes well beyond writing checks.

This past year has been incredibly hard on Advancement departments across the country, and you might be feeling the pressure to get those much-needed gifts any way you can. But don’t fall into the trap of solely using email, phone, and text communications to ask for a financial contribution. You need to be sensitive to what your alumni may be experiencing during the pandemic, and while they may or may not be able to give today, they still deserve support and engagement opportunities.

Fast text delivery and quicker responses will raise efficiencies 

Your fundraising plans have been executed and it’s time to hit the “send” button on a text asking for donations. With thousands of college alumni contacts on the receiving end, that text could take hours to reach its destination - and even longer for responses to get back to your team.

Values (noun-plural): principles that guide behavior and, ultimately, culture

A journey begins with a single step, and for a company like Mongoose, the direction of that first step is easily determined. We let our values guide us in everything we do. For every software feature we release and user interview we conduct, the goal is always to help colleges and universities better connect with their constituents and enhance relationships. 

While COVID vaccines are rolling into drug stores and hospitals throughout the country, the higher ed landscape isn’t changing any time soon, and might be forever altered.

Even the most organized, experienced, and diligent teacher cannot control their students’ outside environment. And, because communication is such a vital part of education, lesson plans are suffering under remote learning conditions. 

Meet prospective students where they are: their phones

Your Admissions team likely uses a few different channels to communicate with prospective students and their families - emails, phone calls, brochures, postcards, etc. And while all of these channels have a valuable place in a communications strategy, they don’t compare to the open and response rates that you get through texting.

Schools are utilizing texting to keep their campus safer during a pandemic

Colleges across the country are bringing students, faculty, and staff back to campus, and many of those schools are taking on the responsibility of doing their own contact tracing. That makes it easier to contain outbreaks of COVID and keep communities healthy. For schools like Louisiana Tech University, texting is an integral part of the process.

Harmony, the intelligent chatbot from Mongoose, is a self-service technology for your school’s website.

When the staff at your college or university sends a text, it’s only the beginning of the communication. Hours go into monitoring an inbox, investigating problems, responding to students on time, and following up when necessary. 

By easily helping students accomplish tasks, Harmony keeps them engaged throughout their academic career.

When you think of a college homecoming weekend, what are the first things that come to mind? A football game, networking with fellow alumni over hors d'oeuvres and cocktails, a stroll down memory lane as you walk around campus?

Determining who should be texting students can be broken down into two questions:

• Which departments should be texting?
• Which staff members should be texting?

We’ll take the second part first, pertaining to individual staff members. The best way to start is by asking who needs to text students, not who wants to.

Take advantage of every opportunity to engage with students through texting.

Building retention and engagement with college students is easier when you start texting them early, but communication needs to arrive when students need it most and when they’re most willing to receive it. That’s why being strategic about establishing touchpoints is so important.

If your communication strategy only includes texting your student population, you’re missing the mark. By expanding your outreach to parents, high school counselors, and employers, you’re widening your net and creating a much bigger impact when it comes to a return on student engagement.

Use two-way texting to help students navigate the higher ed altered landscape.

Texting and technology will play an even more important role in our “new normal” landscape where a majority of our communication with college students spans beyond on-campus events and financial reminders. Even if your institution’s campus isn’t closed, there will be several roadblocks to communicating with students. These texting templates and best practices will help your staff recruit, retain, and guide students through their lifecycle.

How can your college take measures to ensure staff wellness while still meeting the needs of students, parents, and alumni?

If your college is considering chatbot or webchat technology, one of the first things you should know about is a playbook. Playbooks are the roadmap of a conversation, steering website visitors to their desired destination.

Recently, Akil Bello, the Senior Director of Advocacy and Advancement at FairTest, posed a question to the higher ed community on Twitter:

A prospective student showed interest, asked questions, and committed to attending your college. Now, it’s been weeks (or even months) and they haven’t deposited. And, you haven’t heard back from them.

While students prefer texting to phone calls and emails, you can never rely on one single method of communication to reach your constituents. Utilizing texting in conjunction with other mediums is often referred to as 'nudging' and it will get you the best results.

