CASE STUDY

Challenge

Northeast Wisconsin Technical College (NWTC) has long been acknowledged as one of the leading technical institutions in the Midwest due to their strong brand and community reputation. NWTC needed to ensure they remained in the forefront of service delivery across their main and satellite campuses. NWTC engaged Swim Digital Group (Swim) to assist with communicating to prospective students from the inquiry to enrollment phase and existing students for re-enrollment retention efforts. NWTC had already purchased a CRM, but wanted to ensure that the processes and communications that they used during the implementation ensured that their students received the most effective and streamlined communications in the mosttimely, relevant, and personalized manner.

Approach

As students enter NWTC college for the first time, it’s critical that they have a smooth and informational onboarding experience. Swim immediately started by getting a firm understanding of NWTC, their data, and their students. This was done through comprehensive deep dive sessions and internal research. Early on, Swim realized that NWTC required a strong Customer Relationship Management system (CRM) to support current student communications. Students were either receiving little to no communication or an abundance of communications from multiple departments, causing students to ignore outreach efforts.

Solution

After conducting a thorough analysis on their student life cycle, Swim proposed opportunities for improvement within the institution. Swim then implemented an all-inclusive onboarding strategy with both time and trigger-based flows of communication that occurs once a student has enrolled.
SERVICES PROVIDED FOR THIS CASE STUDY:

1

Onboarding & Retention Process Mapping

3

CRM Implementation Support

2

Communications Plan Development

4

Communications Plan Training

SERVICES PROVIDED FOR THIS CASE STUDY:

1

Onboarding & Retention Process Mapping

2

Onboarding & Retention Process Mapping

3

Onboarding & Retention Process Mapping

4

Onboarding & Retention Process Mapping

Final Result

NWTC trusted Swim to conduct intensive deep dives and processing mapping strategies in support of their student onboarding and retention initiatives. Since our partnership, NWTC has celebrated enrollment growth, healthy retention growth, and a very clear ability to identify challenges in enrollment gaps to solve them immediately.

CONVERSION RATE
INCREASE FROM
PROSPECT TO ENROLLED

7%

CRM IMPLEMENTATION
WITHIN 9 MONTHS

9

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to apply for aid yearly?

Yes. If your financial circumstances changes, you may receive more or less aid. For example, your eligibility for financial aid could change significantly, especially if you have a different number of family members in college. Renewal of your financial aid package also depends on your satisfactory academic progress (SAP) towards a degree.

I probably don’t qualify for aid. Should I apply for aid anyway?

Yes. Many families mistakenly think they don’t qualify for aid and prevent themselves from receiving financial aid by failing to apply for it. There are a few sources of aid such as unsubsidized Stafford and PLUS loans that are available regardless of need, but you have to fill out a FAFSA to qualify. The FAFSA application is free, we recommend that everyone fill it out

Will financial aid cover all of my costs?

Maybe. In some circumstances, financial aid will cover the student’s full tuition and fees for the school year. However, it could only cover a portion. Once your FAFSA is processed and your award has been packaged, you will receive a letter outlining your full award.

JOIN US

REQUEST A DEMO