When we talk about customer acquisition, it all starts with the lead! In the educational market, this is no different. Now do you really know what leads are? Do you know the difference between lead and qualified lead?
Continue with us to understand everything you need to know about leads for educational institutions!
What will you see in this post?
- How is higher education in Brazil?
- After all, what are leads for educational institutions?
- Qualified Marketing Leads vs Qualified Sales Leads
- Why are leads so important?
Good reading!
How is higher education in Brazil?
Before understanding what a lead is, it is important to know a little about the higher education scenario in Brazil, since it is this scenario that offers some important insights for your student recruitment process.
At the same time that the educational market grows, competition also increases.According to the Education Census of Inep higher education (National Institute of Educational Studies and Research Anísio Teixeira) of 2020:
- There are more than 8.6 million students enrolled;
- Almost 42,000 active undergraduate courses;
- More than 2400 educational institutions.
In addition to government incentives for students to enter universities, the increase in the number of enrollments in recent years is also due to the entry of new competitors in the market.
The number of higher education institutions that grows year after year, gives us an overview of the difficulty of capturing leads in this market. You need to know the institution's target audience well to have assertive communication and differentiate yourself from the competition.
After all, what are leads for educational institutions?
Leads can be considered as business opportunities. In HEIs, the term is used to identify potential students. Those people who still don't have a close relationship with their HEI, but who have already shown some interest in what you offer.
When you launch a marketing campaign, its first objective is to attract the largest number of people to then select those who are really interested in doing an undergraduate or postgraduate course. At Inbound Marketing, this selection tends to be more natural.
But, in any case, this first capture stage is part of the top of the funnel. Your audience is basically segmented by demographic, social and behavioral data, but without much distinction. He may not even know he has a need yet.
At this stage, we tend to offer "top" content that brings your educational institution closer to that potential student through subjects that make sense for their reality and that show the importance of completing a degree.
When these people are attracted to specific content, such as an ebook course, for example, they advancefunnel, they leave contact details in exchange for such material, from that moment on, you have converted a visitor (unknown) into a lead (known).
Now, you have access to data such as the name, email and phone of that lead, but you probably still don't know him completely, do you agree? That's where the work of lead nurturing is.
It is important to keep in mind that the lead nurturing process consists of educating this potential student about career possibilities, undergraduate or graduate courses, the benefits that your educational institution offers, among other related topics.
It is, in short, about preparing this lead to enroll in the best course for him.
Today, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation tools significantly improve lead management, enabling more accurate qualification and segmentation, resulting in greater campaign efficiency.
Qualified Marketing Leads vs Qualified Sales Leads
At the beginning of a marketing campaign, the team does a deep market analysis to understand the student's profile that the institution seeks. In addition to sociodemographic data, behavioral data are listed, such as: hobbies, needs, difficulties, purchasing behavior, educational and professional background, among others.
From there, the calls are created by people of marketing, which are semi-fictional representations of the ideal student profile sought. And all marketing actions are aimed at them.
It turns out that the profile drawn by marketing does not always correspond to the student profile that reaches your commercial team and this can make it difficult to capture qualified leads for the conversion, that is, closing of enrollments.
When that happens, you already know the result: thousands of interested parties, hundreds of subscribers and few enrolled.
What to do then? confront the student profile ideals outlined by marketing with the profile of interested parties arriving in the service sector, concluding what are leads qualified for marketing and what are leads qualified for sales (understand qualified as ideal for joining the educational institution).
If the profiles are very different, it is necessary to review your lead capture strategy, reorient marketing and train the sales sector for a more assertive approach, enrolling in the selection process only people who meet the necessary basic requirements. Want an example?
Let's say you're campaigning for the college entrance exam and you've chosen a cable TV channel as one of your lead capture channels. Its commercial is shown in the intervals of youth programs, such as series. But it turns out that its audience is mostly in classes C and D, a characteristic already signaled by the commercial sector.
What's the problem with that? Your audience doesn't watch cable TV. Both for cost and ease of access, your target audience is on the internet. So, you need to redirect your efforts to where your audience is, capturing qualified leads for both marketing and sales.
Furthermore, the use of CRMs specialized in education allows you to better manage these profiles, ensuring alignment between marketing and sales, significantly increasing conversions into enrollments.
Read too:
- What is link building? Learn how to make it successful;
- The 8 essential tips to improve your CRM. Check out now;
- Automation: how to create a purchase flow in 5 standards!
Why are leads so important?
For a long time, educational institutions were tied to the concept that it was necessary to sell courses massively, to anyone. This attitude brought problems not only for the students, but for the educational institution themselves.
Dissatisfied students, late tuition, high dropout rates, marketing budget growing and without tangible results. But this situation has changed a lot in recent years.
Today, with the right technology, you can identify who is the ideal student for your college and provide a consumer journey that is more in line with your audience's expectations.
By qualifying leads through contents relevant and useful, you educate a large market and maintain your sales funnel and customer flywheel. Inbound marketing is always on the move, no longer missing enrollment opportunities due to not understanding who you are talking to.
What's more, it maximizes your return on investment in Marketing campaigns. If you build the right message, for the right person, delivering it when they need it most, every penny spent on marketing easily returns to the educational institution cash.
In this context, inbound marketing strategies have stood out by generating relevant educational content, such as blogs, e-books and webinars, ensuring continuous engagement and greater lead conversion.
Do you want to know how to attract more leads to your educational institution? Take the opportunity to check out this post from our blog: 5 good practices of relationship flow with students
Frequently Asked Questions About Leads in Higher Education Institutions
What is a lead in higher education marketing?
A lead is a potential student who has shown interest in your institution — for example, by downloading an e-book or filling out a form. It represents a business opportunity for student recruitment.
What’s the difference between a lead and a qualified lead?
A lead becomes qualified when it fits your institution's ideal student profile and shows readiness to move forward in the enrollment process. Marketing-qualified leads are early-stage, while sales-qualified leads are closer to decision-making.
Why are leads so important for educational institutions?
Leads allow your institution to build a relationship with potential students, educate them, and guide them through a personalized enrollment journey — increasing conversion rates and optimizing your marketing ROI.
How can educational institutions generate more qualified leads?
Through targeted marketing campaigns, relevant content (like blogs and e-books), proper use of CRMs, and alignment between marketing and sales teams. Automation and AI also enhance lead segmentation and nurturing.
What tools help manage and qualify leads effectively?
CRM systems specialized in education, marketing automation platforms, and analytics tools are key. They help track behavior, personalize communication, and ensure efficient lead management from first contact to enrollment.
What are the consequences of attracting unqualified leads?
Unqualified leads often result in low enrollment rates, increased marketing costs, student dissatisfaction, and higher dropout rates. That's why it's essential to align lead generation with the actual profile of your ideal student.
How does inbound marketing improve student recruitment?
Inbound marketing attracts leads through valuable content and helps educate them over time. This method increases engagement, builds trust, and drives better-qualified leads into the enrollment pipeline.
Happy reading and until next time.
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