The Challenge

University College Birmingham (UCB) replaced their SMS service for their recruitment, marketing, and student support communications. The system had significant limitations: there was no visibility on delivery or read rates, no support for WhatsApp as a communication channel, and no ability to send rich media content such as videos or images.

For universities, a poor enrolment year carries financial consequences that last for three years, making the recruitment intake period critically important. UCB needed a platform that could deliver measurable results and help them nurture prospective students more effectively through the application journey.

The Solution

In June 2025, UCB adopted Cue, deploying a comprehensive engagement strategy across WhatsApp and web chat. The implementation included:

• WhatsApp Broadcasts: Rich media lead nurturing sequences for open day reminders and application follow-ups, replacing the previous plain-text SMS approach.

• Chatbot and Live Chat: Automated handling of common enquiries with seamless handover to live agents for complex questions, available on both WhatsApp and web chat.

• AI Agent: Deployed to answer frequently asked questions, significantly reducing the volume of incoming emails and freeing up staff time.

• Full Tracking and Analytics: Comprehensive visibility on delivery rates, read rates, and agent performance metrics — data that was completely unavailable with the previous SMS provider.

The Results

The switch from SMS to Cue's WhatsApp-powered platform delivered transformative results across UCB's recruitment campaigns:

• Higher Education winter event conversion: Rose from 41% (SMS in 2024) to 62% (Cue/WhatsApp in 2025), a 21 percentage point increase.

• Further Education conversion: Increased from 61% to 68% after switching to Cue.

• Engagement rates: Spiked from approximately 31% with SMS to 78% with Cue/WhatsApp — the single biggest improvement, directly correlating to higher application conversion rates.

• Delivery and read visibility: UCB now tracks delivery and read rates of ~82%, metrics that were entirely invisible under their previous provider.

• Reduced email volume: The AI agent handles frequently asked questions, reducing the burden on the admissions team.