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What’s New in Higher Ed Marketing and Enrollment Strategy
Learn the latest in higher education marketing without having to dig around. Our blog is the one-stop source for curated industry news and best practices, tested advice in content and digital marketing and enrollment strategy, and the kinds of company happenings you need you know.
Crafting a Strong Brand Strategy Has Never Been More Important To Sustaining Your Enrollment
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It was little more than a decade ago when institutions were arguing about whether a Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) was needed. Today, the role is essential at nearly every institution, given the complexity of recruiting and fundraising. Today’s best practice is to assemble a highly data-driven and strategic marketing operation that performs critical functions for enrollment, strategic communications, and fundraising to deliver true return on investment in all areas. Marketing is a key performance engine, not a service organization.
News & Insights
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April 29, 2025
The 5 Essential Questions for College Presidents, University Business Op-Ed
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April 25, 2025
No Time to Blink: A Practical Guide for Higher Education Executives and Boards
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April 21, 2025
Crafting a Strong Brand Strategy Has Never Been More Important To Sustaining Your Enrollment
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April 17, 2025
Planning for Pell Grant Changes in an Era of Financial Aid Uncertainty for Higher Ed
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April 14, 2025
Crisis Communications in Higher Education: Strategies for Navigating Political Pressure
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April 10, 2025
Smooth Transitions: Strengthening the Handoff from Admissions to Student Success
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March 28, 2025
How Community Colleges Can Maximize Perkins Funds with Smart Digital Strategies
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March 26, 2025
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie and Tuition Exchange Partner to Launch New College Search Tool
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March 25, 2025
The SCARF Model: Applying Negotiation Tactics to Your Admissions Conversations
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February 27, 2025
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Welcomes Shankar Prasad as Chief Strategy Officer
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February 26, 2025
Transforming Google Ads Campaign Performance Through Automated Scripts
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February 25, 2025
Five Digital Marketing Strategies to Kickstart Community College Enrollment in 2025
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February 20, 2025
Powered by Personality: Carnegie’s Lead Generation Service Now Includes Psychographic Data
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February 7, 2025
Tea Leaves, Causality, and Consistency: What Should We Do About Financial Aid Appeals?
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January 24, 2025
Navigating TikTok’s Uncertainty: How Higher Ed Advertisers Can Adapt and Thrive Across Social Media
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December 18, 2024
How to Improve Your Higher Education Website’s Information Architecture Without Going Through a Redesign
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December 12, 2024
Preserving Your Website’s SEO and UX at The End of an OPM Company Partnership
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November 21, 2024
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Announces the Acquisition of Sextant Marketing
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November 13, 2024
How to Plan for Content Migration When Redesigning Your College or University’s Website
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September 16, 2024
The Power of Search Engine Marketing: Maximize Your Marketing Results with SEO and PPC
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September 11, 2024
Maximize Your Higher Ed Website with Incremental Updates that Drive Results
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September 6, 2024
AI Meets Higher Ed: Turbocharge Your Social Media Campaigns for Performance Success
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August 22, 2024
Six Strategies for Authentic Higher Education Marketing: The Power of Human-Focused Content in a High-Speed World
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August 15, 2024
The 6 Most Common Types of Accessibility Errors On Websites and How to Fix Them
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July 23, 2024
Leveraging Benchmark Data and Forecasting for Graduate Enrollment Marketing Budgets
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May 30, 2024
Cut Through the Noise: Build Student Personas into Your Marketing Strategy
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May 22, 2024
How to Optimize Higher Education Websites for Google AI Overviews and Generative Search Engines
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May 20, 2024
Three Strategies for Navigating the Impact of Election Season on Digital Advertising
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May 7, 2024
Elevate Your Organic Social Strategy with These Four Overlooked Paid Tactics
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April 30, 2024
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Announces Pioneering Partnership with Technolutions
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April 25, 2024
Elevating Impact in Higher-Ed: 5 Components Your Blog Editorial Calendar Should Have
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April 17, 2024
Rethink, Reuse, Repurpose: An Evergreen Content Strategy that Saves Time
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March 25, 2024
Enhance Your Brand Potential with Our Comprehensive Brand Strategy Toolkit
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March 21, 2024
Mapping Opportunity: Tackling the Question of “Where” With Geodemographic Information
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December 14, 2023
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Announces the Acquisition of Fire Engine RED’s Student Search Service
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November 30, 2023
Oklahoma State University Named AMA Higher Education Marketing Team of the Year
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November 16, 2023
Carnegie + JGA Partner to Address the Next Generation of Advancement Challenges With Acuity Darts
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October 3, 2023
How to Create High-Performing Academic Program Pages on Your Higher Education Website
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July 18, 2023
Six Tips for Higher Ed Marketers to Present Marketing Insights to the Board
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May 18, 2023
8 Ways to Optimize Anchor Text and Linking Strategy on Your Higher Education Website
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April 4, 2023
3 Steps for Higher Education Marketers to Harness Artificial Intelligence
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March 28, 2023
Speak Their Language: How To Tailor Your Higher Ed Copy To Appeal To Different Audiences
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February 28, 2023
How Should Higher Ed Institutions Address Facebook’s New Under-18 Restrictions?
