Higher Education Marketing (HEM) is celebrating its 15th anniversary as its milestone this month. Our 15th company anniversary marks our growth as a reliable education marketing partner to schools and educational institutions of all kinds around the world. Join us as we revisit our past, celebrate our accomplishments, and spotlight upcoming developments with CEO and founder Philippe Taza.
Pioneering Digital Marketing in Education
HEM is rooted in the idea of helping schools find new opportunities. It’s how the company started.
In the early 2000s–when nobody knew what a smartphone was and social media did not exist–CEO and founder Philippe Taza started exploring the landscape of digital marketing for the college he worked as Director of Marketing.
“At the time, the college was advertising in newspapers, and people called to inquire about courses and programs,” Taza recalls. “I was looking ahead to try and find ways to bring new opportunities for the college to be visible, and that’s when I saw SEO as an avenue. So I started learning how digital marketing worked at the time [… eventually] the bulk of inquiries were coming from the web.”
This experience prompted Taza to launch HEM and to provide this valuable service to other educational institutions, offering them cutting-edge analytics-driven education marketing solutions.
This screenshot shows HEM’s website back in 2011, highlighting our long-standing commitment to driving education marketing with analytics.
Wondering what HEM can do for your school? Get in touch with our team of education marketing experts to uncover areas for improvement and strengthen your digital marketing strategy!
Connecting Technology, Trends, and Education
The biggest challenge of the newly founded HEM? Delivering results. The solution?
“By constantly monitoring, being at the forefront of new trends, new tools, [and] new things to make sure that our clients get the most out of their investment,” answers Taza.
This allowed HEM to achieve a new company milestone with each of its efforts, pushing it to the frontier of the education marketing industry.
Being on the lookout for new opportunities led Taza to conferences and events.
“They have always been an important channel to identify partnership opportunities and to network, and I like that. I find the people in the sector very human. They want to make sure students succeed. So that resonated well with me,” he shares.
Taza at an education marketing conference, giving a seminar on digital marketing trends for school representatives.
Becoming A Global Expert in Student Recruitment
A key element to the company’s success is its experts. The HEM team knows education inside and out.
“[They] are hardworking, client-focused, and outcome-focused,” Taza explains.
Team members push each other to be better at what they do, which creates an engaging work culture that helps HEM stand out from competitors and makes it easy for the agency to collaborate with clients. The HEM team knows education inside and out, is hardworking, client-focussed, and results-driven.
What also differentiates HEM is that it is a full-service, niche agency.
“We work across all channels—not only Google Ads, but also social ads, organic activity, SEO, content production, [email marketing], and web development.”
HEM has developed its online student recruitment software in line with its vision of providing cutting-edge analytics-driven education marketing solutions, making it a full-service agency that keeps growing.
Case in point? In 2019, HEM’s business focussed on Canada, the UK, Switzerland, and the USA. Since then, the company has provided services to a wide range of institutions in more than 20 countries—marking a milestone as it approaches its 15th company anniversary.
“I’m pleased with our coast to coast development in Canada [as well as] the international footprint of HEM,” Taza says. “I love that we have this expertise. Being close to different cultures and understanding how different educational systems work gives us a unique perspective that creates added value for our clients.”
Since then, the company has continued to support clients through its international student recruitment expertise and its targeted service offering – making it an excellent achievement for a company milestone celebration. It’s one of Taza’s favourite parts about working at HEM.
The 2019 version of HEM’s website shows how much the company has grown, establishing its international footprint.
Taking Student Management to the Next Level in Our 15-Year Company Anniversary
HEM’s 15-year company anniversary marks the start of something new and exciting. In early 2024, schools can expect a new update of HEM’s proprietary Student Portal. And some lucky clients are already getting a preview as they are being onboarded using the beta version!
An overview of the Student Information System’s Lessons page, where users can view course name, instructor, class location, dates, and other key information.
“We’ve been developing this product for the last five years, and we’re getting close to maturation. It will be a massive side of the Student Portal,” reveals Taza. “The system will manage student information, including grades, attendance, finance, instructor login, student login, and dashboards. It will be the same software, but better. I am really excited about it!”
With its unique expertise, strong team, and ability to stay on top of the evolving online world, HEM will continue to make a difference for its clients. And one thing is sure after this company anniversary: “We want to continue to grow in the key markets we are active in right now and continue to grow our team,” concludes Taza. This great potential in the team and the technology makes HEM’s future an exciting one to anticipate.
