THE STORY

Colleges typically begin their September enrolment strategy in the Spring, but 2020’s Covid-19 pandemic disrupted everything: summer exams were cancelled and no one knew whether students would be permitted to return in the autumn.

THE GOAL

I worked with United Colleges Group, in collaboration with long term associate Emel Rizwani from Red Gem, to execute a brand awareness campaign, with the aim of driving school leavers and adult learners to the enrolment pages for City of Westminster College and the College of North West London.

THE SOLUTION

We ran a two-step traffic campaign:

  • At ‘top of funnel’, general ads were targeted at broad audiences based on age and demographics.
  • At ‘bottom of funnel’, subject-specific ads were targeted at users who had responded to top of funnel ads and / or engaged with subject related pages of the website

SUCCESS

Despite the late start and universal uncertainty due to Covid-19 and exam results, courses were filled and in some cases additional classes were created. As a result, the client requested that ads were switched off with only 65% of the budget spent.

KEY STATS

  • Facebook ad campaign generated on average 25% of total traffic to target websites across 6 weeks (peaking at 39%)
  • £0.42 per result at top of funnel and £0.69 per result at bottom of funnel
  • Targets met ahead of schedule and under-budget

“I had the pleasure of working with Sarita and her long term collaborator, Emel during a very busy period at the college group. What I really appreciated about working with them was that unlike some agencies, they were very honest and transparent about what could be realistically achieved within the timeframe and then delivering it.

Their knowledge of getting the most out of Facebook and Instagram’s algorithm and how best to monetise the campaign based on the college group’s requirements and budget were invaluable. I’m a data geek and it was great to have regular analytics and insights based on how well the adverts were performing – and most importantly – how the campaign should be tweaked based on these insights.

The added value gained from Sarita and Emel means I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them or work with them again.”

Rachel Binns, United Colleges Group