In short
A creative school recruits from 64 countries with a small international team.
Prospects met abroad had gone quiet in the CRM.
Skolbot connected WhatsApp Activate to contact them at their local time, in their language, then point them to an admissions webinar.
The result: 30 sign-ups from 200 prospects re-engaged.
Every new international prospect is now activated automatically.
Recruitment fair contacts gone quiet
Skolbot’s WhatsApp Activate brought 30 admissions webinar sign-ups from 200 international prospects the creative school had written off. The school recruits from 64 countries. Its small international team travels to student fairs abroad, notably in Asia.
The meetings had sparked interest, then the conversations stopped. The contacts sat in the CRM without moving towards an application. The school needed to restart the conversation at a time when each prospect could actually reply.
The distance starts before the application
Time zones, language and the contact channel made it hard to restart the conversation.
Hours out of step
A working day in Paris can fall in the middle of the applicant’s night. A message sent on the school’s schedule arrives at the wrong time.
The applicant’s language
Questions about programmes, visas or the application need answers that are easy to understand. The conversation has to follow the prospect’s language.
A channel they rarely check
In many of these countries, prospects rarely read their email. WhatsApp is part of their daily life.
Get back in touch and offer the right next step
Skolbot connected WhatsApp Activate to the CRM to adapt the contact to each prospect and guide them to the webinar.
- 01
Write during the local day.
The phone country code is used to infer the prospect’s time zone. The first message arrives during their day and clearly introduces the school’s AI assistant.
- 02
Reply in the chosen language.
An applicant in Mumbai, met at a fair months earlier and silent since, receives the message at 10am her time rather than 3am. She asks whether the Bachelor is taught in English. The agent replies within seconds and books her a place at the webinar.
- 03
Pick the next useful action.
The agent answers at any hour from approved content on programmes, campus, visas and applications. Depending on the calendar and the student’s plans, it offers a webinar, a campus visit, an application or an interview.
- 04
Keep a record and limit follow-ups.
Every conversation and its summary go back to the CRM. If there is no reply, WhatsApp Activate sends one follow-up after 72 hours, then stops.
The webinar revives international plans
signed up for the admissions webinar
- 200
WhatsApp messages sent
- 180
Messages opened90%
- 120
Replies67%
- 30
Webinar sign-ups25%
Webinar sign-ups within 3 days of the first message. Percentages relative to the previous step.
Of 200 prospects re-engaged, 30 signed up for the admissions webinar. The school had considered these contacts lost. The WhatsApp conversation gave them a concrete next step.
Since this campaign, WhatsApp Activate automatically contacts every new international prospect. The team finds the conversations and their summaries in the CRM. It can pick up the relationship knowing which questions have already been answered.
“After the fairs, a lot of our prospects stopped answering our follow-ups. Thanks to Skolbot, we were able to restart the conversation on WhatsApp, in their language and at the right time. Applicants we thought we had lost ended up signing up for our webinars.”
Frequently asked questions
How do you re-engage international prospects who no longer reply to email?
A creative school re-engaged them on WhatsApp with Skolbot’s WhatsApp Activate, writing during their day and in their language. The agent contacted the silent prospects in the school’s CRM. The campaign brought 30 admissions webinar sign-ups from 200 prospects re-engaged.
How do you time WhatsApp messages to applicants’ time zones?
WhatsApp Activate infers the time zone from the prospect’s phone country code. The first message is scheduled during their local day. At a creative school using Skolbot, an applicant in Mumbai received the message at 10am her time rather than in the middle of the night.
Can an AI agent answer international applicants in their own language?
Yes: WhatsApp Activate replies at any hour in the applicant’s language, from content approved by the school. Answers cover programmes, campus, visas and applications. From the first message, the agent clearly introduces itself as the school’s AI assistant.
How do you move an international prospect to the next admissions step?
WhatsApp Activate chooses the next action based on the applicant’s plans and the school’s calendar. In a creative school’s campaign, the agent offered the admissions webinar and recorded each sign-up. Depending on the time of year, it can offer a campus visit, an application or an interview.
How many WhatsApp follow-ups should you send an applicant who does not reply?
At a creative school using Skolbot, WhatsApp Activate sends a single follow-up after 72 hours without a reply, then stops messaging. The conversations and their summaries go back to the CRM. The admissions team keeps the context of every conversation with international prospects.