Russia is a country of big opportunities for educational institutions all over the world due to its size, variety of cultures and traditions, and growing interest in study abroad. When entering the Russian market, what should education providers expect? What common mistakes should they avoid and how they can they effectively tackle this burgeoning market? The Association of Russian Educational Advisors (AREA) presents research conducted among reputable agencies and foreign institutions that have experience recruiting in Russia. The research results and proposed marketing tips reveal the trends of the educational market and offer suggestions for future development. Read our accompanying ICEF Monitor article "Mastering the Russian market: common mistakes and practical advice'' and watch the video interview with Dr Anna Ryzhova here: http://bit.ly/1lUk9QS. For more industry news, market intelligence, research and commentary for international student recruitment please visit http://www.icefmonitor.com, subscribe for daily or weekly updates, and follow us on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/icefmonitor.
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1. Association of Russian Educational Advisors Recruitment in
Russia: Vital Aspects that each Provider should know Anna Ryzhova,
PhD AREA Board member
2. AREA Code of Ethics - extracts MEMBERSARE OBLIGED: Act in
compliance with the RF legislation. Care of their reputation and
the reputation of the Association Contribute to the promotion of
the Association Follow the principles of professional ethic in
partner relations in the conditions of market economy with respect
to the other members of the Association, clients and partners.
Continuously seek to improve the level of professional competence.
Provide the clients with comprehensive, accurate and timely
information regarding the services. Fulfill obligations to clients
and partners in full. Publish reliable information about programs
in adverts, booklets, and on websites.
3. Marketing approach When you concentrate on just one
approach, it works better Agent approach Concentration on
recruitment through the agents network Public approach Direct
contact with the prospective students
4. Agent approach Defining the agents focusing on the market of
the country where the educational institution is located. WHERETO
LOOK FOR? Workshops, organized with the participation of the
professional agents (i.e. ICEF), as well as the activities of
theTrade Missions in Russia HOWTO UNDERSTANDTHATTHE AGENCY IS
PROFESSIONAL? Membership inAREA (FELCA accreditation)
www.studyarea.ru IATC certificate (ICEF agent course) References of
other educational institutions
5. ACTIVITIES Agent approach Web-marketing using the agents
websites Participation in educational fairs Publications in the
agent brochures Target seminars with the interested students
Special prices/discounts for the agents (not available with direct
bookings) Russian-speaking representative working at the
educational institution or in Russia
6. Agent approach Common mistakes Slow reply No interest in the
Russian market peculiarities Inefficient admission staff Asking for
students straight away Lack of flexibility when solving the
problems of a client /adjusting the course for the student Lack of
availability and courses updates Do not perform the agent training
Mistakes in visa support documents Regular newsletters = spam? Lack
of technology in use - noYouTube,Twitter, Facebook accounts
7. Agent approach How to improve Employ stable and efficient
representatives CLEAR POLICY of direct bookings and refund
procedures Keep to the point name the key selling points, speak
little but professional Have full understanding of the visa
procedure Coordinate all the international students office services
Show flexibility when adjusting the course for the students
individual requests Implement full use of online booking and
acceptance of electronic documents Perform availability and courses
updates on regular basis Provide exhaustive information on the host
family Treat an agent not only as a partner, but as a customer
8. Public approach Activities Educational fairs consider an
endless number of them, can be just a waste of time and money
Web-marketing (translation of the web-page in Russian language or
marketing of the separate additional page in Russian) high
competition, lack of knowledge about Russian search engines Use of
testimonials of former students Social networks
9. Public approach Clients read your signals differently
BROCHURES: Content mistakes, Clients consider brochure as a public
offer; Promises instead of the facts; Strangers on the cover; Happy
faces and places of interest instead of school facilities; Separate
brochure for each course/center VIDEOS: Students testimonials
instead of school facilities; No school key selling points; Quality
(No key idea in the film; Smartphone videos; Poor editing) ;Too
long (first 30 seconds are the most important)
10. Agent vs. Public approach in Russia Factor Agent approach
Public approach Territory +/- Concentration on some areas with
finding key agencies in each of them +/- Internet marketing/direct
bookings Expenses + - Not targeted Visa issues + - Time + +/- Some
success is possible if social networking is developed well Priority
destination + +/- Depends on the region
11. Contact information Anna Ryzhova Email:
[email protected] Skype: canadapoint_anna AREA website:
www.studyarea.ru