Students all over the country are currently making the tough choice to change paths or stay the course when it comes to graduate school. Here are six specific text message campaigns your college can send right now to fight melt and increase retention with graduate students.

Utilizing technology will allow your college to meet constituents’ expectations.

As the country continues to take steps to open amidst coronavirus fears, colleges and universities are either:

1. Deciding whether or not to open in the fall
2. Establishing a plan to open in the fall 

While it’s always a concern for admissions teams that high school graduates change their minds about attending college, this summer will be particularly challenging. Isolation and uncertainty are two new factors that could cause more grads to melt before fall rolls around, even after they deposit. Fighting melt in the time of COVID will take diligence.

Advancement teams across the country are challenged with developing ways to engage with alumni and major gift donors due to the new landscape of remote communication.

With reduced in-person contact, stewardship has proven to be difficult. But there are ways to reach out to alumni and donors that allow them to be empowered without handshakes and personal visitation.

Here are some examples of text messages your advancement team can send:

You want to text students. But you don’t want to break the law. Lucky for you, it’s fairly easy to stay in compliance.

Visitors to higher education websites expect to find information or complete a task, but many times they cannot get quick answers to simple questions when they explore a site.

Does your college need a chatbot, AI or live chat?

These three terms are often used interchangeably, but there are distinct differences among them. When it comes to conversational marketing for colleges and universities, each of these features is equally important. So, what’s the difference?

Recently, our partners at Ruffalo Noel Levitz (RNL) conducted a discussion with more than 600 higher ed fundraisers and advancement professionals to see how colleges and universities are adapting during COVID-19. 

Mongoose Cadence, our texting platform, is 100% cloud-based and built with the latest security standards and practices applied. It is also built to move with you, as you do not need to install any hardware or software to access and utilize Cadence. 

For some, fundraising conjures images of drum rolls and giant check ceremonies, but these are not the moments that inspire alumni to support their schools. People care little about your financial goals - they care about helping people. 

Hint: Don’t pretend you’re the person who just retired

When the two systems play nice, you’ll get the most out of both.

"The best way to help students manage the stress [of applying to schools] is to reassure them that it doesn’t have to be stressful. It can be a meaningful and rewarding experience. If they’re connected to that question of why they’re going to college and what they’re looking for."
Brennan Barnard, Director of College Counseling at The Derryfield School in New Hampshire

“That story we share has to cause me to feel some empathy. It could be frustration, irritation, joy, happiness. If I don’t feel something, I cannot make a decision.”
Lori L. Jacobwith, Ignited Fundraising

“There’s a huge risk in asking people for anything. But why wouldn’t we take risks? Why wouldn’t we, as fundraisers, be vulnerable? It’s not about us. It’s about the donors. We should be risky every darn day.”
Brian Gawor, VP for Research at Ruffalo Noel Levitz

Students obtain an education as a pathway to gainful employment, but many schools fall short of providing quality career services. Much of the problem lies in how schools connect with students. These five text suggestions can help your department reach more students and guide them to their respective careers.

Jacksonville State University is a 4-year public institution that faced a declining number of enrollments and applicants, as well as a decline in event attendance. Lauren Findley, Director of Undergrad Admissions, Shaun Stancil, the school’s Systems Administrator, and their team used integration and well-crafted, automated texts to overcome these obstacles.

“What you see here is kind of a scramble by the states, partly for competitive reasons, but also because the majority of people are now realizing that what’s going on in college sports with the players not getting paid in what amounts to a billion dollar industry is just wrong."
Joe Nocera, Author and Business Journalist

“I think it’s about having individual relationships with your students, so when they do come in and need to be challenged, you know them well enough to know their growth edges, and how you need to couch that challenge so they can hear it, because that’s not the same for every student."
Dr. Yancey Gulley, Associate Professor in the Higher Education Student Affairs program at Western Carolina University.

