EDU Interactive and Castle Advertising Hire New Account/Media Coordinators

San Diego, CA, July 1, 2008 — Castle Advertising and EDU Interactive, the interactive division of Castle Advertising, recently announced the expansion of its growing staff with the hiring of Caroline Tall and Raquel Rodriguez.

Caroline Tall recently graduated from the University of San Diego in May ‘08 with a degree in Communication Studies and minor in Business Administration. Raquel Rodriguez earned a major in journalism with a minor in marketing from California State University, Chico and graduated in May ‘08 as well. They will both assist the account and media teams on various accounts for both Castle Advertising and EDU Interactive.

About Castle Advertising
Castle Advertising is a full service advertising agency located in the Historic District of Golden Hill, San Diego. For more information about Castle Advertising, visit www.castlead.com.

About EDU Interactive
EDU Interactive is an enrollment marketing and interactive lead generation company that is jointly owned and managed by Castle Advertising, a full-service agency in San Diego, CA, and Barker Educational Services Team, an enrollment consulting services company based in Scottsdale, AZ. Find out more about EDU Interactive at www.eduinteractive.com.

                                                                             

It’s amazing how many people remember this line from the 1996 movie “Jerry Maguire.’” That famous line was delivered by the actor Cuba Gooding, Jr. playing the part of Rod Tidwell - the point being that no matter what anybody said about his skill as an athlete, the most important thing as far as he was concerned, was the MONEY!

So what does this have to do with Online Education? Certainly there are those that continue their education because they love what they’re doing. But probably the vast majority are saying “Show Me The Money!” They know that getting a degree means more income! A better life! Greater satisfaction!

We know that taking classes online can help individuals freshen their skills and stay competitive in their industry, which helps them move up the ladder and negotiate a higher salary or a bigger raise. Online education provides them with a way of keeping their professional goals in sight without disrupting their lives.

Here’s a little exercise I did for this article. The website www.payscale.com allows one free “Salary Report” - so I took advantage of it. My input stated that I was looking for the pay scale for an Advertising and Promotion Manager in San Diego, CA. I inputed that I had 20 years’ experience, had managed up to 10 people, BUT, I did not have a degree of any kind. I clicked submit, and just as sure as the sun will come up tomorrow, I saw the line right next to the pay scale chart, “Increase your salary. Search Degrees.” The implication was clear. Get a degree and we’ll SHOW YOU THE MONEY!

Average Annual Earnings for College Graduates and Non-Graduates
Average Annual Earnings

Professional Degree $109,600
Doctoral Degree $89,400
Master’s Degree $62,300
Bachelor’s Degree $52,200
Associates Degree $38,200
Some College $36,800
High School Graduate $30,400
Some High School $23,400

Average Annual Earnings—Different Levels of Education.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Surveys

Let EDU, “Show You The Money!”
EDU Interactive believes it is so important that as your lead generation partner, we assume responsibility for all aspects of your campaign, from strategy through execution, while our partners maintain ownership of leads delivered on a pay-for-performance basis. EDU Interactive believes that successful online lead generation demands certain critical attributes and adherence to these will determine the success of a campaign and allow us to “Show You The Money!”

ONE: It’s impossible to put too much importance on budgeting. This is where fantasy and reality butt heads. This is the first inning - the first batter - the first pitch! Get this right and the chance for success and realizing expectations come together.
TWO: A campaign strategy tailored to achieve enrollment goals. A strategy that communicates a message of substance. This is where our experience really shines!
THREE: A media plan that leverages a mix of online channels to reach a multitude of highly targeted
candidates and direct this traffic to education programs - a media plan that is negotiated with the client’s
best interest in mind and not the media’s.
FOUR: Apply advanced optimization strategy across these online channels determined by our extensive personal, behavioral, and contextual targeting criteria, to make sure we are delivering an on-target message to the right candidates, ensuring a consistent stream of qualified student leads and return on investment.
FIVE: We feel that it is also very important that we verify the quality of all student leads using a highly developed data cleansing process.
SIX: Finally, it is vital to analyze a campaign’s results and provide recommendations for all future campaigns.

The people of EDU Interactive have devoted countless hours and experienced innumerable success and, yes, failure, too, in an effort to learn what it takes to create and administer a service based on the six principles stated in this article.

Ultimately, it boils down to execution … EDU Interactive’s greatest strength. That’s why we can, “Show You The Money!”

                                                                             

It demands realistic expectations.

The power of the Internet has and is bringing about enormous changes in higher education. This is especially true in driving the enrollment of new students. Research has shown that nearly 82 percent of respondents to a special survey began their search for university degree and certificate programs by using various online channels.

As the internet becomes ever more popular and gains credibility, educational institutions are seeking effective ways to market their products online. This allows for a more targeted approach in promoting both online and campus-based programs. Enrollment programs that use online marketing channels are also easier to quantify in terms of success as education marketers pay only for the qualified leads they acquire.

So, it’s a piece of cake. Right? Promote on the Internet and you’re home free. Unfortunately it doesn’t work that way. Just as any skill must be acquired through hard work and the refining of the tools of the trade, so must the skill of online marketing. A case in point is the tale of a major Midwest University spending approximately three million dollars over two years and acquiring only fifteen students!

That’s why EDU Interactive believes it is so important that. as your lead generation partner, we assume responsibility for all aspects of your campaign from strategy through execution, while our partners maintain ownership of leads delivered on a pay-for-performance basis.

EDU Interactive believes that successful online lead generation demands certain critical attributes, and adherence to these will determine the success of a campaign.

ONE: It’s impossible to put too much importance on budgeting. This is where fantasy and reality butt heads. This is the first inning - the first batter - the first pitch! Get this right and the chance for success and realizing expectations come together.

