Unibuddy releases community product to promote belonging among prospective students
Unibuddy has announced the launch of the latest addition to its product suite, Unibuddy Community
Global market leader in student engagement Unibuddy has just announced the launch of the latest addition to its product suite, Unibuddy Community.
The product is a group messaging platform designed to provide students with an official, safe space to communicate with other students in their cohort, as well as staff and faculty. Unibuddy Community allows students to form friendships and build affinity for colleges and universities as they progress in their decision-making process.
Unibuddy has an established portfolio of products that encompass all stages of the admissions cycle, from Unibuddy Discover for the initial search phase, to Unibuddy Chat and Unibuddy Events for the application to conversion stages.
Unibuddy Community was a response to the need that the company’s partners expressed for a retention solution. It’s a flexible tool that can be used throughout the cycle, but many of their partners implement it to bring students through the funnel from the acceptance phase onward when students are most thoroughly considering their options. Once students are admitted, they can chat with other admitted students to gain confidence that the institution is the right fit.
The product also provides conversational insights on topics or questions that arise to help institutions proactively tailor their support to improve the student journey.
A Spotify survey found that 62 per cent of Gen Z believe brands have the power to create communities based on common interests and passions. Communities offer brands the opportunity to differentiate themselves, and Unibuddy Community allows universities to do this by bringing together like-minded students. Today’s student cohort values the ability to engage in these spaces, and it increases the likelihood that they will enrol, stay enrolled, and succeed.
Unibuddy Community user Indiana University Bloomington utilised insights from the platform to inform future outreach and better address student concerns. With 83 members in their admitted student “Future Hoosiers 2022 – India” community exchanging hundreds of messages in the lead-up to arriving on campus, Unibuddy Community became a hub to connect and find the information they needed to prepare.
Former IU associate director of international admissions Seth Walker said, “Unibuddy responded to our request for a product that would allow us to unite all of our students through a new medium in a way that encourages a sense of belonging at the right moment in their journey. Student-to-student connections have been a key part of our strategy since we adopted Unibuddy, and now we can put prospective students in conversation with each other to give them a unique and authentic kind of peer support.”
Unibuddy co-founder and CEO Diego Fanara said, “Unibuddy Community helps recruitment, admissions, and marketing teams convert and retain students by fulfilling their basic need for belonging through human connection. Students are making the biggest decision of their lives, so we want to give them that opportunity to feel at home before they even arrive on campus.”
With this launch, Unibuddy continues to increase visibility into the student journey for institutions and furthers its mission to empower every student to make the right choice for their undergraduate experience.
To learn more, visit www.unibuddy.com.
