For prospective students, a university with a strong reputation for research holds a certain amount of prestige, and publicizing research is an ideal way to demonstrate the expertise of your faculty.

1. Using Academic Research for Content Marketing: A
Guide for Schools
Presented by:
Higher Education Marketing

2. 1. Why Research Should be Promoted
2. Creating Engaging Content from Academic Research
3. Presenting Research Content on Your Website
4. Where Does Research Fit in Your Social Media Marketing?
5. Benefits of Including Research in Your Content Marketing
Strategy
Overview

3. Universities have been the site of some of the greatest
discoveries in human history:
„ Stephen Hawking proved the existence of singularities while at
Cambridge in the 70s
„ Astronomy research at Berkeley led to the idea of dark matter in 1998
„ Milton Friedman developed free market economic theory at the
University of Chicago
„ Much of Sigmund Freud’s innovative psychiatry work was done at
Vienna University
Despite this, schools often neglect to promote their research
as part of their content marketing strategy.
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
1. Why Research Should Be Promoted

4. Promoting research in your content marketing can:
„ Help the school gain wider media recognition
„ Enhance the reputation and prestige of the institution
„ Demonstrate the expertise of faculty and students
„ Show prospective students the exciting projects they could be working
on at your school
„ Provide a steady stream of quality, informative content
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
1. Why Research Should Be Promoted
“We’re all ‘research-led’ universities now- except when it
comes to marketing purposes”
-Peter Reader
Director of Marketing and Communications, University of Portsmouth

5. Good academic writing doesn’t always equal good
student recruitment content! An effective research related
post should:
„ Provide a concise synopsis of the topic
„ Be presented in language prospective students, who may not have
much knowledge of the area, can understand. Keep it simple!
„ Avoid using academic conventions such as qualifying statements,
including long reference lists, as this can detract from readability
When framed correctly, academic features can open
prospective students’ eyes to the exciting possibilities that
studying at your university can bring!
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
2. Creating Engaging Content From
Academic Research

6. Academic research can lend itself to a variety of content
formats, including:
„ Blogs
„ News articles
„ Interviews with key researchers, students and faculty
„ Snippets of key points with accompanying photos
„ Infographics
„ Videos
Posting different types of content will help you connect with a
broader audience of prospective students!
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
2. Creating Engaging Content From
Academic Research

7. Promoting noteworthy research on your website showcases
your most innovative work to prospective students, and earns
inbound links to boost your SEO.
3. Presenting Research Content On Your
Website
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
Queen Mary University of
London features research
articles prominently on its
homepage, establishing it as a
priority and prominent part of the
school’s identity.

8. Most schools also have a dedicated research section on their site.
Including articles related to notable recent studies here can make it
more engaging for casual visitors.
3. Presenting Research Content On Your
Website
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
Duke University has a dedicated
‘research blog’, which includes
shorter, more informal posts.
This approach can help your
content appeal more to
new leads.

9. To help prospective students identify with your content, emphasize
your current students’ role in your research as much as possible,
using interviews and articles to tell their personal stories.
3. Presenting Research Content On Your
Website
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
The University of Indiana-
Bloomington’s research
section features quotes,
testimonials, and features
about student
contributions.

10. Specialized research content can also be featured on the
dedicated pages of specific departments, for a more targeted
lead generation approach.
3. Presenting Research Content On Your
Website
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
Harvard University
segments its research-
related content into the
sub-domains of its various
schools and departments.

11. When used in the right context, social media can provide a great
outlet for promoting research:
„ Facebook can provide access to a broad audience with interests in
many different areas of study
„ Twitter can be used to promote links to new research content
„ LinkedIn could lead to content being endorsed and shared by academic
and industry leaders.
„ Pinterest is one of the best traffic drivers on the web
„ Tumblr can help your research content reach a young user base
„ Reddit users are one of the most educated and intellectual groups on
social media
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
4. Where Does Research Fit in Your Social
Media Marketing?

12. Example
The University of Michigan’s Institute of Social Research uses its
Facebook page to share its latest studies, and links to other
research centres which have crossover appeal to its audience.
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
Setting up individual
Facebook pages for
various department’s
will help you attract
prospective students
interested in that field
of study
4. Where Does Research Fit in Your Social
Media Marketing?

13. Example
The Stanford University School of Medicine uses Twitter to
promote vast amounts of content relating to its groundbreaking
research.
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
Twitter can also be
used to
increase engagement
by having researchers
host Q&As on the site!
4. Where Does Research Fit in Your Social
Media Marketing?

14. Schools can use sites like LinkedIn and Reddit to promote
long-form, intellectual content, while platforms like Tumblr
and Pinterest can include short, visual snippets of research
work.
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
Example
Princeton’s chemistry
department has a great
Tumblr page which
includes memes,
infographics and videos
about its research.
4. Where Does Research Fit in Your Social
Media Marketing?

15. Making research a pillar of your content marketing strategy should
provide clear, measurable results, helping your school:
„ Increase web traffic
„ Get your content shared on different platforms
„ Generate inbound links from authority sites
„ Elevate your school’s academic reputation
With a little effort, you can show prospective students that your school is
just as committed to new studies and innovations as the world’s best
universities!
Source: HEM – Using Your School’s Academic Research to Transform Your Content Marketing Strategy
5. Benefits of Including Research in Your
Content Marketing Strategy