Success stories: How 4 schools engage parents with SMS

SMS is a growing communication preference for families – especially families who need the most support. When CampusESP surveyed over 6,400 parents, 38% responded that SMS is one of their top preferred communication channels. Drilling into the demographics, nearly 50% of Black, Hispanic, first-generation, and low-income families said that SMS is a top preferred communication channel. 

University of the Pacific, Muhlenberg College, Utah State University, and Alabama A&M University are 4 examples of schools using SMS to “nudge the nudgers” (we’re talking parents). When it comes to connecting with families through SMS, the results are almost immediate, and most importantly, measurable. 

SMS helps University of the Pacific increase deposits by nearly 11%

University of the Pacific needed a way to encourage deposits and improve student yield. Pacific was already sending one-off emails to families through our Announcements feature in advance of important milestones. Using SMS provided another avenue to spike engagement about their upcoming deposit deadline at the right time.

“We experienced great success with the use of announcements, but we realized our peak open rate occurred 4 days after we sent the announcement. In some instances, that was too late to make an impact. SMS allowed us to reach our target audiences immediately. SMS combined with the use of announcements helped us increase our deposits by nearly 11% over last fall.”

-Mary Beth Marks, Exec. Dir. Enrollment Marketing at University of the Pacific

PRO TIP - Reference the family portal in your text to boost engagement and connect parents with other important information and resources.

Muhlenberg boosts Family Weekend registrations by over 50% (with only 1 text!)

With Family Weekend quickly approaching, Muhlenberg needed a way to grow their number of registrations fast. By simply sending 1 SMS, they saw a huge increase in registrations within the same day.

“In less than 24 hours, we saw a 51% increase by sending 1 SMS to families last night. I’m very pleased with the results!”

-Tim Black, Director of Student Transitions and Family Programs at Muhlenberg College

PRO TIP - Muhlenberg’s use of mail merge makes the message more personalized by addressing parents by first name. 

*BONUS CONTENT* - Muhlenberg saw a 54% click rate after sending a tuition bill reminder through SMS. Read their story HERE!

34% of prospective parents clicked on link to register for Utah State’s open houses

Utah State uses both CampusESP for Student Enrollment and Family Communication. Our SMS Module makes it easy to filter your parent list and send specialized texts to the right audience. Within the same week, USU texted prospective parents about open house registration and current parents about Family Weekend. 

“Being able to text parents of prospective students ensures the most important information is reaching them how they want to receive it. The very first message we sent, 34% of recipients clicked to register for our event!”

-Ryan Jensen, Associate Director of Marketing at Utah State University

PRO TIP - Short links get parents exactly where they need to go to register (while saving Utah State SMS credits at the same time). 

Alabama A&M sends SMS about financial aid reminder and receives positive feedback from parents almost immediately

AAMU was trying to figure out the best method of letting parents know about CARES funding eligibility. Similar to other schools, AAMU loves that you can send out SMS reminders at the touch of a button and see engagement instantly. After sending out the reminder, AAMU received responses from over 10 parents who shared positive feedback and affirmation that they will pass the information along to their students.

“The text feature helps us push important information out to parents quickly! The parents really appreciated the information that was sent, as it was great news to them.”

-Karla Miller, Director of Residential Life & Housing at Alabama A&M University

PRO TIP - Have two-way conversations with families directly in the admin area to help answer any questions or respond to feedback.

Interested in learning more about implementing SMS at your institution?

Current customers: Simply contact your Account Manager, or shoot us a line at support@campusesp.com for more information on the SMS Module.

New to CampusESP? Reach out here to learn how parent engagement can improve student success on your campus.