Booze, books, and…brand activation? While going to college remains a key milestone for many American students, enrollment numbers indicate that fewer are enrolling each year due to factors like rising tuition.

By the numbers: Data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center (NSCRC) shows enrollment across all colleges was down 2.7% in fall 2021 and 2.5% the year before that. While two-year and for-profit colleges have taken the hardest hit, private non-profit and public four-year institutions saw enrollment decline 1.6% and 3% last fall, respectively.

• Covid certainly played a role in decreased numbers over the last two years, as students weigh factors like safety and remote learning, but it’s a trend that has been happening since before the pandemic began.
• Matt Yuskewich, managing director and SVP of business strategy at creative agency 160over90, said that the universities he works with aren’t blaming Covid.
• “Most of our clients see Covid as an accelerant to a long-term trend that’s not going to reverse course anytime soon,” he told Marketing Brew.

Big picture: With students reconsidering their next move after high school, colleges and universities are growing their marketing and analytics capabilities, changing their tactics, and adopting corporate strategies to bring in their next graduating class.

Reeling ’em in

Angela Polec, VP of enrollment, marketing, and communications at La Salle University, joined the university in 2019 in its first cabinet-level marketing role. Last year, enrollment marketing was absorbed into her list of duties.

“This is kind of a trend that you’re starting to see for tuition-dependent institutions,” she told Marketing Brew. “We have enrollment and marketing communications combined in one division, which has actually allowed us to really integrate at a level that organizational silos sometimes prohibit.”

All together now: For Polec, combining marketing and enrollment into one team—and bringing a CRM administrator onboard—in the last year have been game-changers. She predicts college investments in marketing technology will only continue to grow in the near future.

• For the first time in the last three years, Polec said La Salle has seen an increase in completed applications for freshman undergraduates.
• “We were able to actually really leverage all of the data and analytics that we have and really map the full user journey so that we could be delivering the most up-to-date, customized content for our students as they consider colleges and universities,” she said.

Greer Davis, associate director of strategic communications at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said that using a CRM over the last four years has also drastically impacted her team’s success: “Segmentation has been a really big piece of our work in making sure that we have different communications for different audiences,” she explained.

Davis said UW-Madison had a record 53,829 applicants for fall 2021, up 17% from the previous year, and brought in its largest freshman class to date.

Click here to read more, including why more marketing roles are making their way into the C-suite at universities.—KH

Despite some, uh, technical issues, the NewFronts kicked off yesterday, hosting attendees both IRL and remotely.

Ahead of the kickoff, the IAB released its 2021 Video Ad Spend and 2022 Outlook report with Standard Media Index and Advertiser Perceptions, showing that digital video advertising grew 49% in 2021 and is expected to grow 26% to reach $49.2 billion in spend this year.

Break it down: Among video channels, ad spend on internet-connected TV (CTV) is growing the fastest. According to Leichtman Research Group, at least 82% of US TV households now have at least one CTV. IAB projects CTV spending will not only grow 39% this year to reach $21.2 billion, but also more than double from 2020.

Even though it’s growing quickly, the IAB’s report found that CTV only gets 18% of video ad sales.

So why is that? CTV has some downsides. When IAB asked buyers about their concerns, many cited “measuring incremental reach” and “managing frequency” across platforms and publishers. They also highlighted “a lack of transparency/interoperability” within walled gardens as an issue, as well as “fragmentation of programmatic supply paths.”

Buy, buy, buy: Eric John, VP of the IAB Media Center, said in a statement, “The time is now for brands and buyers to follow consumer attention” and go all-in on CTV. A few of the reasons listed in the report include:

• Access to data not compatible with linear TV, like first-party brand data, location data, and shopping data.
• Better returns, with 57% of buyers saying CTV was more effective than linear TV at leading to website and sales actions, and 46% “more effective at delivering brand perception.”
• More transparency than social or other digital videos on where ads are running.
• No dependence on third-party cookies, which are on their way out anyway.

Why not both? Choosing linear vs. CTV could become a decision of the past if buyers have it their way. Almost nine out of 10 (88%) said they expect to see a merged linear TV/CTV marketplace in the coming years.—KH

Each Tuesday, we spotlight Marketing Brew’s readers in our Coworking series. If you’d like to be featured, introduce yourself here.

Erica Gunn is CMO at Canto, a company that specializes in digital asset management solutions. Prior to joining Canto, she was head of marketing at Adobe Workfront.

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in marketing? I usually ask, “Would you buy a car from a company you have never heard of?” The answer is always no…The same is true for buying software! My job is to make sure everyone who might be interested in our products has heard of our company, has a favorable impression of our company and products, and has the information they need to be interested in making a purchase with us.

That means crafting a brand identity and storytelling, getting that message in front of the right audiences, and connecting with the individuals that our products and services can help. It’s part creative, part strategy, and mostly about connecting with people to help solve their business problems.

What’s your favorite ad campaign? Currently, my favorite ad campaign is the Progressive commercials about first-time home-buyers becoming their parents. The campaign is funny, and just about everyone can find an element that rings true for them. Bringing humor together with the human element is a great way to create an emotional connection between your audience and your brand. And since the stories vary from commercial to commercial; they capture your attention. I love them all!

What marketing trend are you least excited about? I’m least excited about the “personalized” B2B emails I get, often with a photo or animated GIF of a salesperson holding a photo of me, clipped from my LinkedIn profile. While I agree that there’s data that shows personalized emails are more effective than generic ones, I do think there’s such a thing as crossing a line. Knowing that someone went to an online profile, copied an image of me, or pulled my title from a job description does not make me more interested in your product, and I find the practice to be a little gimmicky and creepy. I’ll be glad when we move on from this trend!

One thing we can’t guess from your LinkedIn profile? I’m a bit of a pioneer woman. I bake all my own bread (including biscuits, bagels, and all the sandwich bread we use as a family), make jam in the summer, slow-cook most of our meals, and I spend my free time knitting and quilting.

There are a lot of bad marketing tips out there. These aren’t those.

Train ’em: Google is offering a certificate on digital marketing and e-commerce endorsed by the 4A’s. Details here.

Frame ’em: Peacock showed off a new ad format for the service at the NewFronts that frames content with a message or offer from sponsors.

Engage ’em: Reddit has shared info on its sci-fi communities ahead of Star Wars Day, aka May the 4th (be with you).

Get to know upfronts back to front: Digital video and connected TV upfront spending is increasing, but in the digital age, how upfronts tick could be changing. Get an eye-opening look at the current—and future—world of upfronts in our latest video here.*

^{*This is sponsored advertising content.}

Your next great role could be just a click away! Check out 200+ job openings on the Marketing Brew Job Board!

Today’s featured openings:

• Marketing Team Lead at Right Stuf Anime
• Account Director, FinTech at ARPR
• Associate, Brand Partner at Morning Brew

See more jobs or post your job opportunities here.

Catch up on a few Marketing Brew stories you might have missed.

• Brands have been investing in podcasts of their own for years. Here’s why
• How one Ukrainian ad agency is surviving the war
• Pivoting to ‘real beauty’ gets complicated fast

Netflix’s romance drama Bridgerton is among the most-watched series on the platform, and the second season was viewed for 656.2 million hours in its first 28 days. There is only one other title on the service that has Bridgerton beat in terms of viewership: what is it?

1. Stranger Things’ third season
2. Squid Game’s first season
3. Bridgerton’s first season
4. Money Heist’s fourth part

Keep scrolling for the answer.