5 Shifts in Higher Ed Marketing We Can’t Ignore

This year’s UPCEA MEMS conference left me feeling both energized and humbled.

First off, for those unfamiliar, UPCEA MEMS (MEMS = Marketing, Enrollment Management, and Student Success) is a national conference that brings together higher education leaders to share strategies, research, and innovations for attracting and supporting adult, graduate, and online students – exactly the kinds of students we at Town Hall specialize in marketing to.

I’m energized because the creativity and resilience across higher education marketing is profound. Humbled because there was a quiet truth woven through nearly every session: this work is harder than it’s ever been – and the stakes feel higher for everyone in the room.
Graduate and online programs are being asked to grow enrollment while budgets shrink. To innovate while stabilizing. To adopt new technologies without losing humanity. And to guide students through a decision-making journey that’s changing faster than any of us can comfortably keep up with.

Here are five reflections that stayed with me.

The budget pressure is real. It showed up in nearly every conversation – not as a complaint, but as an uncomfortable truth. Teams are making thoughtful choices about what really serves students and what truly moves outcomes. There’s an emerging honesty around focus: we can’t do everything, but we can do what matters.

So many institutions are asking whether bringing marketing in-house creates better results. For most it’s not about cost savings – it’s about stewardship. Schools want deeper ownership of their marketing efforts. For agencies like us at Town Hall, this reframes our role. We aren’t simply “doers of media” filling capacity gaps; we’re strategic partners who help institutions build clarity, capability, and confidence. When clients step more fully into ownership, the most effective agencies evolve alongside them!

One speaker said it best: we used to design websites for humans, then for search engines, and now for AI. With nearly 75% of education searches triggering AI responses, we’re navigating a “zero-click” world that demands new ways of being visible, credible, and useful without always earning the visit. This change asks for courage – the courage to let go of metrics we’ve relied on for years and move toward new signals of impact.

The most inspiring uses of AI weren’t about speed alone. They were about personalization. Videos greeting prospects by name. Data synthesis that helps counselors reach students when they need support most.

AI doesn’t replace the human connection. When done well, it amplifies it.

What modern adult learners care most about isn’t modality (i.e., online or on-ground) – it’s meaning. Outcomes. Affordability. Flexibility. Time to completion. They’re asking: Can this program fit into my life and move me toward the future I want?

Institutions responding well are humanizing the journey — through program comparison tools, quizzes, strategic storytelling, and other tools that meet students where they are, not where we wish they were.

This conference reminded me that higher education marketing isn’t about campaigns anymore – it’s about relationships built at scale.

Our challenge is not just adopting tools or optimizing spend. It’s staying brave enough to hold technology and humanity together in the same space – to tell better stories, make smarter decisions, and remember that behind every click, citation, and inquiry is a person hoping for a future that feels possible.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on all this – schedule a call with us!