This document discusses designing a mobile-first student experience. It notes that the student experience is already mobile, with many students interacting with colleges via mobile devices. It advocates for a mobile-first strategy to provide a good user experience across different devices. The document also describes how one university, Maryville, developed a connected campus using Salesforce and TargetX to power recruitment, enrollment and other processes, achieving enrollment growth goals. It provides tips for optimizing elements like emails, events registration and the enrollment process for mobile.

1. Lessons in Designing a
Mobile Student Experience

2. EDA Certified
Salesforce.org
Creighton Dent
Client Success
3x Winner
Salesforce.org
ISV PARTNER
OF THE YEAR
2019 ISV Partner of the Year
Higher Ed | Salesforce.org

3. Brian Heger
Assoc. Director of Strategic
Communication & Recruitment
Fastest Growing Private University
The Chronicle of Higher Education
2018 Impact Award Winner
Student Systems & Services
Campus Technology
4th

4. The 1,000 Foot View
The Value of the Student Experience & the Role of Mobile
Expected Learning Outcomes
Defining Mobile-First in a Mobile-Responsive World
Maryville’s Approach to Designing a Mobile-First Student Experience
Takeaway Tips for Leveraging Mobile to Support Student Outcomes

5. Student Expectations
No Exceptions for the Ivory Tower
Student
Delight
Cycle

6. Blurring the
lines between
the physical
and the digital
worlds.
The Rise of Designing for the Student Experience
A historical retrospect
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0
Adopting
Software
Leveraging
the Basics
Breaking
the Silos
Student
Experience
EMPOWERING
INSTITUTIONS
EMPOWERING
PEOPLE
CRM
App
http:

7. 3 out of 4
students report
having visited a
college website
on their mobile
device.
The Student Experience is already mobile; it’s a question of good vs. bad
Why a Mobile First Strategy is Required
2018 Social Admissions Report, NRCCUA & TargetX

8. 57 percent
said the website
was very or
extremely
important in their
college search.
The Student Experience is already mobile; it’s a question of good vs. bad
Why a Mobile First Strategy is Required
2019 Digital Admissions Report, mStoner & TargetX

9. The Student Experience is already mobile; it’s a question of good vs. bad
Why a Mobile First Strategy is Required
86
%
Students that prefer to
communicate with
colleges via email
on their mobile
device.
2018 Social Admissions Report, NRCCUA & TargetX

10. ⅓
The Student Experience is already mobile; it’s a question of good vs. bad
Why a Mobile First Strategy is Required
Students that
applied to college
on a smartphone
or tablet.
2019 Digital Admissions Report, mStoner & TargetX
smartphone
dependent.
Non-white, lower
income, younger
adults are
increasingly

11. The Student Experience is already mobile; it’s a question of good vs. bad
Why a Mobile First Strategy is Required

12. “At Maryville, we have a foundational belief that
everything inside the classroom should be
challenging and rigorous, and
everything outside the classroom
should be easy.”
Dr. Mark Lombardi, President
Maryville and the Student Experience

13. The Maryville Story
Strategic
Plan
2022:
10,000
Students

14. The Maryville Story
Strategic
Plan
Salesforce
& TargetX
Admissions
&
Advancement

15. The Maryville Story
Strategic
Plan
Salesforce
& TargetX
Connected
Campus
3
Salesforce
Instances

16. The Maryville Story
Strategic
Plan
Salesforce
& TargetX
Connected
Campus
RESULTS
2022:
10,000
Students

17. The Maryville Story
Strategic
Plan
Salesforce
& TargetX
Connected
Campus
RESULTS
10,200
Students

18. Enrollment Student Lifecycle
Lead
Inquiry
Applicant
Admit
Enrolled

19. Leads & Inquiries

20. Prospect Cards

22. Emails
180%
➕ Keep it Simple
➕ The Inverted Pyramid
➕ People like Pushing Buttons
➕ Personalization Beyond Name
tips
2018 Redesigning the Student Experience, TargetX

23. Emails
Email apps like
Gmail and iOS
may clip
messages at
100kb+
➕ Keep it Simple
➕ The Inverted Pyramid
➕ People like Pushing Buttons
➕ Personalization Beyond Name
tips

24. Emails
➕ Keep it Simple
➕ The Inverted Pyramid
➕ People like Pushing Buttons
➕ Personalization Beyond Name
tips
Grab Attention
Build Anticipation
Call to
Action

25. Emails
Adding a button
increased CTA
by 127%
➕ Keep it Simple
➕ The Inverted Pyramid
➕ People like Pushing Buttons
➕ Personalization Beyond Name
tips

26. Emails
➕ Keep it Simple
➕ The Inverted Pyramid
➕ People like Pushing Buttons
➕ Personalization Beyond Name
tips

27. Event Registration and Forms
Step 1
Event Registration Student
[event site URL]?type = [event type]
[event site URL]?type = Individual%20Visit,Group%20Session
tips ➕ Append URL to filter events

28. Event Registration and Forms
Step 2
Event Registration Student
[event site URL]?type = [event type]
[event site URL]?type = Individual%20Visit,Group%20Session
&cid={!Contact.ID}
tips ➕ Append URL to prefill student data

29. Event Registration and Forms
Step 3
Event Registration Student
Increase in campus
visit:
● Registrations
● Attendance

30. Applicants

31. Cohesive Enrollment Process
Great experience, regardless of device

32. Cohesive Enrollment Process
Great experience, regardless of device

33. Cohesive Enrollment Process
Great experience, regardless of device

34. Cohesive Enrollment Process
Great experience, regardless of device
➕ Vertical Scrolling
➕ TargetX Higher Ed
Exchange
tips

35. Cohesive Enrollment Process
Great experience, regardless of device

36. Cohesive Enrollment Process
Great experience, regardless of device

37. Where to start?

38. Next Steps
+ Look at touchpoints through a
mobile lense
Student Journey Mapping
Student
Delight
Cycle

39. Next Steps
Understanding the profile of today’s student
undergraduate graduate
non-traditional
● wait after high school to enroll in post-secondary education
● attend college part-time while working full-time
● have dependents who are not their spouse or partner
● are financially independent from their parents for purposes
of financial aid; and
● often times, have completed their high school degree
through a certificate or GED program.
Ruffalo Noel-Levitz, Adult E-Expectations
freshman transfer on-campus online
Defined as students over the age of 24 sharing one or
more additional characteristic(s):
74% of the current student market
tip

40. www.targetx.com/heug