The Sinorbis WhatsApp Student Acquisition Journey
Today's prospective students expect instant, mobile-first communication, and WhatsApp delivers exactly that. As the world's most popular messaging platform and open rates averaging 98%, WhatsApp has evolved from a nice-to-have into a strategic necessity. Universities that adopt it gain a direct, high-impact channel alongside traditional platforms like Google, email, and social media. While it may feel like new territory, the core enrolment goals remain the same:
- Generate awareness about your institution,
- Nurture your audience and move them through the funnel to application,
- Eventually convert interest into enrolments.
By weaving WhatsApp into your digital strategy, you can turn the funnel into a more personalised, responsive, and high-conversion journey. This framework can act as a guide for how to leverage WhatsApp each stage of the student journey. Let’s break down each stage.
Top of Funnel (ToFu): Building awareness
The first task is to establish a strong, credible presence which often means optimising websites for Google, producing content for Instagram and TikTok, or running paid media campaigns.
WhatsApp-first approach
WhatsApp is strongest at the middle and bottom of the funnel, but it should also shape your top-of-funnel touchpoints and strategy. Traditional awareness channels like social and paid media still matter, now with the added goal of driving traffic to WhatsApp.
- Click to chat: Add links, buttons, or QR codes that connect students directly to WhatsApp. Place them across your website, social channels, and even offline through partners and agents to give prospects an easy way to engage with your institution.
- Click to WhatsApp ads: Paid media across Facebook and Instagram can be used to reach new prospective students with CTAs that open a WhatsApp chat directly.
Middle of Funnel (MoFu): Driving applications
Once awareness has been established, the challenge becomes helping students and parents evaluate the institution in more detail. This is typically can be achieved through emails, drip campaigns and open days. WhatsApp excels here by combining personalisation, speed, and interactivity to drive applications. In regions where email is less common, it can serve as a primary nurturing channel, while in email-heavy markets it adds an extra touchpoint that strengthens your mid funnel strategy.
WhatsApp-first approach
- Publish and send WhatsApp broadcasts and encourage students to send direct message enquiries.
- Engagement workflows: Workflows can trigger tailored follow-ups over time to continuously nurture students.
- Forms and CRM integration: Connecting WhatsApp with a compatible CRM ensures all leads are captured, giving recruitment teams visibility across the entire student pipeline.
GUIDE: WhatsApp for university marketers and recruiters
Download the guide for practical insights to engage and convert more students with WhatsApp.
Bottom of Funnel (BoFu): Converting offers into enrolments
At the final stage, when students are deciding between offers, reassurance and personalised support are paramount. While detailed emails and calls from admissions teams remain important, an omnichannel approach that includes platforms students prefer like WhatsApp can boost results, driving conversion rates up to seven times higher than email alone.
WhatsApp-first approach
- WhatsApp messaging: WhatsApp enables direct one-on-one conversations that provide the reassurance and guidance students need to confidently move from offer to enrolment.
- Targeted content for offer-holders: Create content on localised digital assets such as welcome packs and enrolment guides to support conversion teams to send via WhatsApp broadcasts.
By integrating WhatsApp into the student acquisition journey, universities can seamlessly guide prospects from first awareness to enrolment. Paired with traditional marketing, recruitment, and conversion activities, it strengthens the funnel and supports students all the way to campus arrival.
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