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February 3, 2023
FAFSA Simplification: What You Can Do Now to be Ready for Changes Ahead
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January 25, 2023
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Announces the Acquisition of the National Small College Enrollment Conference
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January 4, 2023
TikTok vs. Snapchat: Which One to Use for Your Higher Ed Advertising Strategy?
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November 8, 2022
Webinar Recap: Financial Aid Optimization for Long-Term Enrollment Success
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September 22, 2022
The Essence of Change Is Creating Space: The Hamster Wheel Goes Nowhere Fast
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September 8, 2022
New Legislation Regarding Search Opt-in Privacy – What You Need to Know
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September 8, 2022
Webinar Recap: Building a System-Wide Brand for Online Education With Missouri Online
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August 23, 2022
What Is Financial Aid Optimization and How Does Individualized Strategy Work? An Introduction.
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August 18, 2022
Digital Marketing Strategic Priorities for Higher Ed Organizations With Small Budgets
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August 1, 2022
What Can Higher Ed Marketers Do With Google’s Official Restrictions on Ads Targeting Users Under 18?
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July 22, 2022
5 Inspiring Higher Education Enrollment & Marketing Insights From The Connection Conference 2022
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June 27, 2022
3 Ways Long-Term Campaigns Help Your Higher Education Institution’s Marketing Budget
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May 25, 2022
TikTok Is Taking Over Social Media—How You Can Get on Board with Video Ads
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May 10, 2022
Higher Ed Marketing Strategy and Process: The Unsung Heroes Behind Marketing Success
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April 11, 2022
The Truest Thing: Using Authentic Voice for Better Graduate Recruitment Content
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April 1, 2022
ANNOUNCEMENT: Carnegie and Quacquarelli Symonds Partner to Strengthen International Recruitment to the US Market.
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March 25, 2022
The Quad Higher Ed Podcast S3E5: Michelle Lewis, Washington State University
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March 16, 2022
The Quad Higher Ed Podcast S3E4: Tera Buckley, University of North Dakota
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March 1, 2022
Google is Cracking Down on Religious Policies: A New Advertising Challenge in Higher Ed
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February 24, 2022
Press Release: Carnegie Launches Student Search Offering for Higher Education
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February 17, 2022
The Quad Higher Ed Podcast S3E2: Jen Schufer, University of Colorado Boulder
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January 27, 2022
5 Things to Know About Carnegie’s Student Lead Generation Platform: CollegeXpress
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October 25, 2021
How Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection Will Impact Higher Education Marketers
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September 29, 2021
Valuable Conversations and Lessons From the 2021 NACAC National Conference
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September 27, 2021
Google Restricts Ad Targeting to Users Under 18. What Does This Mean?
