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25,000+ Student Registrations.
Challenge
Our NASDAQ listed client, a global leader in computer networking products, wanted to launch its CSR initiative, the Incubator Program for budding engineer students. The client aimed to create makerspaces where IoT enthusiasts could learn more about digital technologies in a hands-on environment and turn their ideas into working prototypes. The key challenges (opportunities) that we identified were as follows:
- Ensuring quality traffic on the social media pages to ensure that the seriousness of the cause is not diluted, and a right learning environment is maintained.
- Ensuring subtle communication as the target group was young students. Also, ensuring that the communication was not explicitly promotional as it was a CSR initiative.
- The project was implemented right after the Covid phase when the online activity for every age group had gone up significantly. So, the challenge was to not just get them online but to communicate the value of these courses and ensure that only serious students register.
- Additionally, the focus was also on ensuring that the students completed the courses and get certified.
- The student community usually has limited time to spare. The challenge was to communicate value to them so that they register in the incubation program held at the university.
Solution
To tackle the challenges mentioned above, we came up with the following strategy:
Phase 1: Community Building
The objective of this phase was to focus on building a community around the latest technologies on Instagram and Facebook through content marketing. We gave out a lot of free information in the form of webinars and articles. We created quizzes and discussion forums on weekends (keeping in mind their classes) where the winners were given Amazon coupons. Most of these contests were framed around the blog/webinar posted that week, incentivizing them to revisit the page. We did A/B testing on different target groups (location, age groups, interests, etc.) to observe the response rate. For example, we ran the same ad set to different target groups and found out that it was better to target their hometowns. Possible reason here can be that most of the students were still studying from home during the period.
Phase 2: Course Enrollment
After gaining traction and traffic on the page, the next focus was on motivating students/viewers to enroll in the courses. Both organic and paid promotions were done on both the platforms with more emphasis on Instagram (as it had lower CPC and higher reach). Sequential campaigns were set for each of the courses keeping in mind the recency and recall factor. We also created success stories of the past students who were able to receive funding for their startups through this initiative. Also, we created testimonial videos of the students who were going through the course currently. We conducted A/B testing of social media communication, where we showed two different campaigns to the target group. It was observed that key benefits communication had 25% lower CPC and 38% higher CTR.
Phase 3: Course Completion & Certifications
In the last two months of the campaign, the focus was twofold; students who had registered in the course to start the course and students who had started the course to complete and be certified. To get the maximum ROI from the campaigns, we divided the courses into three categories; High Performing Courses (CPC < 10), Medium Performing Courses (11 < CPC > 15), and Low Performing Courses (CPC > 15). We created maximum targeting and retargeting campaigns focusing on these courses followed by the medium performing category while all the course campaigns in the third category were either paused or ran together as Carousal ads (two or more ads are run together in a slider format) to cut down on cost. To bring competitiveness, we also recognized and awarded students.
Impact
The client’s CSR initiative to create makerspaces where IoT enthusiasts could learn more about digital technologies in a hands-on environment and turn their ideas into working prototypes was successfully launched with the help of the social media campaign. The objectives of the campaign, to get 25,000+ students to register for the newly launched online courses on latest technologies stacks like Blockchain, IOT implementations, AI & Machine Learning and build an online community for budding entrepreneurs/ Innovators/ Engineers looking to make their mark in the Technology space, were achieved.
The A/B testing conducted during the campaign provided valuable insights into consumer behavior and allowed the team to optimize their approach, resulting in a 30% lower CPC and 45% higher reach when targeting students' hometowns. The campaign saw a 35% increase in active users and 5000+ unique visitors on the page in the first two months. The key benefits approach resulted in a 25% lower CPC and 38% higher CTR. The campaign also helped students complete the courses and get certified. The initiative was a success in creating makerspaces for budding engineer students and provided them with the opportunity to learn more about digital technologies and turn their ideas into working prototypes.