According to the Association of American Colleges and Universities, 74% of all students meet at least one criterion of being a non-traditional student. And, the number of non-traditional students across the country will continue to grow. Schools that obtain a better understanding of the obstacles faced by non-traditional students will be able to better serve their needs.

“You can look at the IP addresses. We can actually see 10-15% of the applications were completed by the parent. This is going to increase. The parent is driving the college search process. You need to be recruiting the whole family because they’re part of this as well.” - Joe Madigan - Director of Recruitment Outreach at Florida Southern University

Like many schools, Florida Southern College (FSC) had declining enrollment numbers in a crowded market, and had difficulty reaching students and potential students. Even with the best texting platform, the school still needed a smart strategy. Joe Madigan, the Director of Recruitment Outreach at FSC, worked with his admissions team to break down the barriers in the way of reaching students, because telephone calls and emails weren’t working.

How to make your open house a full house

With all of the work that goes into planning an open house, or any campus event, it can be deflating when attendance doesn’t match the effort of your staff.  A lifetime of spam has scared students away from their email inboxes. Schools that have instituted a texting platform have found a dramatic improvement in their response rates, but selecting a platform is only half of the solution. A smart strategy is needed. 

Answering this question is key to donor acquisition and retention. 

While your initial response to receiving a gift should always be “Thank you”, your secondary response should be “Why?”

Everyone I know: “Why is your conference in Puerto Rico?” 

“Brands and businesses think they’re complying with the TCPA by having “Text STOP to end” or “Message and data rate apply”, but those types of disclosures have nothing to do with the TCPA.”
Adam Bowser, Partner at Arent Fox Law Firm

We are sometimes asked why it would make sense to add an additional tool to an existing admissions team when they already have so much on their plate.

Each cycle, admissions staffs across the country work hard to make their classes, only to find that enrollment number reduced due to melt. So what can a college do about high school graduates who change their minds about a school, or attending school altogether, even after depositing? Attention to detail is a strong ally in the fight against melt.

While every institution needs to be strategic to effectively communicate with prospective students and current students, community colleges face unique obstacles. Each department must connect with a diverse group of people, typically older than traditional students, balancing family, work, and school. One school, Grand Rapids Community College, used a texting platform to actually reach their students.

How guiding constituents through every touch point can make all the difference

When a school from the Mongoose family does well, we’re more than excited to share the good news. UNC Charlotte was recently recognized by the Annual Giving Network in their Best in Annual Giving Challenge.

With robo-dialing on the rise, more and more students are ignoring phone calls.

Sometimes, when you’re writing about the best practices of emoji use in texts, you consume too much caffeine. This blog is the result. At this time, we here at Mongoose will recommend that you NOT read any further. Like, stop reading this blog. Seriously. This blog will serve as no help to you.

Holy cow, you’re still reading. Okay, you’ve been warned. Here is a fictional guide to emoji use that shouldn’t have been written and certainly should not be taken seriously. It’s an ‘Emojis - Worst Practices’ guide. We hope you have fun with it.

While emojis can be fun and engaging, it’s a good idea to limit your use, be selective and professional, and avoid these worst practices.

Colleges and universities are facing many challenges, and they’re not just financial. Rick Seltzer, Senior Reporter for Inside Higher Ed, sits with Mike Kochczynski to discuss the social, economic and demographic issues bearing down on schools, and the importance of serving the needs of students going forward.

When alums know they can make an impact, they’re more likely to get involved and contribute to their alma maters. Cutler Andrews, Senior Vice President of Fundraising Consulting at Ruffalo Noel Levitz, talks with Mongoose's Mike Kochczynski about how schools can re-imagine their approach to advancement to increase engagement and alumni gifts.

All millennials are not the same, and your institution could be making a mistake by lumping people of the same age group together. If you’re grouping your current and prospective students by generational stereotypes, you’re not serving their needs (or yours). Dr. Scott Cline, Vice President of Enrollment at California College of the Arts, talks about the importance of data and the problem with lazy generational labeling.

What is the future of content in higher ed, and what lessons can be learned from the evolution of online file sharing? Hugh McGuire, co-founder of Rebus Foundation joins Mongoose to talk about content accessibility and the possibilities that exist with Open Textbooks.

