The higher education decision-making process has changed and content is now the best way for schools to start conversations and engage prospective students. However, creating content that performs is not easy, especially for resource-constrained higher ed institutions. Learn how to work smarter not harder, as our resident in-house experts in content marketing teach you the tricks of the trade. Join this webcast and you'll learn: - Why content marketing is so critical to reach today's prospects - What types of content are most compelling for the LinkedIn mindset - Best practices for optimizing your content for the LinkedIn feed - How to get started with Sponsored Updates on LinkedIn

1. LinkedIn Master Class
Content Marketing that
Converts Students
#LinkedInEDU

2. 2
SPEAKERS
Ira Amilhussin
Sr. Marketing Manager
LinkedIn
Thea Castronovo
Sr. Content Strategist
LinkedIn
Laura McKee
Account Manager
LinkedIn #LinkedInEDU

3. 3
AGENDA
SECTION 1
Why Content Marketing?
SECTION 2
Laying a Solid Foundation
SECTION 3
Best Practices
SECTION 4
Getting Started
#LinkedInEDU

4. 4
Sectio
n 1
WHY CONTENT
MARKETING?
#LinkedInEDU

5. “In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity”
5
of admissions directors
did not meet their 2015
enrollment goals
of all American jobs will require
some sort of education beyond
high school by 2018
63%58%
1 – 2015 Survey of College and University Admissions Directors, Inside Higher Ed
2 – Job Growth and Educational Requirements through 2020, Georgetown University, 2014
– Albert Einstein
#LinkedInEDU

6. Prospects today are empowered by
information from their social networks
6
TIMELINE
Source: Connecting with Today’s Prospective Student, LinkedIn – 8/2015
Top influencers on student decision making
PRESENTPAST
Institution website
Family/
Friends/
Peers
Institution website
Family/Friends/Peers
Professional Networks
Personal Networks
#LinkedInEDU

7. Marketers must influence prospects early in the
decision journey
7Source: Connecting with Today’s Prospective Student, LinkedIn – 8/2015
develop their short list before
reaching out to a
school representative
72%
make the prospects’
short list
ONLY 3
SCHOOLS
end up enrolling
at a school from their
short list
93%
#LinkedInEDU

8. 8Source: Connecting with Today’s Prospective Student, LinkedIn – 8/2015
of students use social
media when deciding
where to enroll
75%
An effective content marketing
strategy is key
Professional networks
are 3x more influential
than personal social
networks
3x
#LinkedInEDU

9. 9
Sectio
n 2
LAYING A SOLID
FOUNDATION
#LinkedInEDU

10. 10
What do you want to achieve?
Raise brand
awareness
Drive higher
quality leads
Establish your
school as a thought
leader
Foster community
among students
and alumni
#LinkedInEDU

11. 11
Determine how you will measure success
Higher quality leads
METRICS
Cost per lead
Cost per enrollment
Time to close
Thought leadership
METRICS
Engagement
Downloads
Earned media value
Speaker requests
#LinkedInEDU

12. 12
Decide what content to produce
Top types of information sought by intenders in each stage of the higher education decision-making process:
AWARENESS DISCOVERY SELECTION
Career Advice
Information on courses and degree programs
Expert commentary
and reviews
Staff and lecturer profiles
Alumni profiles/achievements
Institution rankings
Education and industry news
Source: Connecting with Today’s Prospective Student, LinkedIn 8/2015
Base: MBA and Masters Intenders (n=502)
#LinkedInEDU

13. Sponsored Updates deliver rich content
across all devices via the LinkedIn feed
#LinkedInEDU
13

14. 14
Section
3
BEST
PRACTICES
#LinkedInEDU

15. 15
5
COMPELLING CONTENT
TYPES FOR THE
LINKEDIN MINDSET
#LinkedInEDU

16. #1: Help members stay current
16

17. #2: Offer professional development
Inspire your audience
17
#LinkedInEDU

18. 18
#3: Offer leadership & productivity
Make your audience leaders of tomorrow
#LinkedInEDU

