Cober, Zachary LIKE, COMMENT, ENROLL: AN ANALYSIS OF HOW HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS ADVERTISE THEMSELVES ON SOCIAL MEDIA. 2021. Radford University, Thesis. Radford University Scholars' Repository.
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Abstract
Social media, specifically Facebook, has become an invaluable tool in any industry for firms to communicate messages to their clients or potential clients. Higher education is no different, and institutions should expect to use Facebook as a part of their messaging and advertising strategies with potential and prospective students. Past research has indicated that both Traditional and Non-Traditional students look for specific factors and elements within higher education, such as academic reputation and costs, to make their enrollment decision. This research surveys a sample of schools across multiple different types of higher education institutions (Four-Year Public, Four-Year Private Non-Profit, Four-Year Private For-Profit, Four-Year HBCU, Two-Year Public, and All-Online) to better understand the current practices and subjects that different types of institution use in their Facebook content. The content of these posts are qualitatively analyzed through a Grounded Theory framework to better understand how the posting behavior is similar or different across institutional types, and how these posts align with student decision-making factors. This research indicates that the most significant differences in content and messaging techniques are between the Four-Year institutions versus the All-Online and Two-Year Public institutions. The latter two institutional types appear to target the decision-making factors most relevant more directly to students and manage to more effectively target both Traditional and Non-Traditional students compared to Four-Year institutions.
| Item Type: | Thesis |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HE Transportation and Communications |
| Divisions: | Radford University > College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences > School of Communication |
| Date Deposited: | 16 Nov 2021 01:38 |
| Last Modified: | 20 Apr 2023 12:57 |
| URI: | http://wagner.radford.edu/id/eprint/737 |
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