Search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the most powerful ways to reach prospective families. Organic search ranking is heavily influenced by user behavior data. For this reason, you have to understand your audience so you know how to optimize your content and get your school found on the search engine results page (SERP).
Who Are Millennial Parents?
Millennials are people born between 1981 to 1996s, making them between 26 and 41 years old. There are more than 22 million millennial parents in the U.S. This growing cohort of parents is driving the digital market forward. They are the most important demographic factor today, especially when it comes to being mobile usage. About 85 percent of the millennial generation own a mobile phone.
Why Use SEO to Reach Millennials?
Millennials were the first web-surfing generation. They rely heavily on search queries to find what they’re looking for. As a matter of fact, 90 percent of millennial online experiences start with a Google search. This makes millennials an incredible audience to tap into using SEO.
Millennials have helped shape a culture where everyone is expected to be online all the time. With a smartphone and a social network always at hand, they’re charting a course through parenthood different than any other generation.
Millennials rely on keyword searches to find exactly what they want; targeting SEO to this highly diverse group makes sense for school marketers.
What’s different about millennials compared to previous generations? It’s their knowledge and frequent use of anything digital that sets them apart from older generations. If a school doesn’t have a robust online presence, it may as well not exist for millennials. This is why understanding millennial parents is critical for school marketers.
Millennial Search Behaviors
There are some common characteristics of millennials that have an impact on the use of SEO. In general, millennials:
- Use concise, keyword-driven queries
- Are more likely to consider a high-ranking website as credible and trustworthy
- Often use mobile devices, namely smartphones, to access online content
- Prefer aesthetically pleasing websites
- Use email frequently
- Spend time using social media
- Often search for video content
How Search Behavior is Changing
Searching for information, products, and answers to questions has changed. The biggest change is smartphones, tablets, and voice search make it possible for people to search whenever and wherever they are. This means they can search for whatever they’re thinking about at any time, no matter where they are.
Plus, people don’t use only one type of search. Sometimes, people will type a query into the search bar. Other times, they will use voice search through Siri, Google Assistant or Alexa. No matter how people are searching, your school needs a search strategy that covers all the bases.
SEO is part of an environment that’s dynamic and fast-flowing. It’s difficult to predict which direction it will move in over the next few years. But targeted marketing services are sure to continue their relentless advance. Schools will be able to leverage granular data, including time spent on pages, search engine users’ search histories, and bounce rates. To a large extent, we’ve already seen this transformation.
In order to build a strategy around the ever-changing world of search, schools must focus on being mobile-friendly, understand their target audience, and understand how SEO works.
How to Use SEO to Market to Millennials
SEO is greatly important to millennials, as they rely heavily on search engine results to find what they’re looking for. They rely on technology and are a tech-first generation.
Millennials use social media and email more than previous generations. They are the first generation to use mobile phones to browse the internet and enjoy video content.
To market to millennials, you need an omni-channel digital marketing strategy that ties together various content types.
- Create share-worthy videos
- Send marketing emails
- Build your social media presence
- Make sure to optimize your website for mobile
When it comes to introducing your school’s programs to new demographics, SEO is the best way to increase your visibility. Plus, search engine users are far more likely than social media users to submit an inquiry.
Create an Inclusive SEO Strategy
Creating an inclusive SEO strategy is not easy, but is manageable with the right help. Ultimately, you need to stay up with the times and pay attention to what millennial parents want. They are, after all, the future and the ones who use technology the most. That said, high-quality content appeals to all ages and will work wonders for your organic SEO. If you need assistance targeting a tech-savvy generation like millennials, SEO coach can help!
Is your school targeting millennials using SEO? What is one tactic you’re using to target millennial parents? Please share in the comments below…
