Our top 5 tips for Clearing!
Clearing is one of the busiest times of year for (almost) any UK university - and it can seem overwhelming.
So we’re here to help. Take a look at our top five tips to make the most of Clearing 2022.
1. Make a plan
Think about what you need to do, and break it down into chunks.
I’ll start you off…
Review your webpages and prep a Clearing microsite
Look at how people will ask for Clearing offers: phone? web? Facebook message?
Book out any ad space (or get a media buying partner to do it)
Reserve time in your art studio for designing assets
You’ll need to make sure all of your key stakeholders are involved - from the Vice-Chancellor’s Office (you were planning a video with the VC or one of the PVCs, right?) to the IT teams who’ll be supporting your tech on the day
2. Remember this is a game of two halves
Can you have clearing without confirmation?
Both of these are important. If you’re not sharing content to welcome new students joining your uni community, then you’re also missing out on:
the moment to build their sense of connection before they’ve started
an opportunity to show their network that you’re excited for new students, so they might want to apply through clearing themselves 👀
Go a step further than one generic welcome post on social media with a picture of your campus… Make it personal. Reply to comments you’re getting from students online. Use their name (if it’s shown in their profile). Ask about their interests and hobbies, and tag in relevant societies. Drop a link to their accommodation group if they mention they’re living in halls.
This is a major achievement. Celebrate with your new students.
3. This is a marathon, not a sprint
What’s one thing you won’t be able to get through this crunch period without? Your team.
If you’re lucky enough to be part of a well-resourced team with capacity to handle Confirmation and Clearing, make sure everyone is clear on their role and the timelines you’re working towards.
Some universities ask for staff volunteers to help with additional Clearing activity like responding to social media enquiries. If you’re already looking for colleagues to help out on phone lines, see if you can add a call for marketing activity.
Or it might be worth exploring if you can bring in student workers - from content creators to peer advisors, there’s definitely a space for them in your plans.
However you’re planning to make this work, you’ll need to make sure that all of your team members have had appropriate training and they know where to ask for help if they need it.
4. Ensure it’s easy to find out how to apply
The Higher Education sector spends thousands of pounds on Clearing advertising each year. Which is fine, until you realise that that’s just the first step in applying through Clearing.
Think about the user journey once they’ve found you. If they’re coming in from, for example, Instagram, do you have a direct link in your bio to your Clearing pages? Or do they have to head to your website’s homepage and navigate their own way from there?
How to apply should be simple and quick, ideally done in three clicks or less. You might also want to make sure key conversion materials, like information on accommodation and student stories, are highly visible to help students visualise their lives at your university.
You shouldn’t be relying on accordion-box FAQ sections to help prospective students find the answers they’re looking for. If in doubt, it’s time to review your information architecture to make sure it’s simple to navigate.
5. When it comes to campaigns, sharing is caring
So we’ve already mentioned looping in key stakeholders.
But have you thought about the teams around your institution who’ll be sharing your messages?
Across your university, it’s likely there are hundreds of webpages and social media accounts run by administrators, academics and even students. They’ll likely be putting out their own Clearing messaging.
So, make sure they have access to your key messaging, assets and campaign taglines - and see if you can give templates they can adapt for their own area of specialism.
And this includes any necessary training. While university-level teams are likely to know about the UCAS embargo and what it means for their communications, some of your academic or local colleagues might not. Ahead of time, set up workshops on key elements of your plans. That might include introducing your campaign, or explaining the embargo, or training colleagues on where to direct Clearing queries on Results Day.
Still need some help?
Whether you’re looking for support with your content strategy for Clearing, need to add some sparkle to your website ahead of August or are looking for in-depth analysis of potential students, we’re happy to chat.
Get in touch at hello@picklejarcommunications.com or on our website.