TWO: A campaign strategy tailored to achieve enrollment goals. A strategy that communicates a message of substance. This is where our experience really shines!

THREE: A media plan that leverages a mix of online channels to reach a multitude of highly targeted
candidates and direct this traffic to education programs. A media plan that is negotiated with the client’s
best interest in mind and not the media’s.

FOUR: Apply advanced optimization strategy across these online channels determined by our extensive personal, behavioral, and contextual targeting criteria to make sure we are delivering an on-target message to the right candidates, ensuring a consistent stream of qualified student leads and return on investment.

FIVE: We feel that it is also very important that we verify the quality of all student leads using a highly developed data cleansing process.

SIX: Finally, it is vital to analyze a campaign’s results and provide recommendations for all future campaigns.

So, as you can tell, it is more of an art form than a science. The people of EDU Interactive have devoted countless hours and experienced immeasurable success, and yes failure, too, in an effort to learn what it takes to create and administer a service based on the six principles stated in this article.

Ultimately, it boils down to execution … EDU Interactive’s greatest strength!

                                                                             

San Diego, CA, March 20, 2008 — EDU Interactive, the interactive division of Castle Advertising, recently announced the expansion of its growing staff with the hiring of Tim Browning and Bill Scott.

Tim Browning will serve as Chief Operating Officer of EDU Interactive. Tim comes to EDU with a wealth of experience from his employment at Apollo Group. “We have known Tim for years due to our working relationship with Apollo Group and we are very excited to have him join our team,” said Bob Barker, co-owner of EDU Interactive.

Bill Scott was hired as Search Engine Marketing Specialist for EDU Interactive. Bill has been specializing in web analytics since 1996 and has proven himself as an expert at developing and implementing Internet marketing strategies and search engine optimization for clients. “Bill’s hire will allow EDU Interactive to continue to strengthen its force in the interactive world,” said David Castle, co-owner of EDU Interactive.

                                                                             

EDU Interactive hires new Interactive Designer, Dru Kelly.

San Diego, CA, February 25, 2008 —EDU Interactive recently hired Dru Kelly as their new Interactive Designer. Dru is responsible for the layout, visual appearance and usability of websites and all online creative development for EDU Interactive. He will produce and maintain various websites and contribute to the overall web communication strategies and special projects for the agency.

“Dru has over 5 years of web design experience and will be an exceptional addition to our team,” said David Castle, owner of EDU Interactive. “His expertise and adeptness in web design will continue to enhance the level of capabilities and services we can offer our new and existing clients.”

About EDU Interactive
EDU Interactive is an enrollment marketing and interactive lead generation company that is jointly owned and managed by Castle Advertising, a full-service agency in San Diego, CA, and Barker Educational Services Team, and enrollment consulting services company based in Scottsdale, AZ. EDU Interactive partners with schools to closely supervise all aspects of their advertising and marketing efforts and deliver the highest number of qualified leads at the lowest cost-per-enrollment and cost-per-start. EDU Interactive implements a cohesive strategy from generating interest to securing enrollment. It happens through a combination of traditional marketing and advertising strategies and EDU Interactive’s proprietary enrollment technologies.

Find out more about EDU Interactive at http://www.eduinteractive.com/.

                                                                             

Visit the link below to check out the press that EDU Interactive received in San Diego Metropolitan’s January issue:
http://www.sandiegometro.com/2008/jan/education.php

                                                                             

In today’s competitive world, an advanced degree is more important than ever. Fortunately, there are more advanced ways to earn your degree, too. From online to on-campus to a hybrid of the two, you now have more options – and more opportunities.

According to the 2007 Post-Secondary Fact Book by Signal Hill, “Enrollment growth in the for-profit post-secondary market has strengthened over the past four quarters. Growth drivers for the post-secondary education sector include the movement towards a knowledge-based economy in which worker knowledge, whether general or specific, is increasingly important as a basis for economic competition, between individuals, between firms, and between countries.” Read the rest of this entry »

                                                                             

In this industry you will find many people who say, “If a lead doesn’t convert within a certain window of time,” it is not a quality lead. They might also allude to the phone number being wrong or email being bad as a sign of a lead not worth working. I would say that this view as it pertains to quality is narrow and unrealistic.

We work in an industry where the student is non-traditional, many times not immediately ready for school and frankly a bit unsure if they want to commit to a life change at all. So the phone might be their cousin’s, and the email their friends. What does this; or rather what are they as students, saying to us? They are saying that we need to rethink our definition of quality and change the methodology that we use in working with our leads. We need to meet the student where they are and be willing to take them with us to where they, deep down, want to go.
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This year launched a new product that could potentially replace non-residential toll 411 calls. Google’s new telephone based information service is fast, user-friendly, and best of all, free. It can be accessed by dialing 1-800-GOOG-411. The service lets you search for businesses by voice and will connect you automatically if you so choose. Another convenient option is to get the number sent to you via text message, which includes a map of the business you’ve selected. You can also choose “details” to get the phone number and address, which can also be sent to you via text message.
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My girlfriend and I get calls constantly; not because we’re popular but because we own credit cards, we applied for the super savers card at the local grocery store, we subscribe to magazines, we’ve ordered something online, etc. Our information has been distributed and sold to the highest bidding corporation whose aim is to sell us a product or service we don’t necessarily need, or more importantly something we don’t necessarily want. As a society we have dealt with this for years and now we don’t answer the phone if we don’t recognize the name on the caller ID, we hang up the minute we hear someone introduce themselves as “Jim from ABC company…,” we ignore anyone who sounds like they’re trying to sell us something. It’s become ingrained in our behavior as an automatic response to just say “not interested” or to simply hang up the phone. Even when they get us to hear them out, do we really listen? As admissions counselors, this is the cultural environment in which we have to work and the stigma we’re trying to overcome.
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