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July 28, 2021
The 10-Point Foolproof Technical SEO Checklist for Higher Education Websites
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July 20, 2021
Segmenting Students Using Psychographics to Improve Higher Education Enrollment: What to Consider
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July 8, 2021
3 Important Ways Knowing Your Personality Can Help Higher Ed Navigate Change
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June 24, 2021
Use Google’s Latest Higher Education Insights to Improve Your Search Campaigns
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June 7, 2021
The Carnegie Motivator: An Innovation in Higher Education Enrollment and Student Communication
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April 15, 2021
Look Beyond the Click Rate—What Do Your Audiences Really Think About Your College?
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March 29, 2021
Google’s Cookie-less World: What Does it Mean for Higher Education Marketers?
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February 9, 2021
Google’s Phrase Match and Broad Match Modifier Keywords Changes + Your PPC Campaign
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January 20, 2021
Sorry, but Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Strategy Has No End Date in Higher Education Marketing
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November 11, 2020
Prospective Grad Student Survey: Approaches & Recommendations for Online/Google Search
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November 1, 2020
The Top 5 Mistakes Institutions Make Regarding Transfer Students’ Digital Needs
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October 13, 2020
Prospective Grad Student Survey: Social Media Preferences & Recommendations
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October 1, 2020
Thoughtful Strategies, Authentic Messaging: Optimizing Communications Flow for 2020 and Beyond
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September 10, 2020
Why Your Higher Education Institution’s SEO Strategy Needs to Factor in User Experience (UX)
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August 26, 2020
How Thoughtful Audience Personas Can Result in a Communication Bullseye (or Better)
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July 9, 2020
How Integrating CDP Data With Your CRM Can Innovate Your Communications Plan
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June 23, 2020
Why SEO Strategies for Higher Education Need to Focus on Both Branded and Non-Branded Keywords
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June 9, 2020
Building a Digital Marketing Strategy Involves Creating a Powerful Landing Page
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May 14, 2020
College Commitment Scenarios and Changing Student Opinions Amidst COVID-19
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May 13, 2020
In Their Own Words: Biggest Impact COVID-19 Has Had on Prospective Graduate Students
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April 20, 2020
Is Friction Affecting Your Prospective Students’ Digital College Application Experience?
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April 15, 2020
Critical Insights from Prospective Graduate Students Regarding the COVID-19 Outbreak and Its Impact on Grad School Selection and Attendance
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April 7, 2020
The Shift to 1:1 and Group Conversations on Social Media During Social Distancing
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March 31, 2020
Students Aren’t In School—Now What? Mobile Footprinting Could Be Your Solution
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March 30, 2020
In Their Own Words: High School Seniors on COVID-19 and Their College Selection
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March 26, 2020
College Admission in the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Parent’s Perspective
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March 25, 2020
How to Keep Your Higher Education Community Engaged on Social Media During COVID-19
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March 24, 2020
Survey: What 5,000 High School Seniors Said About COVID-19’s Impact on Their College Search
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March 20, 2020
Anxiety and Uncertainty: Higher Education Lessons From 2008 as We Face the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic
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March 19, 2020
What COVID-19 Means for Student Search and Your Prospective Student Pipeline
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November 19, 2019
Musings on New Markets for Enrollment Expansion (or Why It’s Okay to Put Squid on Pizza)
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October 29, 2019
3 Digital Marketing Tips to Impact Application Numbers and Make This Season a Little Less Scary
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September 24, 2019
Press Release: Carnegie Dartlet and CollegeXpress Announce 2019 Scholarship Winners
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September 18, 2019
How to Shift Your Marketing Strategy to Drive Enrollment Among Undecided Students
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August 9, 2019
Press Release: Carnegie Dartlet Shares Peer-Reviewed Research at AEJMC Conference in Toronto
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July 22, 2019
Press Release: CollegeXpress Unveils New Logo and Further Brand Evolution
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July 15, 2019
Know Thyself, Know Thy Students: Psychographic Marketing for Higher Education Recruitment
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June 13, 2019
3 Powerful Strengths of Using Instagram Stories in Every Stage of Your Enrollment Funnel
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June 11, 2019
5 Reasons to Audit Your Higher Ed Institution’s Communications Strategy This Summer
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May 16, 2019
New Tactics for Reaching "Cord Cutters" Through Streaming Media Advertising
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May 15, 2019
Going Green and Expanding Digital Reach: The CollegeXpress Evolution Continues
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May 1, 2019
What Makes Gen Z Click: 5 Defining Differences Between Gen Z and Millennials
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April 25, 2019
3 Tips for Taking Your Higher Education Social Media Campaigns from 101 to 201
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March 6, 2019
Stop Being Everything to Everyone: The Perils of Multi-personality Disorder in Higher Education Content Strategy
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February 7, 2019
Make a Strong First Impression With CollegeXpress Recruitment Strategies
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January 31, 2019
The 2019 Carnegie Dartlet Conference: A Storyteller’s Wish Upon a Star
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January 30, 2019
Spotify’s Fastest-Growing Advertising Channel Taps Carnegie Dartlet for Industry Insight
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January 23, 2019
If NFL Teams Were Human Beings: What Fans and Rivals Believe About Team Personality
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January 8, 2019
Why Blogging Is the Missing Link in Your Higher Ed Digital Content Marketing Strategy
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November 19, 2018
Google’s Responsive Search Ads—What Are They and How Do They Work in Higher Education Advertising?