Engaging with technical school students and prospects offers unique challenges.

There are always obstacles in the way of reaching your constituents. And, while every campus has students with different characteristics, technical schools have additional challenges that 4-year institutions might not experience.

We are excited to announce a new strategic partnership with RNL, the leading provider of higher education enrollment management, student success, and fundraising solutions.

Students need to find a school that is the right fit for them. Dr. Walter Kimbrough, President of Dillard University talks with Mike Kochczynski about creating value in school programs, managing institutional goals with revenue realities, handling controversy on campus and running a school in 2019.

The number of jobs requiring a graduate degree has increased by over 300% since 1970¹. So, knowing how important and popular graduate programs are, we realize Mongoose needs to assist enrollment managers. This blog is the first foray in our efforts to help

SMS texting in admissions can help you bring more students to your school. Maybe, it already has. But texting is such an easy and effective way of communicating - students get used to it. If your campus stops using texting when students matriculate, the student experience becomes disjointed and can lead to less-than-ideal outcomes.

Texting platforms are designed to make it much easier to reach constituents. CRM systems need to be the system of record for contact data and, ideally, have records of all communication from any medium. Making sure the two systems integrate is essential.

“I think I would benefit more if a school took an interest in who I am today, rather than who I was when I was 20.”

A great conversation on advancement with Dr. Jay Dillon, founder of Alumni Identity. Jay talks with Mike about how institutions should change the way they think about and view alums and donors, and how that strategy has led to better results for USF and UCLA. (Plus, hear the best email subject line he’s ever used – 23% open rate!)

Is a story more powerful than statistics? Ellen Treanor, associate vice president of brand strategy at Southern Utah University, explains how engaging students with storytelling can make a huge difference in your enrollment efforts. Mongoose’s Mike Kochczynski hosts the conversation.

Jens Larson, Director of Student Communications at Eastern Washington University, details how texting helped his institution improve enrollment numbers, and how EWU continues to develop and improve the ways they use texting to reach students.

These dynamic features will help you get the most out of your platform

You’re ready to institute a texting platform at your institution. It’s a powerful move that is certain to increase engagement, responses, and critical outcomes. But, before you hit send, make sure you’re set up for success with these 10 fantastic features.

Texting is a powerful method of communication that allows you to connect with students the way they prefer. If properly utilized, texting allows you to actually reach students and set your institution apart from the competition. You have to choose a texting platform that meets your needs across the enterprise.

Information system-level texting features fall short of the capabilities of a platform like Cadence. Be it a CRM, SIS, fundraising system or other, a good information system will make your department more efficient and organized. Some even offer the ability to text students, but functionality falls short.

Texting can help many departments in your institution reach students. When deciding to make texting an enterprise solution, consider which departments are having the most difficulty communicating. That might be the best place to start.

Emergency alerts are designed to, well, alert users in the case of an emergency. Whereas, conversational texts are designed to facilitate staff to students communication; resulting in better outcomes.

A step-by-step guide to reaching students throughout their lifecycle

Whether you’re currently utilizing a texting platform for a specific department at your school or still putting together a communications strategy, it pays to consider enterprise texting. SMS texting helps improve enrollment, allows you to reach more parents, increases graduation rates, and better connects you to graduates. The key is to find the right texting platform and get buy-in from all departments.

Panelists from Daemen College and Plymouth State University will speak with Mongoose’s Amanda Torrelli to share how they’ve implemented texting solutions. You’ll hear their success stories and best practices for enterprise texting.

The same communications platform that has proven successful for recruiting and retaining students can be utilized beyond graduation. More colleges are using texting to reach alumni and increase awareness, involvement, and gifts.

It IS legal for non-profits to text alumni and donors

In 2012, the Federal Communications Commission updated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), increasing some restrictions related to sending texts to mobile phones. The TCPA restricts the use of using automated technology to contact consumers by either voice or text. However, non-profit institutions are exempt from these regulations.

