Buying committe
Let's talk buying committe. What does this look like with online enrollment and online sales.
Who could be the possible buying committe?
How do you engage them into the process? (Do you now?)
What would be the benefit of doing so?
Erin,
Excellent awareness!! You bring up great points and opportunities to help your students make an informed assessment. Thanks for sharing!
Dr. Jean Norris
When I first started, I would overlook this step in the phone conversation process. I now understand how important this is in helping the prospective student make an informed decision.
For me, the possible buying committee that I have experienced is: family members (mom/dad/spouse/kids), friends, and the prospective student. I now make sure to ask at the end of the phone interview, if they would like to bring someone in with them to help them make an informed decision and then ask for their name.
When they come in for the meeting, I try to engage them throughout the interview with the prospective student (ex. I see (blank) really liked the idea of a small classroom atmosphere. How do you feel about that mom?).
I feel that the benefit of bringing someone from the perspective student's support system can benefit them by putting them at ease. Also, the support system can bring up some excellent questions that the prospective student might be to nervous to ask or has not thought about. They also help the prospective student make an informed decision about their future, if they are on the fence.
One way or another, having that support person present at the visit will hopefully make for an interesting ride home! How do you invite the support person when you're talking to the prospective student on the phone?
I also invite the prospective student to come in with a friend or family member so they can get their questions answered also. It helps to bring support, most times, to the student. And, i am sure, it makes for stimulating conversation on the ride home.
It's great when they bring the buying committee to the appointment, isn't it? I get the sense that you understand the importance of engaging the entire committee during an appointment, but what do you do when the prospective student doesn't bring them along? How do you learn about the buying committee and how do you engage them in the process?
My thoughts: the buying committee is everyone the perspective student included and inquires their opinion - they usually bring these people with them.
I have found that once we complete the tour the question "how do you see 'Mary' fitting into our campus as a student? Do you see this as a good fit for her/him?"
I get great response from this question.
The benefits are that you create and cement the bond and show them that you really care if the perspective student and our school make a good fit.
Chris, you make a great point. What steps do you take to figure out who is in the buying committee?
Dr. Jean Norris
buying committe could be the prospect, their parents/spouse or a family member in general.
Once I have gathered some information and convinced them to come in I would invite both the prospect and either parent/spouse/friend etc to come in also.
The benefit of doing this will take some pressure off of the prospect in the sense that they have someone around they are more comfortable with and can discuss opinions.. I can at that point give and take with both..
Julie,
Interesting approach. It sounds like you do your best to understand who the influencers are when it comes to the student's situation. Based on your experience working with students, how would you respond to a student who clearly has no one in their life supporting the idea of going back to school?
Shannon Gormley
I view the buying committee as those who are in support or in some cases, not in support of the prospect. The buying committee can very easily persuade to prospect to go one way or the other. I ask each prospect who is supporting their decision to go back to school. I can tell how likely they are to enroll based on that answer. I let the prospect know that they can bring family members or spouses with them when they come to visit. The buying committee can make or break the decision to enroll.
Nanette,
Great observations regarding the buy-in committee. It can be extremely beneficial to include them as soon as possible when you begin to develop your relationship with the student. It sounds like you try to get the support system involved during that initial phone call. What are some of the other things that you do to engage the buy-in committee early on?
Typically the Buy -In Committee is a spouse, child or parent. It is important to ensure that the support of significant others is important and when appropriate including them in the initial information gathering process via phone meeting is important in helping the prospect come to a decision they may feel confident about. Using the proper supportive techniques to ensure the Buy-In Committee is comfortable and also providing the needed answers to the prospective student's questions and concerns will typically lead to a satisfactory result.
Buying committee would most likely be the spouse, or possibly parents if the student is younger.
I don't think we can ask outright "are you married?" but if they volunteer information we can ask if their spouse is supportive of them attending school and why or why not?
If not we can offer to speak with their spouse. I have never done this but sometimes I think it might make the difference if a prospect's husband or wife is unsure of the school or the process. The bottom line is that a married person needs their spouse on board if they are going to take on something as challenging as a Bachelor's or Master's degree.
Often, the spouse or the parent is part of the buying committee. Knowing your buying committee is important, especially when their is a red flag or hesitation.
Buying committees in online sales with Adult Education are usually the spouse. A lot of times the reason for a potential student not applying on the initial call is because they say they "need to run it by my spouse." I think that if somebody does address this, you can do a couple of things in order to help engage the buying party. First, you can ask if the spouse is home and see if you can't get them on the phone. Secondly, don't wait until the student brings up the objection, but instead ask a question early in the conversation to help identify the buying committee and get them involved early, such as "Who is helping you make this decision?" or "Who have you been talking to about wanting to go back to school?" I think that by getting them involved in the process early, you can help the buying committee feel like they are part of the whole process, and not just the approval of the decision at the end.
Working online we must assume there is someone with our prospect face to face. This can be family (i.e. spouses) or friends.
Clues to who they are can come up in the probing questions. If not the question can be asked "what do your friends and family think of you going back to school?"
The benefit of finding that out is to tag onto their supportiveness, or give the prospect some support if they need some. If friends and family are against the idea, providing the prospect some helpful "talking points" can support them after the phone conversation is over.
Buying comittee is not obvious in online enrollment. It may include a spouse or even children. It is important to ask "how does your family feel about you taking classes?" It could also be an elderly parent a student is caring for in their home. Taking classes could take time away from the elderly parent and guilt may set in. Ultimatley, a green light must exist for the prospect in all areas of life or non comitment, failure or withdrawal may prevail.
I think it's very similar with online sales and enrollment as it is for those in the field. I believe the call to action instead of being a face-to-face interview is to not only have them apply but also to have them review the information that is sent their way with their family members or people in their lives involved with the decision making.
The people that surround another person in their day-to-day lives and decisions are the buying committe to me.
I would engage them by asking questions about who those people are first and some concerns those people might have. I currently do not do this for fear of being to intrusive. But I will now.
Yes it would fully benefit doing so.
