“Cultivating relationships isn’t just helpful, it’s vital to getting anything done.”
Interview with Rachel Rau, Head of Partnerships at Study.eu
The “What education marketers are saying” series shares insight from marketers working in the education sector, whether that’s for universities, agencies or student communities.
Interview
Kyle (Education Marketer): Running a course search business is a tough and competitive game. How do you approach SEO and create content that makes you a natural choice over competitors?
Rachel: We always focus on: 1) What questions do students really ask? And 2) What are honest, helpful answers to those questions? That's the simple reason why, in four years, the site has grown from zero to now two million users per year. Also, it helps that we're called "Study.eu" because with that brand we get higher-than-average CTRs from search engine result pages.
Kyle: In your opinion, which university should education marketers be paying attention to right now?
Rachel: I find it compelling to see what teams can do with a small amount of resource, particularly in countries where the sector isn’t as commercialised as the UK. Typically, in continental Europe, Marketing teams have smaller budgets to work with – also, they have to work harder just to be noticed.
For me, I’m impressed with Kaunas Institute of Technology. It has a fantastic microsite that manages to playfully communicate its brand values.
The site may not follow top-task based web design, but it feels unique, grabs your attention and still manages to answer the questions visitors are likely to have.
Kyle: What have ten years in international marketing and communications roles taught you about building relationships?
Rachel: Relationships are everything, and not just with your close colleagues.
I’ve held all different types of roles in HE, and in every single one, cultivating relationships wasn’t just helpful, it was vital to getting anything done. Proactively getting to know the people you work with, be they colleagues, clients or partners, will not only make your job easier, it will also bring you and them better results.
And don’t only call someone when you want something: take the time to grow relationships without an immediate reason.
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