Email & SMS Marketing
Personalized, timely, and measurable—email and SMS keep your institution connected with those who matter most.
Segment communications by program, lifecycle stage, or engagement history to send targeted messages that drive action.
Nurture inquiry to application with automated journeys, reminders, and real-time follow-up—built for the cadence of higher ed decision-making.
Deliver relevant updates, prompts, and invitations that strengthen relationships and reinforce the value of staying connected.
Automate repetitive tasks like confirmations, deadlines, and event outreach—so staff can focus on strategy, not manual follow-up.
Discover your potential in days, not months.
Need to move fast? Consider potent consulting. We can help research a critical issue, uncover quick wins, and provide a fresh perspective to help you get unstuck fast.
These short engagements range from a day to a couple of weeks and are led by our founder. You can expect a burst of ideas and insights, tailored to your needs.
How We Help Colleges Execute Email & SMS Marketing
Map out multi-touch campaigns for recruitment, orientation, retention, alumni engagement, or giving—based on audience behavior and goals.
Organize contacts by stage, interest, or affiliation; clean lists regularly to improve deliverability and response rates.
Craft subject lines, body copy, and visual layouts that connect with higher-ed audiences while reflecting your institution’s brand and voice.
Design mobile-optimized, branded email templates that render correctly across all devices and inboxes.
Plan and execute short-form, time-sensitive text campaigns for deadlines, events, yield nudges, or fundraising appeals.
Build custom workflows to send messages based on user triggers, such as form fills, page views, attendance, or inactivity.
Promote open houses, info sessions, reunions, or donor galas with RSVP tools, reminders, and follow-ups.
Send timely prompts around deadlines, missing documents, or next steps to keep prospective students moving forward.
Deliver helpful reminders about advising, registration, financial aid, and campus life events to improve retention.
Create urgency and momentum with well-timed email and SMS sequences that drive donor participation.
Connect with HubSpot, Salesforce, Constant Contact, or Mailchimp to sync data, automate actions, and report outcomes.
Respect user preferences and stay compliant with email and SMS laws, including opt-outs, consent, and frequency controls.
Track open rates, click rates, conversions, and unsubscribes—then adjust content and cadence for better results.
Test variations in copy, imagery, timing, and calls-to-action to maximize engagement over time.
Support timely campus-wide outreach with branded templates for leadership updates, safety messages, or emergency info.
Build automated series for new students, accepted applicants, or alumni donors to establish early and lasting connection.
Why Choose Potent?
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Experience.
We’ve been helping higher ed clients since 2001. In that time, we’ve enabled colleges to leverage the Web, adopt Social Media, and navigate AI.
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Reliability.
We keep our promises. When you ask us to do something, you know it’s getting done.
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Results.
We know how to get the most from your budget, regardless of size.
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Team.
We have an exceptional team of professionals who wake up ready to solve your toughest problems.
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Transparency.
We will always give it to you straight, from strategic recommendations to performance reporting.
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Longevity.
We’re here to stay. We’ve been serving some clients for over two decades.
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Exclusivity.
When you work with us, we’re not working with your competitors.
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Curious.
We approach every new client with a fresh perspective, ready to dive into the details and imagine your greatest possibilities.
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Attention.
We are not a volume agency. We invest our time in a small roster of clients whom we believe are ready to grow.
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Partnership.
Like our parent company, Partners Marketing Group, we’re committed to building trusted relationships.
Case Study
Unlocking the Potential of a Historic Brand Marching to Their Own Drum
Learn how this historic institution reversed enrollment decline through digital strategy, upgraded web experiences, and automation—driving growth, reducing costs, and renewing the brand.
Case Study
Science + SEO: A Powerful Reaction
Emory’s Pharmacology graduate degree program had the research credentials, but not the national visibility. Learn how targeted digital marketing helped them reach elite applicants across the country.
Case Study
Growing a Corporate Training Brand
See how our enrollment marketing program helped a leading Project Management training organization turn flagging sales into an 800% increase in revenue.
Frequently Asked Questions
It depends on the stage and audience. Early-stage prospects might receive 1–2 emails per week, while accepted students or event registrants may benefit from more frequent nudges. For SMS, timing and restraint matter—typically no more than 1–2 messages per week unless it’s deadline-driven.
Pricing depends on the scale and complexity of your campaigns. Project-based work (like a Giving Day sequence or yield campaign) may start around $5,000, while ongoing campaign support or platform management is typically structured as a monthly retainer. Most email and SMS delivery platforms (like HubSpot, MailChimp or Constant Contact) charge on a per-subscriber basis.
That’s a common challenge. We help you develop a shared communication calendar, streamline messaging across teams, and implement governance to avoid overlapping sends or mixed signals. Better coordination = better engagement.
Cleaning, segmenting, and revalidating contact lists is often the first step. We’ll assess what you have, remove bounces or duplicates, and build segments based on behavior, affiliation, or funnel stage. You don’t need perfection to begin—you just need a plan.
No. Many colleges purchase lists for direct mail campaigns, but you should avoid this for email or SMS campaigns for several reasons: it’s unethical (and in some cases illegal) to spam email addresses or phone numbers with unsolicited messages; second, it’s difficult to bypass spam filters with rented or purchased list data; and third, it’s nearly impossible to get a healthy response rate. Do you really want spam to be their first impression of you?
List-building starts with value and visibility. We help you create opt-in forms, landing pages, and calls-to-action across your website, events, and application flows. Whether it’s inquiry forms, event registrations, content downloads, or lead magnets, the key is making it easy (and worthwhile) for users to raise their hand.
Yes—when messages are timely, relevant, and opt-in only. We help you craft short, respectful messages with clear calls-to-action and manage preferences to avoid fatigue or unsubscribes.
We implement authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), optimize send domains, and follow deliverability best practices. We also maintain list hygiene and use tools to monitor inbox placement.
Yes. We work in tools like HubSpot, Mailchimp, Salesforce, Constant Contact, and others—adapting to your systems and permissions so you don’t have to start over.
Absolutely. We develop subject lines, body copy, SMS messages, and visual layouts that align with your brand voice and audience expectations.
A campaign is a one-time push (like a Giving Day or event invite). A workflow is a triggered sequence based on user behavior, like a series of follow-ups after a form submission or application start.
We help you stay compliant with CAN-SPAM, TCPA, and GDPR standards—ensuring opt-in collection, clear unsubscribe options, and responsible list management.
Email open rates in higher ed typically range from 25–40%, with SMS engagement often exceeding 70%. Conversion depends on your offer, timing, and audience—but we continually optimize to improve results.
Yes—we can provide documentation, onboarding, and live training sessions to help your team manage future campaigns independently.
For most clients, we can launch basic campaigns within 2–4 weeks. More complex automations or data integrations may take longer, depending on system access and segmentation needs.
Let’s Talk
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