Higher education marketing strategies powering Ancora Education’s enrollment transformation
THE EPIC WIN
Level Agency helped Ancora Education rebuild admissions efficiency and improve profitability with higher education marketing strategies powered by SEO, AI, and sharper creative.
THE CHALLENGE
Ancora Education set an ambitious goal: to grow enrollments, improve profitability per student, and build a more sustainable marketing engine.
Admissions teams were spending significant time on low-fit prospects, profitability per student was under pressure, and brand authority needed to be strengthened across markets.
Ancora partnered with Level Agency to reimagine how marketing investment could deliver higher-quality leads, streamline admissions workflows, and create a foundation for long-term growth across its portfolio of schools, including Automotive Training Institute (AAI), South Texas Vo-Tech Institute (STVT), Berks Technical Institute (BTI), and Miller-Motte College.
THE ANALYSIS
A deep review of Ancora’s media mix, enrollment funnel, and performance data revealed several key findings:
- Organic visibility had declined while paid search costs continued to rise, signaling the need for a stronger SEO foundation to capture more high-intent traffic.
- PPL was driving low-fit leads. Pay-per-lead (PPL) campaigns played an important role in Ancora’s media mix by driving inquiries quickly and at scale. As enrollment dynamics shifted, long-term growth would depend on prioritizing lead quality over raw volume.
- Upper-funnel media was underfunded. CTV, OOT, DOOH, and streaming audio channels had been underfunded, leaving room to strengthen visibility and engagement earlier in the student journey.
- Owned channels needed to expand their impact. To phase out PPL, other channels (including search, social, and organic) would need to work harder to sustain inquiry volume while improving overall quality.
Focusing investment on channels Ancora could control and continuously improve would strengthen lead quality, brand authority, and enrollment outcomes.
THE INSIGHT
One insight shaped everything that followed: lead quality drives sustainable growth.
The data showed that investing in brand awareness and SEO early in the student journey would attract more qualified prospects and increase the effectiveness of admissions efforts.
Miller-Motte College, a brand within Ancora’s portfolio, showed the strength of this approach.
- After shifting entirely to owned channels, total enrollments declined by only 5%, showing that internal channels could sustain volume while creating a more stable and efficient enrollment engine.
- Because no major changes were made to programs or offerings during this time, this outcome reflected the direct impact of the marketing strategy.
THE STRATEGY
With this insight in place, Level Agency and Ancora partnered on a media strategy built for efficiency, quality, and long-term growth.
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Reduce reliance on PPL to improve lead quality
Spend on PPL campaigns was reduced to prioritize channels that deliver higher-quality prospects and lead to stronger enrollment outcomes. This change built a more reliable pipeline and helped connect programs with students who are more likely to enroll and succeed.
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Focus investment on owned, optimizable channels
Budget was redirected into SEO, paid search, and paid social — channels that could be measured, improved, and scaled over time.
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Strengthen brand visibility and authority
Content strategies were designed to reach students earlier in their decision process. SEO-focused blog and FAQ content improved visibility around high-intent searches. Brand campaigns across social platforms, streaming video, and YouTube increased reach and built trust.
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Optimize the full enrollment funnel
Creative, landing pages, and bid strategies were updated to improve performance. Campaign structures were rebuilt around student behavior, and more budget was allocated to upper-funnel activity to improve lead quality before students entered the admissions process.
A new measurement framework connected awareness investment directly to enrollments, ensuring decisions stayed tied to business goals.
THE RESULTS
Results followed across each brand:
- AAI increased non-PPL enrollments by 36% while reducing spend by 38%. Organic enrollments grew 40%, and brand enrollments rose 39%.
- STVT grew enrollments from owned channels by 54% and increased non-brand search enrollments by 63%.
- BTI increased owned-channel enrollments by 22% and organic enrollments by 49%, while social enrollments tripled.
- Miller Motte College grew non-brand enrollments by 86% with 14% less spend, achieved a 49% lift in search enrollments with just 6% additional spend, and increased social enrollments by 120%.
The transformation was significant across Ancora’s portfolio
- Efficiency gains: Admissions teams reported spending more time with qualified students. One advisor described a “full culture shift” in the call center, with higher job satisfaction as lead quality improved.
- Profitability per student: Stronger lead quality and lower acquisition costs increased profitability without additional budget.
- Brand authority: Consistent messaging and improved SEO visibility strengthened Ancora’s presence in competitive markets.
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