19. 19
#4: Share industry trends
Help your audience plan for the future

20. 20
#5: Produce peer research / ideas
Use social proof to appeal to your audience
#LinkedInEDU

21. Top updates for education:
advice, information & reputation
21

22. 22
Higher Ed: Through the funnel
Plan content that educates and inspires
along with content that collects leadsUpper Funnel
Brand Messaging
Thought Leadership
Registration, Download
Information, Meet with an
Enrollment Counselor
Rankings, News,
Career Advice,
Courses/Degrees
Program Value,
Student Testimonials,
Blog Content
Faculty Profiles, Webinars,
On-Campus Events,
Alumni Testimonials
Bottom Funnel
Lead Focused
Direct Messaging #LinkedInEDU

23. 23
6
TIPS TO OPTIMIZE
CONTENT FOR THE
FEED
#LinkedInEDU

24. 24
#1: Customize image, headline & urgency
All three must work in concert
#LinkedInEDU

25. 25
Try writing in different perspectives
The Helpful Advisor
The Conversationalist
The Cliffhanger
Start by explaining how your piece of content
will help your target achieve professional
success.
Tell your audience just enough to pique their
interest but not so much that they aren’t
compelled to learn more.
Make a bold statement or ask
a question to spark a conversation and get your
audience to react.

26. 26
#2: Invest in great images
Custom images generate higher engagement

27. 27
#3: Use a consistent brand identity
Build brand memory
#LinkedInEDU

28. 28
#4: Learn to write great headlines
Create multiple versions
http://aminstitute.com/headline
http://hubspot.com/blog-topic-generator
#LinkedInEDU

29. 29
#5: Less content, more testing
The content isn’t always bad, sometimes just the framing is
120% LIFT
#LinkedInEDU

30. #6: And have fun
Stand out. Top updates are entertaining.
#LinkedInEDU
30

31. Targeting on LinkedIn
#LinkedInEDU
31

32. User Provided
Company
Title
Geography
Company Following
Group Membership
School
Graduation Year
Field of Study
Derived
Function
Seniority
Company Size
Company Industry
Gender
Age
Geography (IP)
Leverage LinkedIn profile-based targeting
32

33. Danie
Seattle, WA USA
Boston University
COMPANY
NAME
INDUSTRYSIZE
SCHOOL
LOCATION
JOB
TITLE
SENIORITY
FUNCTION
FIELD OF STUDY
DEGREE
GRADUATION AGE
SKILLS
GROUPS
IP
Communication
Bachelor of Science
2011, 25-34
Simply Measured,
51-200 employees, Internet
Senior Marketing Manager,
Marketing, Senior IC
CMA, LEWIS, Social Tools
SEO, Social Media, Digital
Marketing, Blogging
#LinkedInEDU
33

34. Half the battle is getting them there.
Now make sure they convert.
34
Let’s talk
landing pages

35. Delight them with an experience that will convert
35
Make sure landing pages are optimized
1. Feature more on your
page than just a lead form
2. Have a prominent call to
action
3. Keep forms short
4. Always be mobile
optimized
#LinkedInEDU

36. 5 things to remember
1. Make sure each post answers “is this relevant to my audience?
How am I making them more productive or successful?
2. Optimize each element of a post for maximum effect (images, text,
etc.)
3. Include a clear and concise ‘call to action’ informing your audience
what to do next.
4. Design landing page for maximum conversions
5. Incorporate content throughout the funnel for a complete content
marketing strategy.
#LinkedInEDU
36

37. GETTING STARTED
37
Section
4
#LinkedInEDU

38. Confirm program details with your team
Company Page URL
Campaign Objectives
Success Metrics
Target Audience
Pricing (CPC or CPM)
Desired Spend
Campaign Dates
Pacing
Who will be posting and/or sponsoring the updates?
Posters will need admin access to the company page – given
only by current company page admins.
Who needs access to the business account?
Linkedin profile URLs needed
#LinkedInEDU
38

