Week 4 - MKTG 348 - Keywords Potential Students May Use to Learn About Benedictine University

Keywords to consider:

• Benedictine Marketing Major
• Benedictine Majors
• Colleges Near Naperville, IL
• Requirements to Transfer to Benedictine
• Colleges Near Chicago

If potential students are interested in marketing, how may they find out about Benedictine University? They may get online and search Google. What would they search? How can Benedictine show up in the top results? If a student knew about Benedictine, they could use a brand search with “Benedictine marketing major.” The undergraduate marketing website was the first result after a few ads. This link would take the searcher directly to the page where they can learn about the courses required for the major and concentrations they can pursue. For a student who knows about Benedictine but does not know the majors offered, they could search “Benedictine majors.” With that keyword, the degree programs page is the first link to show up.

Another keyword someone might use to find Benedictine University is by searching for colleges near them. I tried “colleges near Naperville, IL.” The first one to show up was North Central College. This did not surprise me because NCC is located in Naperville. However, Benedictine showed up in the 5th spot. This could change too based on the city chosen. The city would still have to be close to Benedictine for it to show up, so its rank may vary based on distance.

If a potential transfer student knew of Benedictine, they might search “requirements to transfer to Benedictine.” The second link to show up will give transfer students all the information they would need to know what they have to do to transfer. This would be good for students changing schools, or looking to continue working on their bachelors after completing community college. The last keyword may be used by someone looking for a top college. They may enter “to colleges near Chicago.” at the top of the page, there is a rolling list of the top colleges. If you click the arrow going to the right one time, Benedictine University shows up in the middle of the next page. Clicking on it will change the search box to ‘Benedictine University’ and the page will give links to the university homepage and athletic site.

Week 4 - MKTG 348 - Updating Benedictine University Marketing Major Website

In terms of the Benedictine Marketing Major website, there are some things that look good. However, there are areas where improvements can be made. I believe the overview of the site does a good job at explaining what marketing is and what it is used for. It is a good start to generate student interest in the major at Benedictine.

One way the website can be improved is in the ‘program requirements’ tab. Here, only the classes needed to graduate with a bachelors in marketing is listed. I would like to see some course descriptions. All courses do not necessarily need this, but explaining the major specialization requirements would benefit potential students and the university. A continuing or new college student would want to know what they are getting themselves into, especially if they think they may be interested in marketing. 

MKTG 310 (consumer behavior), MKTG 330 (promotional strategy), MKTG 360 (marketing research) and MKTG 380 (marketing strategy) are the four major specialization requirements. If more information was given on those classes, students would know what each course is all about. The university would also benefit because if they included more information, potential customers (students) would have an idea of what these classes offer and what they can get out of the course. The more information people have when choosing a university, the better the chance that they’ll apply to that college.

The second way the website can be updated is within ‘concentrations’ section. There are many different concentrations that Benedictine University offers within the marketing segment. Some may be similar, and others are vastly different. Concentrations give students the option to focus their study on a specific area other than marketing.

What I would like to see is more information about these concentrations. Students want to know more specifically what these concentrations are about and what type of jobs are available in those areas. These concentrations are not required by the university, but they can give students an edge when looking for jobs. If I knew more about the concentrations offered, I would have completed the digital marketing concentration. However, I am only able to take three of the required four courses before I graduate. Even though I will not get the concentration, I have still required certain skills I can use to network and earned certifications I can put on my resume and LinkedIn profile.