Why has StudentLink been so successful for Goodenough college?
We spoke with Dan, Software Manager from Goodenough College, and he gave us an insight into what made the original StudentLink app such a success, and why they wanted to opt for StudentLink+
The original StudentLink app had excellent uptake, with well over half of all the Goodenough College Members downloading and using it. Goodenough College consistently received positive feedback about the website and the app. By adopting StudentLink+, Goodenough College has seen the benefits of greater brand recognition through both the iOS and Google Play stores.
It is easier for their Members to find their app, rather than search for a generic “StudentLink” app and have the additional step of specifying their institution. The new StudentLink+ app helps ensure users can easily find Goodenough College to be confident that users are accessing their content and not third-party apps. This is particularly important when most of their Members study at nearby London Universities, and several of their Students’ Unions already use MSL and the StudentLink app!
At Goodenough College, Members come from a wide range of nationalities across the Commonwealth and the world, and part of their mission is to create a strong sense of community, both online and offline. The app has encouraged this by creating an easy and streamlined way of signing up for clubs and activities, which, in turn, motivates the Members to participate and get involved in activities with other like-minded Members. Moreover, features such as single sign-on and making the app accessible via every device are key benefits when encouraging participation from people of all backgrounds.
Dan has found that voter turnout, ticket sales, member engagement through actively joining clubs and societies have increased markedly since Goodenough College rolled out the app - It is also much easier for their Members to pick up news stories and events ‘on the go’ with the app.
Promoting mobile engagement to the student community
How did Goodenough College promote their original Student App and how they plan to promote the new StudentLink+?
While promoting their new Studentlink app, Goodenough College found that using a ‘get the app!’ icon/logo has helped StudentLink+ takeup, along with other techniques such as:
- Campaign - campaigning to promote StudentLink+ at the beginning of term time when students are more likely to engage and keen to join clubs and societies or buy tickets
- Advertise - advertising StudentLink+ next to the social media icons and have them rotating/animated to draw attention on the main page.
- Emails - sending out targeted emails has also proven beneficial for app uptake.
- Events & Activities - It is worth putting in the effort to actively promote the app, meaning greater membership engagement, more participation in events and activities and the best digital student experience!
StudentLink has encouraged participation by creating an easy and streamlined way of signing up for clubs and activities, which, in turn, motivates the students to participate and get involved in activities with other like-minded students. - Dan Abbott, Software Manager at Goodenough College
Great content means great feedback for Goodenough College
When we spoke to Dan, he explained that easy-to-update content is a feature he likes in particular;
It is refreshing to use a system where all sections on the website can be updated easily and intuitively. I have complete control over the menu items in the app. Additionally, I can specify the order of items on the homepage, and choose which news stories or events to promote, by dragging them up and down in the AJAX control, and entering a news story or event ID. This ensures consistent messaging across the main website and the app. - Dan Abbott, Software Manager at Goodenough College.
The college has consistently received excellent feedback about the website and the app, in particular, Dan has received a lot of great feedback from ‘dark mode’ on the app. He explained that the dark mode reduces eyestrain. Events can now be synchronised with electronic calendars like Google Calendar, ensuring that Goodenough College Members do not miss events.