A well-defined brand position can give your institution a major competitive edge in the international education industry. This involves purposefully shaping how your business is perceived by prospective students, agents and partners. Let’s look into brand positioning and how to implement it in more depth. 

What is brand positioning and why is it important?

Brand positioning is the process of distinguishing your institution in the market by promoting specific benefits and traits that set you apart. It establishes your brand identity centred around qualities like high-quality tuition, affordability, campus experience, etc. An effective positioning strategy answers the question ‘Why should students choose us over competitors?’ By defining your brand position, you bring more clarity to your marketing and recruitment efforts and ensure consistent messaging that resonates with your target audiences. This builds recognition and customer loyalty over time and allows you to align your offerings, pricing, and promotions to your value proposition.

Identify and implement your brand position

To position your brand, start by evaluating your current market perception through surveys and focus groups. Then, pinpoint the unique benefits and emotional values you want to cultivate. Build your positioning concept around addressing the priorities and needs of your ideal prospective students. For example, if a university identifies that potential international students value hands-on learning experiences, it might focus on highlighting its internships, lab work and project-based curriculum. Once defined, integrate your brand positioning into all consumer touchpoints – your website, social media pages, email marketing, and more. In our previous example, the university could update their website to feature students participating in internships, incorporate messaging in recruitment brochures, and have current students discuss project work during campus tours. This kind of ongoing brand management is critical for gaining more success over time. 

In a crowded international education market, it’s those institutions with a strong brand position that will achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. By shaping your unique market positioning and emphasising it throughout your organisation, you distinguish your brand and connect with the right students.

Written by Stephanie Clark