University Generates $3.1 Million with 1-Day Chatbot Campaign

The Brand

Leeds Beckett is a public university in England that was founded almost 200 years ago. Its mission is to create “enterprising leaders” who are “ready to seize the opportunities that lie ahead.”

The Problem

Clearing Day is an annual process in the United Kingdom that affects rejected university applicants. It helps universities grow their enrollment by offering empty course seats to these individuals.

The university’s goal of launching a chat experience was to reduce its high call volume on Clearing Day. This would help Leeds Beckett automate the clearing process, which is normally conducted over the phone.

The Solution

Becky (the bot’s persona) guides users through the clearing process and makes a course offer in real-time based on qualifying questions. “How many UCAS points do you have?” and “What subject are you interested in?” are a few questions that Becky will ask users. Individuals who qualify can accept the university’s offer directly within Messenger.

Now the admissions staff can spend their time finalizing the offer and paperwork instead of manually qualifying hundreds of applicants. No human resources are wasted on those who do not meet the requirements.

The Results

Leeds Beckett generated $3.1 million in new enrollments from the 1-day chatbot campaign. Promotion was entirely organic.

“Chatfuel seemed like the most straightforward platform with the most flexibility, without requiring us to invest a huge amount of money.”

— Dougal Scaife, Head of Digital Experience

89 of the 191 students who completed the clearing process accepted the offer, resulting in a 46% conversion rate on Messenger. Compared to phone support, Leeds Beckett nearly doubled their conversion rate using Chatfuel.

The Recipe

Send Email Plugin: emails admissions staff when a new lead is qualified

User Attributes: segments users & saves their contact information

Live Chat: connects users to a human if the bot doesn’t understand them

“The bot does the heavylifting to answer lots of people’s questions, but you also need human intervention to rescue people who ask more complex questions.”

— Dougal Scaife, Head of Digital Experience

Customer Chat Plugin: converts site visitors into Messenger subscribers

JSON API: hooks into course database to fetch/update information (e.g. seats remaining)

Credit: Chatfuel