Why 360° Virtual Campus tours are a must have for Schools & Colleges?

It is admissions season again for schools and the competition is cut throat to say the least. An interesting and shocking article we recently came across points that in Hyderabad city, the number of school seats is a staggering 16 lakh but there are only 9 lakh school going children. That’s a whopping 43% excess!  No wonder schools are starting their marketing campaigns right from November-December though the academic year actually starts in April.

Why am I saying all this? One, schools are no longer in a comfort zone. Even leading chain of schools are finding it difficult to fill their full capacity. Two, schools no longer have USPs which they had few years back. USPs like digital classrooms, balanced learning, security, etc. There are thousands of companies who are selling these services in bits and pieces. So most of these fancy services are now outsourced and have become more of necessities. Three, marketing today is no more a 2 or 3 months process but spread all along the year. Schools have to sweat more to reach out to their prospective parents and win their trust.

There are some positives in the way parents are looking out for schools. Distance between the school and residence is no longer a top priority. Parents are willing to send their kids to farther schools if they meet their criteria. Parents are researching thoroughly online, referring to forums, checking out the school websites, taking peer reviews, referring to ratings, etc.

Strengthening online presence and judiciously investing on online assets can go a long way in brand building and will have a lasting benefit for the school. School virtual tours are one such asset which can help schools and campuses build their online reputation.

Here are some of the main reasons why we feel Virtual Campus tours are a must have for every school or college.

  1. Campuses are mostly away from the city and parents may not be able to visit all campuses when they are evaluating schools. Having a Virtual Campus Tour on the website would help convince them to take a closer look by visiting the campus.
  2. There are cases where only one of the parent visits the campus and takes the decision. Having a Virtual Campus Tour allows both parents to explore the campus from home or office.
  3. Even when the parent visits the campus, the admission counselor or marketing incharge has a very small time window where he/she has to educate the parent about many things like teaching methodology of the school, its achievements, fees structure, safety & security, etc.
  4. Also at times there maybe no dedicated marketing resource when the principal/admin/etc has to take up this additional responsibility. The Virtual Campus Tour can be given to the parent on a CD as a takeaway along with other marketing collateral so that a parent can take a better look at their convenience.
  5. Even if your campus already has photographs and videos, a Virtual Campus Tour serves a different purpose and does it very effectively. It allows the parents to experience & visualize the best aspects of your campus in a breeze. It is like a curated showcase which delivers maximum information at a quick glance.
  6. If you are reaching out to parents outside your parent state or overseas, a Virtual Campus Tour is a must have.

Where all can the Virtual Campus Tours be deployed? – On your school website, on Social media pages, offline at your reception desk, can be distributed offline on a CD/DVD, can be used on Tablets/Smartphones, use offline along with presentations at Educational fairs.

Let us know what you think? If you are interested in a virtual tour for your campus, feel free to Contact us here.

Panorama of the month – January 2015 – Hyderabad city virtual tour

Walk the streets of hyderabad with one of our all time favourite panoramas in the Hyderabad city virtual tour series. This one has garnered more than 1 lac views on Google Maps and more on 360Cities where it was chosen as an Editor’s pick.

A 360° panorama is best suited in a situation where there is action all around. Unlike traditional photos where the focus is on a smaller subject. This panorama we shot at the towering Charminar is a location which is buzzing with crowds throughout the year as evident in the panorama. Being a must visit tourist location in Hyderabad, this also seems to be a highly searched spot online!

Hope you liked it! We will keep coming up with more beautiful panoramas other than our commercial shoots. Share your views or suggest where you wish to see the next panorama! Cya next month.