Chris D’Orso, Associate Director of Admissions at SUNY Brockport, discusses social media in higher education, with tips on managing various school social platforms, interacting with students, and finding the right times to inject personality into your posts. Mongoose’s Mike Kochczynski hosts the conversation.

Mongoose’s Dave Marshall and Andrew Veatch discuss the best practices for higher ed institutions to manage texting preferences in an enterprise environment. Topics covered include how to handle contact and student opt-outs and choosing the right staff members to send texts.

St. Michael’s Assistant Director of Admissions Jake Joseph discusses how a small Northeast school connects with students and prospective students. In an informative conversation with Mongoose’s Mike Kochczynski, Jake stresses the importance of being authentic, how to make your school stand out in a competitive region and how peer influence is still as big a factor in recruiting.

An in-depth discussion on integrating records and contacts from Salesforce to your texting platform. Mongoose Lead Software Developer, Nick Forysinski, and Mongoose President, Dave Marshall, talk about the best practices for defining your contacts, SMS opt-ins and opt-outs, and managing multiple values in the opt-out fields created by Salesforce. 

Save time and improve response rates with these convenient templates.

We’ve talked in the past about how important texting templates can be for your school’s communications strategy. Like any other fill-in-the-blank template, a texting template allows you to set up the framework, then easily customize. Templates save you time and reduce the risk of poorly-written messages.

In this free, 45-minute webinar, learn how advancement professionals from UNC Charlotte and Coe College are leveraging texting to enhance and improve alumni engagement and fundraising.

You already know that text messaging is the preferred method of communication for today’s college students. Maybe you’ve even implemented texting on your campus (in that case – kudos to you!). There’s no question it’s the simplest, most reliable solution to reach any cohort on campus.

It’s no secret that text messaging is the preferred method of communication for today’s students over email, direct mail or phone calls; in a recent report¹, nearly 80% of prospective students said they are open to receiving text messages from colleges and universities. However, less than 50% report being offered the option to text. How should institutions address this gap by reaching students the way they prefer?

If your school is utilizing a text messaging platform to communicate with students, you’re already basking in the glory of the convenience and manageability. But there’s still plenty on your plate and only so much time in a day.

It’s always interesting to see what leading institutions are doing to leverage students' medium of choice - texting .

There’s a big difference between who wants to send text nudges to your students and who should be sending text nudges.

• Dear Bertram: Should I partner with the Common App or the Coalition App? I am considering including a shared application system for next year’s class. Will adding one or both of those applications to the mix actually diversify our application pool?
  That’s Dr. Burnside, to you. I didn’t bust my hump to earn a sheepskin so some wet nose dewdropper could razz me. Now, I am not familiar with this App fellow or his coalition. He sounds to me like a snake oil salesman.

• What role can IT play in supporting student retention, graduation, and future employability?  There are so many unnecessary boundaries here. - Tabitha H.
  Oh, good. IT. Yes, the same scobberlotchers who jumped all over Filezilla like a sailor in port. Now they’re all riddled with malware and bringing it back home to their best girl. I’ll tell you what role IT can play - once they’ve figured out how to remove the Ask.com toolbar, they can just relax.  We’re good - I’m all drwx------

Hear from Ashley and Amanda from Mongoose as they review the latest updates from Mongoose, general best practices for texting with students, and new and improved resources for our clients. You'll need your Mongoose Cadence login credentials to access the video and slide deck.

Texting is an extremely simple yet powerful medium to use when communicating with students, alumni, and stakeholders. And, like any tool, skilled and experienced professionals can guide others to use texting to its full potential.

Texting templates are critical because (and be careful not to fall off your seat) not all staff are wonderful copywriters. In working with over 400 institutions to help develop their texting content strategies, we have found that a content strategy is only as good as the templates provided to staff. This cannot be understated.

A long, long time ago (okay, like 8 years ago) it was only possible to text students using your personal mobile phone. Higher ed learned pretty quickly that giving out your mobile phone number to someone you don’t personally know is like handing a toddler a cup of juice without a lid; there’s going to be a big mess.