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October 23, 2018
Google Signals Enables Cross Device Reporting for Higher Education Google Analytics
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September 26, 2018
Burning Your Fire: The Key to Discovering Your Authentic Personality
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September 24, 2018
CollegeXpress User Survey Insights 2018, Part 3: Feedback From Students on Recruitment Strategies
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May 16, 2018
Ready for Launch: A Guide to Positioning Your New Academic Program for Success
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April 25, 2018
Working With a Partner to Achieve Your Goal: Improving Digital Marketing
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April 18, 2018
GDPR Changes the International Marketing World, But What Does It Mean for Higher Education Analytics?
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April 17, 2018
Increasing Your International Student Applications…It’s Not as Hard as You Think
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January 11, 2018
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Communications and Dartlet Announce Merger to Deliver Innovative “Research to Implementation” Marketing Solutions
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December 21, 2017
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Announces Strategic Acquisition of i-studentgroup, Expanding Its Digital and Lead Generation Services Internationally
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December 12, 2017
6 Things You Might Not Know About CollegeXpress, the Platform Formerly Known as PC&U
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November 15, 2017
3 Ways to Take Higher Education Advertising to the Next Level with Audio and Video
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November 3, 2017
Your Dam Website: 5 Reasons Students Aren’t Converting on Your College Site
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October 24, 2017
Words Matter: Why Facebook Targeting Isn’t the Same as Russian Data Mining
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October 23, 2017
Going Global: Digital Marketing Tips for International Student Recruitment
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September 20, 2017
Update: Changes to Facebook Targeting and the Impact on Higher Ed Marketing
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August 31, 2017
Digital Marketing Meets Fantasy Football: Strategies You Should Draft This Fall
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August 28, 2017
PRESS RELEASE: Announcing the 2017–2018 Carnegie Communications Scholarship Winners
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August 22, 2017
Utilizing Posts in College and University Google My Business Properties
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July 24, 2017
4 Tips for Creating an Effective Communications Flow for Student Recruitment
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June 29, 2017
Plan Smarter Digital Campaigns With Carnegie Clarity's Marketing Attribution Service
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June 19, 2017
Why Eccentric College and University Program Names Can Hinder Organic Traffic
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April 4, 2017
Get on the Short List: 4 Digital Strategies to Reach and Influence High School Juniors
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March 7, 2017
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Announces a Banner Year for Their Student Lead Generation Platform—CollegeXpress
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February 14, 2017
Storytelling, Goldfish, and Other Takeaways from the Carnegie Conference
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October 13, 2016
Facebook Is All-In On Mobile Marketing—Removing Barriers in Lead Generation for Higher Education
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October 12, 2016
Why it is Best Not to Delete Webpages (and the Importance of Redirects)
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October 5, 2016
A Higher Ed Marketer’s Guide to Digital Marketing Terms and Definitions
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September 20, 2016
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Communications and Semcasting Partner to Offer Mobile Footprints for Higher Education, a Powerful New Digital Advertising Strategy
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September 15, 2016
For Public Institutions, a Top Choice for Reaching Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors
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September 14, 2016
Get the Most Bang for Your Advertising Buck with Device Bid Adjustments
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September 12, 2016
Put Yourself in Students’ Shoes: The Key to Improving Your Search Results
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September 8, 2016
Digital Byte: Why Education Marketers Should Set Up Goals in Google Analytics
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August 26, 2016
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Communications Announces 2016–2017 Scholarship Winners
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August 15, 2016
