Improving Student Communication with Engagement Platforms: A Comprehensive Guide

Can you imagine living in the pre-cell phone era and needing to send a campus-wide announcement to students? Talk about a headache, especially considering there was a high chance some students wouldn’t receive the message.

Campus-wide messaging is just one reason why engagement platforms are necessary for improving student communication on campus. But that isn’t the only reason. In this post, we’ll discuss why your campus needs an effective communication strategy and how you can use an engagement platform, like Mongoose, to connect better and communicate with your students.

Why Your Campus Needs an Effective Communication Strategy

Enrolling in college is a big deal for most students. It can be scary and overwhelming, especially if it’s their first time or they need more support. An effective communication strategy is just one way to support your students. Here’s why.

Academic Success

Did you know that nearly 20% of college students experience imposter syndrome? Imposter syndrome is the feeling of not belonging or being “good enough,” regardless of your capabilities. When college students experience imposter syndrome, it can harm their academic success. 

Studies have shown that when students communicate with professors or campus leaders, their feelings of imposter syndrome lessen. Improving student communication by sending texts to check in with students or reminding them of tutoring sessions can help students achieve academic success and confidently graduate from their degree program.

Defeat the Effects of Isolation

Nearly 30% of college students report feeling isolated from their peers. While this might seem like a personal issue, you and your team can help alleviate some of the effects of isolation by trying to stay in touch with your students.

Regular check-ins with your students can help them adjust to campus life. Engagement platforms make it easy to remind them of social events, like peer mentor program meetings, study sessions, and other events. Constant reminders can prompt students to participate in events that they otherwise would have skipped.

Improve Mental Health

Sadly, 30% of college students report feeling depressed. And 36% of college students report they battle with anxiety.

Your campus likely has programs to help support your struggling students’ mental well-being, including counseling and tutoring programs. But how does your campus spread the word about these valuable services? Is outreach an essential part of your communication strategy? 

If not, it should be. Regular reminders about available mental health services can prompt students to take advantage of these programs, which helps alleviate some of the stress they may be feeling.

How to Use an Engagement Platform to Level Up Your Communication Strategy

Sending individual messages to students is a significant time drain. You’d need more than a few dedicated employees whose sole purpose is to reply to and send messages to students. The good news is that you can use an engagement platform to stay on top of student communication.

Engagement platforms make it easy to stay in touch with students. Here are five ways they can improve your student communication strategy.

AI Assistant

A dedicated FAQ page on your website is a great way to help answer common questions students may have. However, FAQs are typically a general overview of common questions, and it’s nearly impossible to answer every question students may have.

Instead of proactively trying to answer every question, a 24/7 AI assistant can help you stay on top of student questions. Mongoose’s AI assistant is intuitive and generates responses based on student interactions. Plus, it’s trained on your campus data, so you can rest assured knowing your students receive the best, most accurate responses.

Targeted Messaging

Personalized, targeted messaging is a great way to connect with students. It’s easy to send a blanket message to all students, but when you do that, there’s a good chance you’re bombarding students with messages they do not care to read. 

Instead, use an engagement platform to segment your contact lists. Segmenting your lists based on things like degree programs means the messages you send to your students are relevant to their interests and preferences. 

Instant Messaging

Instead of relying on outdated methods like sending emails to communicate with students, engagement platforms like Cadence allow you to send SMS texts and WhatsApp messages directly to their devices. 

Instant messaging helps send students real-time updates, like announcements about campus emergencies, inclement weather, and reminders about deadlines or upcoming events.

Chatbots

Integrating a chatbot on your website is an easy way to improve student communication. Live chat provides quick support, helps answer student questions, and collects information for follow-up calls or texts. 

Plus, by incorporating both live chat and an AI chatbot, your team will never miss a message.

Uncover Insights

Communication platforms use AI technology to monitor and analyze student interactions. This is especially useful for uncovering valuable insights and gaining a better understanding of student sentiment. Once you understand how your students interact with your messaging, you can plan better messaging campaigns that resonate with them. 

Improve Student Communication with Cadence

Increasing student communication on campus is critical to ensuring students are engaged in their studies, participating in campus-wide social events, and mentally well. Engagement platforms like Mongoose make staying in touch with students easier than ever. 

If you’re ready to learn more about how to improve your student communication strategy, schedule a demo today.

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