Higher education is in a state of transformation. With increasing competitive pressures, institutions need more than traditional metrics and direct marketing efforts to succeed. Over the past few months, higher ed influencers have been pointing out that relying solely on old KPIs and direct marketing isn’t enough anymore. Emotional higher education branding and storytelling are emerging as crucial elements in winning over prospective students.

While many agree on the importance of branding and storytelling, there’s less consensus on how to execute these strategies effectively. This guide aims to explore four foundational steps that can help institutions move beyond the obvious in higher ed marketing—towards deeper, more meaningful connections with their audience.

The Challenges Facing Higher Education Branding

1. Traditional Differentiators Don’t Work Anymore

For years, universities have relied on well-known metrics like research output, faculty credentials, and time-to-completion as key selling points. But the reality is these aren’t cutting it anymore. Today’s students are looking for more than just prestige and statistics—they’re searching for connection, purpose, and a vision that aligns with their future goals.

Research output or faculty accolades are important, but they’re not unique differentiators. Students are asking, “What’s in it for me?” They want to know how an education at your institution will help them find meaning, make a difference, and achieve their personal aspirations.

2. Understanding the Brand Takes Work

Differentiating a higher education program isn’t just about crafting a catchy slogan. It’s about getting to the core of what makes the program’s mission, faculty, and students unique. This deep insight often requires a lot of time and resources, but the payoff is worth it—authentic storytelling that resonates on a deeper level.

3. Limited Time for Deep Creative Work

Many marketing teams in higher ed—whether they’re central marketing teams or outsourced partners like OPMs—are overwhelmed. Their plates are full with running day-to-day campaigns, managing stakeholders, and keeping the lights on for digital advertising. This lack of bandwidth makes it difficult to dive into the type of creative, introspective work that’s needed to create powerful, programmatic-level storytelling that really shines.

The Four Foundational Steps to Higher Edudcation Branding

Step 1: Interview Faculty to Uncover the Mission Behind the Program

Faculty are often the ones closest to the curriculum and most passionate about its mission. By interviewing faculty, you can uncover a wealth of insights that can shape your messaging.

• Ask Questions Like:
  • What’s the larger mission behind this degree?
  • How does this education empower students to contribute to something bigger than themselves?

These insights can often lead to discovering hidden differentiators that go beyond academics—such as a commitment to social change, a passion for innovation, or a focus on community-building. Faculty interviews can provide the depth needed to craft messaging that’s both authentic and powerful.

Step 2: Mine Your CRM for Authentic Student Stories

The data stored in your CRM is more valuable than you might think. It’s not just names and email addresses; it contains job titles, company names, and personal statements that tell a story about who your students are and why they’re here.

Use this data to create messaging that’s personal and relatable. If your students are largely working professionals looking to advance their careers, highlight their real stories. If they’re recent high school graduates seeking adventure and personal growth, speak to those aspirations. The goal is to move beyond generic messaging and into narratives that feel uniquely tailored to your audience.

Example Use Case: One institution used CRM data to personalize their email campaigns by including real stories of current students who came from similar backgrounds as the recipients. These emails saw significantly higher engagement rates because they spoke directly to the recipient’s experiences and aspirations.

Step 3: Conduct Competitive Research to Identify Gaps

To stand out, you need to know what your competitors are saying—and more importantly, what they’re not saying. Conducting competitive research helps you understand the landscape of messaging within higher ed and find the gaps that your institution can fill.

• Actionable Steps:
  • Analyze competitor websites, social media, and campaign messaging.
  • Look for areas where their messaging falls flat or lacks specificity.
  • Identify opportunities to highlight your institution’s unique strengths and carve out your own storytelling niche.

Knowing where your story fits ensures it stands out and speaks directly to prospective students who are looking for something different.

Step 4: Use Divergent Thinking to Push Creativity

In the rush of daily tasks, it’s easy to generate messaging ideas that are safe, predictable, and surface-level. But to really connect and push your higher education branding, you need to push beyond the obvious—and this is where divergent thinking comes in.

Common Mistake: Stopping at the first set of ideas, especially if you’re using tools like ChatGPT for inspiration.

Solution: Embrace divergent thinking to:

• Generate Novel Ideas: Come up with a wide range of concepts, including unconventional ones that might not seem obvious at first.
• Seek Unexpected Connections: Connect seemingly unrelated ideas or themes to find something truly unique.

Example: One higher ed marketing team used divergent thinking to brainstorm ways to connect their programs to cultural trends. They found an unexpected link between a data science program and storytelling—positioning their graduates as “data storytellers” who use analytics to shape narratives in the modern world. This messaging struck a chord with prospective students who saw themselves as both creative and analytical.

Evolving Higher Ed Marketing for Emotional Connection

Why Storytelling Matters: It’s not enough to tell students what your institution does—you need to show them why it matters. Storytelling adds a human touch that makes your message relatable, memorable, and emotionally resonant. By emphasizing the impact your graduates have on their communities, or the life-changing moments that happen on campus, you’re creating an emotional connection that goes beyond the basics.

Creativity is Key: In higher ed marketing, it’s not just about what you say, but how you say it. The tone and content need to reflect what makes your institution unique—not just as a place of learning, but as a community, a launchpad, and a place of personal transformation.

Moving Beyond the Traditional with Higher Education Branding

By interviewing faculty, leveraging CRM data, understanding your competition, and pushing creativity through divergent thinking, you can move beyond traditional marketing tactics and connect with prospective students on a deeper level. Higher ed marketing is at a pivotal moment—institutions that are willing to adapt and evolve their marketing approach will be better positioned to stand out and thrive in a competitive landscape.

What steps have you taken to connect emotionally with your audience? Share your insights and strategies below—let’s continue the conversation on how higher ed marketing can evolve together.