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie Partners With BlueConic for Actionable Marketing Insights in Higher Education
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May 27, 2016
Google Strikes Again: What Updates to Bidding and Search Mean for Marketers
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May 10, 2016
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie and Google Co-host Series of Higher Education Digital Marketing Workshops
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April 26, 2016
PRESS RELEASE: Carnegie and Fire Engine RED Partner to Provide Integrated Marketing Services for Higher Education
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March 8, 2016
Digital Byte: Finding Reach, Relevancy, and Results in Facebook and Instagram
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February 8, 2016
Press Release: Google Welcomes Carnegie Communications into Top-Tier Managed Agency Program
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February 2, 2016
From Kick to Click: Achieve Graduate Enrollment Goals Through Digital Advertising
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January 6, 2016
Press Release: Carnegie and Semcasting Partnership Advances IP Targeting and Audience Modeling Capabilities for Higher Education
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December 14, 2015
Making a List and Checking it Twice: How to Get More from Your Student Search List
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September 15, 2015
5 Highly Targeted Ways to Mesh Digital Advertising with Your Fall Travel
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September 14, 2015
Digital Byte: How to Leverage Geofencing for Higher Education Marketing
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August 10, 2015
Digital Byte: 4 Ways to Leverage Display Advertising for College Fairs and Conferences
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June 3, 2015
The “Mobilegeddon” That Wasn’t: What You Need to Know About Google’s Mobile-Friendly Update
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April 21, 2015
8 Steps to Cultivating a Campus Culture That Supports Student Recruitment
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March 10, 2015
Press Release: Carnegie Communications and NAGAP Partner to Provide a Better Graduate Program Search and Student Recruitment Platform
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March 2, 2015
Digital Byte: Leverage Student Select for this Spring’s Outreach Marketing
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February 19, 2015
Press Release: Higher Education Marketing Best Practices for 2015 Revealed at the Carnegie Conference
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November 20, 2014
Press Release: Grad schools asked for help. Grad students asked for help. We answered.
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November 8, 2014
Demonstrated Intenders: A Guide for College and University Enrollment Marketers
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August 20, 2014
7 KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) Ways to Improve Your CTR on Your Next Search Campaign
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March 27, 2014
Search differently™: Take a New Approach to Traditional Higher Ed Marketing
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February 19, 2014
Best Practices for Integrating Your Marketing Efforts for Graduate Students: #CarnegieConf
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January 22, 2014
Digital Byte: How to Hit Your Prospective Student Targets with IP Precision
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December 16, 2013
On the 12th Day of Christmas My True Love Gave to Me . . . a Marketing Lesson?
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November 12, 2013
20+ Years in Admission vs. Three Weeks at Carnegie: What I Thought I Knew
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April 23, 2013
Digital Byte: Search and Display: A Farmer’s Guide to a Successful Enrollment Season
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March 12, 2013
Digital Byte: Spend Wisely this Spring with SSON: A Highly Targeted Online Display Network
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March 11, 2013
Gonzaga Ranked #1 in NCAA Men’s Basketball! See why they rank PC&U so high for recruitment…
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November 26, 2012
Winter Forecast: Higher Yield Rates with a Strong Chance of Better Results
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November 15, 2012
Digital Byte: How to Make Your Online Display Campaign Mobile Friendly
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July 14, 2012
Digital Byte: Why you should implement reputation management as part of your SEO plan
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June 28, 2012
Porter Sargent Handbooks Releases Historical Data of Boarding School Financial Aid Trends
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April 10, 2012
Private schools: International students boost enrollment, bridge cultural divides
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January 17, 2012
Carnegie Communications Announces Innovative Mobile and Social Capabilities for Higher Education
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