39. Three types of Sponsored Updates content
1
2
3
Link share post
Embedded image post
Video post
#LinkedInEDU
39

40. Link share post
Introduction Text
Best practice of 150 characters max to avoid
truncation on all devices.
Landing Page URL
Will be counted toward the text limitation.
If longer than 23 characters, link is shortened with LinkedIn
shortener
Title
Best Practice of 70 characters
max to avoid cut off
Description Text
Best Practice of 100 characters max to
avoid cut off. Does not appear on mobile.
Thumbnail Image
Automatically pulled from landing page.
Can be manually uploaded. Use 1.91:1
ratio (1200x627px) image
Mobile Version
Intro
Image
Title
#LinkedInEDU
40

41. Embedded image post
Introduction Text
Best practice of 150 characters max to avoid
truncation on all devices.
Landing Page URL
MUST be included in the introduction text and counts toward
that text limitation. If longer than 23 characters, link is
shortened with LinkedIn shortener
Image
Manually upload - 1.91:1 ratio (1200x627px) image
is recommended
Mobile Version
Intro
Image
URL
#LinkedInEDU
41

42. Video post
• YouTube, Vimeo, and SlideShare play on site in player
• No length requirements
• 60 Sec video or less recommended for performance
• Another landing page link may be included in the intro text
• Video is auto expanded in the feed
Introduction Text
Best practice of 150 characters max
to avoid truncation on all devices.
Title
Best Practice of 70 characters
max to avoid cut off
Description Text
Best Practice of 100 characters max to
avoid cut off. Does not appear on mobile.
#LinkedInEDU
42

43. Pricing: Cost per Click (CPC) or
Cost per Thousand (CPM)
Pricing is based on impressions or clicks only
Social actions are free and drive earned media
Price determined by 2nd Price Auction
Bid competitively as you’ll only pay 1 cent higher than the next most competitive advertiser
Our system awards the best content with lower auction prices, effectively decreasing the
eCPC of the campaign when you sponsor your highest engaging content
43

44. Sponsored Updates success is a function of
three factors: targeting, bids & content quality
44
Content
Quality
Targeting Bids
Controlled by
LinkedIn
Controlled by
You
#LinkedInEDU

45. Leverage 4 pieces of content to account for
frequency caps
45
• Sponsored Updates frequency caps
prevent audience fatigue
• Your target user will only see the
exact same Sponsored Update once
every 48 hours
• Your target user can see up to four
unique Sponsored Updates every 48
hours
• To ensure you achieve your
maximum visibility you should
sponsor four Sponsored Updates
into ALL of your campaign targets
#LinkedInEDU

46. Objective-based campaign creation
46
What is your objective for each campaign?
Sponsor content that achieves that objective
Objective is…
Lead gen = sponsor updates that drive to a lead capturing landing page
Brand Awareness = sponsor updates that drive to institution news
Be a Trusted Thought Leader= sponsor updates that drive to relevant articles
LEAD GEN: Content drives to a landing page about this
program + a form fill
AWARENESS: Content drives to articles about this program
(faculty, alumni, financials)
LEAD GEN: Content drives to a landing page about this
program + a form fill
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: Content drives to different thought
leadership articles most relevant to soon-to-be undergrads

47. Measuring Sponsored Updates success
Measuring back-end conversions helps you interpret the value of your campaign
Track clicks in your analytics system through a unique URL
EXAMPLE URL builder instructions:
1.Use Google’s URL builder to generate unique URLs for each individual
Sponsored Update
2.These unique URLs can be tracked using Google Analytics
3.Enter ‘LinkedIn’ as the Campaign Source
4.Enter ‘Sponsored Updates’ as the Campaign Medium
5.Enter the name of your Sponsored Updates campaign as the Campaign
Name
6.Decide on one identifying term for each variation of Sponsored Updates
and enter this as the Campaign Content*
Note: The identifying terms for Campaign Content should be consistent across all
Campaigns
47

48. 48
Campaign Manager Tool

49. ©2014 LinkedIn Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Questions?
#LinkedInEDU

50. ©2014 LinkedIn Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Thank you
#LinkedInEDU