We have had open houses in which studnets are encouraged to bring their family and friends to campus and 'show off' the facilities. It not only allows family and friends to see where students spend all of their time but also can produce referrals. Our school has a "refer a friend" form if students want to intive people to learn about our school. I think they can get a tshirt or some little trinket if someone does enroll that they referred.
As long as the prospective student does nothave a do not call request, calling referrals from other students is a great way for continual growth.
Bring a friend day seems to work well. Often times, a friend's success gets a person interested in changing their life too. They feel if their friend can succeed, maybe they can too.
We have events like bring a friend day
I am really uncertain as to what I am responding to. I just started pushing buttons because I have to put a message, or response in the forum, but was uncertain how to do it. Somehow you popped up. It would be nice to know what I did, so that I can do the other forums and complete this project, which was suppose to be done today. Thank you for any help you can give me. Wendy Campbell
Student referrals, friend/church referrals
A school can be creative when seeking student referrals. A key to seeking student referrals is knowing who you are targeting. For us in physical therapy, we target graduates in other areas that may want to further their education and their responsibilities, high school students, educating them on their options in the field of PT and targeting businesses that may attract people who we feel would be an asset for our program.
Wendy - You should be able to go to the top of the page when responding to a discussion item to see the "breadcrumbs" indicating how you got to the page you are on. This post was in the Forum 2 discussion string regardin g"Eliciting Student Referals". Hope this helps.
The best way to get referrals is from current students and recent grads.
I find that if we make it fun for students by telling them to bring a friend or family member to class that is interested in coming back to school, it's successful. The other way that seems to work well is the direct referral. I tell the student that I would love to help thier friend or family member out that wants to come back to school...
My perference would be word of mouth. This has proven to an effective method in getting business.
There should never be pressure on current students to refer
Bring a friend day is a great idea. Even better when combined with an open house.
I will agree to that. Just like shopping a store and you are selected to complete a survey and receive a discount...Customer that are satified would refer a friend to the busy.
One must ask though are they doing clicking yes because there is an incentive to be gained
I believe if we provide a good service students will help with the referrals,we see students that are enrolled that are the brothers, sisters, cousins of past students, or students that where send by friends that are still in school or in the past, so family and friends are a good source of referrals.
Asking if there is someone in their life that would bennefit from getting their career started in health care.
Asking if the student has someone that wants to attend school at the same time, a study buddy.
I have found the most appropriate way to cultivate student referrals is through excellent customer service and keeping the best interest of the student in consideration at all times. Simply asking during the enrollment process works well. Campus activities such as bring a friend day is fun and generates interest in our school. Never use the carrot approach and attempt to promise something. Lace the activity with caring and a helping hands approach.
I have found that just asking the prospective student to come to the initial interview with a friend helps them feel more comfortable. When they come with a "support group" the person with them often gets excited about the one of the programs as well. I have had the initial person decide the program was not for them, only to have the person they brought with them decide the program was perfect for them.
We often have a "Bring a Friend to School Day" here in Jacksonville. We also encourage students to bring a friend with them to their appointment.
In eliciting student referrals from other students, I believe the best way is to ask the current student why they chose the school and what attracted them to the school. If that is so, do you think that some other friends may also feel the same way? Why not then invite them for a tour? One can ask if it is possible that their school may have a contact person in which they may be interested in having a career or college fair visit their school?
The power of verbal referrals is powerful, it can make or break a company. Of course, word of mouth goes further if and when the best integrity is kept along with the reputation of the school and good comunication skills is kept. I being only here for 1.5 months as a receptionist, have first hand contact in many cases. I have had various jobs dealing with the public and I can say, in my own personal expierience, that the first point of contact weather by phone or the front desk, sets the initial tone of your outcome for future.
I believe that you have to use a variety of tools such as "Bring a friend" and "Open House." However, Nothing compares to genuinely taking care of the student and making that connection by following up on them as they go through the program. It makes it much easier to ask for a referral if they feel that you are interested in them personally. Be a mentor.