We all know by now that texting is an extremely effective way to communicate with students. Campuses across the country are using texting to varying degrees with a range of success. The texting platform selected by the institution seems to be the benchmark that determines how successful the institution will be.

You can see how texting in general is effective, so it’s time to take a deeper look into how it can fit into your overall communications strategy.

Let’s say you decide to use texting as your primary means of communicating with students (which seems like a smart move because it is, for the most part, the only way students send and receive information). What’s the worst that can happen?

There isn’t one magic medium that will work every time for every parent, which is why it’s important to take a multichannel approach. That said, research shows that websites, texting, and email are more effective than phone calls, brochures, and other mediums. Here’s a quick look at how the most common tactics compare.

Learn from a diverse panel of Mongoose users that have leveraged texting throughout the student lifecycle to enhance and improve student experience. Amanda will interview panelists and explore their texting journey in the areas of student success, financial aid and students services. We will discuss why texting, success stories, learning lessons and creative texting tactics.

Join us as we discuss best uses for texting within intercollegiate athletics. We’re excited to sponsor this panel discussion featuring four industry experts – each with a unique take on how texting can and should be used within an athletics department.

Struggling to communicate with today’s students? Join leadership from the University of Oklahoma, Radford University and University of the Sciences for a panel discussion on "Using Mobile to Improve Communication with Students."

PPY = Prior-Prior Year Income Data for the FAFSA

How to achieve higher yield rates, and other lessons learned through a full enrollment cycle

Why did a mid-sized four-year private institution have a 48% higher yield rate for students who texted them versus students who didn’t text? In this study, we’ll explore that question—and many others—as we share findings from a recent 12-month study of an institution that used texting as a significant part of their communication mix with students.

Practical tips to new increase transfer enrollment

Transfer students have very different perspectives than first-year students. First-year students are often trying to figure out who they want to become and where they want to do so. Transfer students are much more discerning and have already had concrete experiences. They want to know what they will become and how they can go about accomplishing it.  The role of the transfer advisor is to help them to unlock that process.

Many institutions provide admissions counselors with mobile phones. It makes sense. It allows them to not have to use their personal mobile for university business. They can check email, send texts, receive phone calls and communicate with students without an added out of pocket expense.

Why you should (almost) always end student texts with “?” Want to kill a conversation? Stop asking questions.

Suzanne Petrusch, VP Enrollment and Marketing at Presbyterian College, began texting prospective students in 2009. Over the last eight years, a lot has changed; not only from a technology perspective but also in terms of students’ and families’ attitudes about texting. Eight years later, Suzanne has refined her approach to texting and how it can best be used to build better relationships with families.

In an age when leaving a student a voicemail is the equivalent of stuffing a note in a bottle and throwing it into the ocean, it’s clear that phone calls are not an efficient way to reach constituents.

When it comes to our clients, they’re obsessed with analytics. “What’s a good response rate when texting?” is actually one of the most frequently asked questions we receive. And it’s justified as well-known metrics, such as email open and click rates, pale in comparison to texting.

Texting has taken higher education by storm and is now the most effective way to communicate with today’s students. Of course, as with the introduction of any new technology, it’s important to be thoughtful about implementation and governance. In this article, we’ll answer—in both high and detailed levels–the six most pertinent questions regarding the management of texting preferences across the institution.

Engagement and behavior can tell you if your texting campaigns are working.

Texting is a top-rated channel for communicating with students. Surprisingly, it’s also the most underutilized. Until recently, there was no simple way for institutions to manage texting on campus. But now, forward-thinking institutions are improving their enrollment yield and student outcomes by utilizing SMS management platforms like Cadence.

A ’60s philosopher nails it with a theory that holds even truer today.

What brings you here?

Parents are the most important influencers for prospective students, which is why it’s important to welcome them into the admissions process, and address their concerns on a dedicated page (or section) of your website. Here, we’ll cover parents’ top concerns and share a sample wireframe that you can use.

The bottom line:

There’s a clear correlation between admissions reps who are texting students and those who are meeting - and exceeding - their territory expectations.