Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/54806
sity who can respond. "That person can either say, 'I can help you, here's a solution to your problem' or 'That's not correct. Here's where you can go for more information,'" Koelling says. "He or she can guide the online conversations." 5. Give special attention to digital media. "Social media is hugely important, especially when you're recruiting, because students live on social media networks and they're influenced by their friends in these networks," says Fitting. To create a strong online presence, notes Parikh, the first step is to perfect your Web site. "Make sure it reflects who you are and allows people to find the information they're looking for," he says. "Students are the primary audience for the Web site, but there are other audiences—such as corpo- rate recruiters and business leaders—so make sure the site communicates to all of them." Second, realize that people are accessing digital media through a variety of devices, including their smartphones. "If someone is looking at your Web site through an iPhone, is it still conveying all your key points?" asks Koelling. Third, participate in the social media channels that make sense for you, from Facebook to Twitter to YouTube—and monitor all online conversations about your school. Those conversations are going to take place whether you chime in or not, but some of them can harm you if you don't respond to them quickly. "It's key to have a very focused and clear sense of self so that, no matter who is talking about the university, you're still putting out a consistent message," says Koelling. "But you also must react to any negativity. You're never going to stop people from having a bad experience and posting about it. But if you just let those negative comments sit there, they can be very damaging." Schools need to assign a staff member the job of reading online posts, then finding the appropriate person at the univer- 30 BizEd MARCH/APRIL 2011 6. Exploit the power of video. "It's very, very effective, because it's evocative, engaging, memorable, and fun," says Fitting. "That's especially true if it includes music, because music appeals to our really basic, primitive human natures." The best videos are short and relatively unpolished, says Fitting. "This generation has grown up with do-it-yourself filming, so they don't mind funny camera angles. In fact, the whole documentary-style approach works really well for these students." Video is also a powerful medium because it can be accessed in so many ways, she says. Even if it "lives" on YouTube, schools can use Web site links, banner ads, and URLs in printed materials to drive students to the video. And because smartphones allow users to watch videos online, they're now wholly mobile. 7. Join like-minded communities online. In addi- tion to creating videos and establishing your own digital personality, make sure you're a presence on other sites that are consistent with your brand. For instance, a school that's positioned itself as a leader in sustainability should encour- age its professors to join conversations and post useful infor- mation on sites that discuss green business. "Showcase your school's MBA to these communities," says Koelling. This strategy might take a long time to pay off if you're primarily focused on increasing enrollment, she notes, but if you're trying to build a brand, "this is a great way to create broad word of mouth in communities you care about." 8. Export your worldview. Don't just join communi- ties that share your perspective; create events that capitalize on it. For instance, the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in Illinois holds an annual management confer- ence in which some of its top professors discuss what's ahead for business. "The Booth School is all about taking ideas apart and putting them back together, and these conferences are a great example of a school identifying its brand and translating it into an event," says Morse. But the impact of the conferences lingers long after the debates are over. Videos of the events are posted online, and the school also posts interviews with the dean and the con- ference moderator, analyzing their reactions to the discus- DAVE CUTLER /CORBIS