In our recent insight paper, It’s Time to Put ‘Recruiting’Back in the Admissions Office, we highlighted examples of college admissions offices missing the mark with prospective students.
In one example, our student shopper applied for admission to a small, private, residential institution and received five emails without any staff member names, followed by an invitation to join the University’s ZeeMee portal that said, “We can’t wait to chat with you.”
Think about that. A student applied for admission, and the first offer of an actual human connection was to join a third-party platform to chat with other students.
In an early look at our Fall 2026 College Secret Shopping study, we are seeing a similar pattern playing out.
Out of 100 institutions shopped, eight responding colleges and universities sent a total of 87 emails, of which only eight were from a real person. On the other hand, our student received 16 ZeeMee invitations.
Again, think about that. Eighty-seven “touches” or opportunities to connect with a prospective student, but the plan is to push them off into a third-party app?
Why does this happen?
A Failure to Intentionally Design Your Follow-Up
Even the most out-of-date Admissions CRM lets you include an admissions counselor’s signature in the email. What’s the worst that could happen by providing the student’s counselor’s name and contact information? The student replies?
Modern CRM software tools allow you to create hyperpersonalized campaigns using dynamic content that adjusts to what prospective students reveal, yet, without the intention of designing what your recruitment experience should be, the default is to take the easy path:
Sincerely,
The Office of Admissions
Admissions CRM Done Well is Not Easy
Admissions CRM done well is a combination of left- and right-brain skills that marries planning, data segment targeting, and contextual content, design, and the construction of complex workflows.
It’s why most college recruitment communications plans are one-size-fits-all—it’s easier to manage.
Too often, admission offices divert staff members who should be recruiting to manage Admissions CRM functions. In some cases, the Director of Admissions is the Admissions CRM power user. If your director is managing the communications and software, your recruiting effort has a bigger problem.
At eduConverse, we believe the role of technology is to empower admissions teams—not burden them. By partnering with hundreds of institutions, we’ve developed solutions tailored to the realities of higher education enrollment and grounded in a singular vision: helping you build authentic, meaningful relationships.
We do the heavy lifting so you can focus on your core competency—recruiting a highly qualified class.
Want to Learn More
Schedule a 1-on-1 consultation with an eduConverse expert today to explore how we can help your institution streamline processes, elevate communication strategies, and focus on what you do best: recruiting students.
📖 Learn more about Conversation Planning, an outsourced Admissions CRM solution