Developing Clermont School of Business’ in-house lead generation strategy

The challenge

The international recruitment department at Clermont School of Business consists of a small but ambitious team. Due to its limited resources, the team was struggling to meet its own ambitions for lead generation volume and effective follow-up. Therefore, the team required support to scale their lead collection and nurturing, without creating more work for themselves. 

As Mohamed Elzayadi, International Recruitment Manager at Clermont School of Business, explained it:

“We lost some context because we were not proactive enough. We were not following up. We weren’t squeezing every lead that came in.”

In addition to this, Clermont School of Business was looking for a personalised approach to their recruitment. The team recognised that each prospective global student has different needs and interests but may not know where to begin their search. As such, the school wanted to provide prospects with various opportunities to learn more about the school’s offerings, find the right programme, and make a decision to apply and enrol. Mohamed explains, 

“We receive students who are not sure which program to apply to. It’s common practice that they choose by title [without exploring the programme further].”

The solution

In December 2024, Clermont School of Business launched HoEd’s Advisor “Which degree from Clermont School of Business is right for you?” on their website. This Advisor showcased the school’s full range of English programmes, and offered tailored programme recommendations based on each user’s profile. It also provided data-rich insights into the school’s prospects, and secured their contact details for follow-up and nurturing. Mohamed echoes the efficiency of the tool by saying,

“Users can visit the website and engage on their own – because maybe chatting to someone feels too commercial – whereas with the Advisor it's more like we can give them personal advice without the chat.”

Clermont School of Business also commissioned HoEd to create a series of automated emails, sent to prospects after they complete the Advisor. The emails are customised using data gathered through the Advisor, and are timed to nurture each lead over several days. The messages reinforce the individual’s programme match, showcase how Clermont School of Business aligns with their ambitions and interests, and provide them with information on how to continue their journey towards application and enrollment. This tailored approach delivers the personalised experience the school was aiming for, and positions Clermont School of Business as the ideal fit for each prospect.

The emails are also designed to provide prospects with actionable CTAs, offering direct WhatsApp contact with recruitment managers, brochure downloads, application links, and localised student ambassador information from their own region. As a result, Clermont School of Business can foster a closer relationship with its prospects, and continue to guide them along a clear user journey, without requiring additional staff resources.

Mohamed sums up the approach as follows:

“Before, there were some students that came to the website and left without giving us their contact details. And even though some did fill out the inquiry form, it was a less attractive option because they didn’t get anything in return. Whereas now, they get a recommendation on what to study.”

The success of the partnership

The launch of the Advisor occurred during a rebranding of Clermont School of Business, and House of Education was highly adaptive in aligning the Advisor to the new branding guidelines. Mohamed recalls the collaborative nature of the project by saying,

“Every time we had a question or concern, the House of Education team was responsive and reassuring. The technical setup was smooth, even during our rebranding.”

He also highlighted the support in optimising email performance through a quarterly review that assessed performance data:

“When we did the quarterly review, it was great to see what was working, as well as square out whatever was not working and improve on it.”

The results

The Advisor became a meaningful, top-of-funnel entry point, replacing passive inquiry forms with an engaging, interactive and (most importantly) helpful user experience that was not hindered by limited staff resources. 

Moreover, leads from the Advisor were automatically nurtured with personalised emails that also guided prospects onwards to the next steps of their journey through effective CTAs. These CTAs have seen a great response rate, with Mohamed admitting, 

 “I'm having a hard time responding to all the Whatsapp messages from users since the Advisor’s implementation.”

After only 3 months, the results from the partnership show a strong ROI:

• 300 inquiries
• 10 applications 
• 3 enrollments

The emails also boast an opening rate between 63-73%. In fact, the results have been so positive that Clermont School of Business has now implemented an email automation strategy for the leads generated from the website’s inquiry forms. Following a similar flow to the Advisor emails, these emails urge them to reach out to the recruitment team through strategic CTAs.

Looking ahead

In the future, Clermont School of Business intends on integrating the Advisor into their HubSpot CRM, and is considering running ad campaigns using the Advisor. Mohamed is excited about continuing this journey with House of Education as a strategic lead generation and conversion partner. At House of Education, we can’t wait to see what else this collaboration may bring!