★ 5.0/5 from 7 online education reviews  •  11+ online education companies served  •  Since 2011  •  Free online education marketing audit available
Digital Marketing for Online Education Providers

Online Education Marketing That Grows Enrollment

More enrolled students. More course completions. More five-star reviews. We help online education providers turn searches into sign-ups, and we've been doing it since 2011.

5.0 from 7 online education reviews
11+ online education companies served
Trusted partners & certifications
Inc. 5000 honoree, 10 years Google Partner Meta Business Partner Microsoft Advertising Select Partner 2026 Mailchimp Pro Partner

Reviews from Online Education Providers

5.0/5 average from 7 online education reviews
★★★★★★★★★★
“We've been getting more organic and high-quality leads because of their customer-oriented marketing approach. They incorporate our goals into each deliverable they produce and reward us with advertising materials that promote our school's vision across our target audience — as a small company with…”
NFC Academy CLUTCH NFC Academy
★★★★★★★★★★
“I've had the pleasure of working with Jadeverette at SmartSites, and I can't recommend him highly enough. He has consistently had our backs, making sure tasks are handled promptly and efficiently, answers all our questions with our best intentions in mind and despite our crazy schedule, Jadeverette…”
Neothink GOOGLE Neothink
★★★★★★★★★★
“SmartSites has been a huge help in making out business as successful and far reaching as it is in our niche. Isaah and his PPC expertise has taken my business from a one man show and turned it into a 5 person operation that runs efficiently and profitably.”
Northstar Aviation References YELP Northstar Aviation References
★★★★★★★★★★
“From the beginning of the sales call with Jared to the end of our current partnership, SmartSites has been so welcoming, easy to work with, knowledgeable, and communicative. Christen is a perfect account manager, ready to answer my questions within hours of me submitting them”
CAIMP GOOGLE CAIMP
★★★★★★★★★★
“Richard and Darius are doing a spectacular job managing our PPC account!!!! Fast response. Highly effective and professional!”
Rafe Oller Rafe Oller GOOGLE CK-12 Foundation
★★★★★★★★★★
“Very happy with the team at SmartSites. Would definitely recommend them.”
Terri Brax Terri Brax CAPTERRA TeacherCare
★★★★★★★★★★
“Tony and the SmartSites team have been wonderful to work with so far! They've gone above and beyond to research and answer some of my questions and help us figure out how best to address technical issues we've faced.”
Hannah Wright Community Training Connection

Online education providers we’ve worked with

  • Top Education Marketing agency on DesignRush
  • Forbes Best SEO Services #1, 2024-2026
  • G2 Best Digital Marketing 2026
  • Inc. 5000, 10 years
  • Google Partner
  • Clutch Top Digital Marketing Company, United States 2026
5.0
Online Education reviews7 verified reviews
11+
Online Education clientsserved since 2011

An award-winning digital marketing agency for online education providers.

SmartSites is recognized by Clutch, G2 and the Inc. 5000. But the recognition we care about most comes from the online education providers in our reviews.

“SmartSites has been a huge help in making out business as successful and far reaching as it is in our niche.”— Northstar Aviation References, Northstar Aviation References (Yelp review)
  • ✓ Top Digital Marketing Company on Clutch
  • ✓ Best Digital Marketing on G2, 2026
  • ✓ An Inc. 5000 fastest-growing company
  • ✓ Google, Meta Business & Microsoft Advertising Partner

Top education
digital marketing statistics.

We compared the education providers we work with against our other clients across Google Ads, Google Analytics, Business Profiles, website forms and call tracking. Education providers see 3× the genuine form leads and 56% more direction requests.

  • 3×

    the genuine website form leads of our other clients: 78 a month for the typical education business vs 26.

    Website forms · education providers vs our other clients

  • +56%

    The typical education Business Profile gets 56% more direction requests than other businesses' profiles: 95 vs 61 a month.

    Business Profiles · education providers vs our other clients

  • −20%

    Leads from Google Ads cost education providers 20% less than our other clients: $64 vs $80 a lead.

    Google Ads · education providers vs our other clients

  • 25%

    of calls to education providers come in outside weekday office hours, vs 21% for our other clients, so evening and weekend cover pays off.

    Call tracking · across the education providers we work with

  • +19%

    Education Google Ads clicks turn into leads 19% more often than our other clients' clicks: 5.0% vs 4.2%.

    Google Ads · education providers vs our other clients

  • +11%

    Visits to education websites convert 11% better than on our other clients' sites: 3.6% vs 3.3%.

    Google Analytics · education providers vs our other clients

An agency that grew up with its clients.

SmartSites is an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing company, and we’ve grown right alongside the online education companies we serve.

Proven & Experienced Team

Founded by two brothers in 2011 on a foundation of smart strategy and consistent outcomes. Agency grit, family care.

900+ Websites Launched

Websites, campaigns and content for small and medium businesses across America.

Inc. 5000 Honoree

One of America’s fastest-growing private companies, growing right alongside our clients.

Humans + AI

Best-in-class AI tooling, always with a human strategist in the loop. You own all the work product.

Inc. 5000 honoree, 10 years Google Partner Meta Business Partner Microsoft Advertising Select Partner 2026

Marketing that brings in more students.

Attract more students, increase leads, and elevate your reputation with a data-driven marketing strategy designed to maximize your ROI.

Schedule a meeting to:

  • Define your growth goals, student needs, and competitive landscape.
  • Uncover opportunities to attract more students and increase conversions.
  • Map out a results-driven strategy to elevate your online presence and maximize ROI.
  • Top Education Marketing agency on DesignRush
  • Clutch Top Digital Marketing Company, United States 2026
  • Forbes #1 Best SEO Services, 2024–2026
  • Inc. 5000 honoree, 10 years
  • G2 Best Digital Marketing 2026
Connor O’Hanlon Samantha Baloun Matthew Prepis

Let’s grow your online education company together.

Get a free proposal from the team behind $2.1 billion+ in client revenue.

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Frequently asked questions

Straight answers for online education providers, from the team that runs the work.

It depends on your program, your market and the services you need. Most of our online education clients run an SEO campaign as the long-term foundation, paired with paid search to drive immediate enrollment inquiries.

We'll right-size a plan to your program, your competitive market and your growth goals. There's no one-size-fits-all answer, and we'll tell you exactly where each dollar goes.

Very. At the typical school or program in the calls we've listened to, 24% (about 1 in 4) of calls went to voicemail or were never picked up: 21% during business hours and 30% after hours. And most of those callers do not try again: 80% of callers who reached voicemail did not call that business again within a week.

That is why we track every call from your campaigns, flag missed calls, and help you set up call routing, after-hours coverage and fast call-backs, so the leads you pay for are not lost at the front desk.

Based on calls to 5 schools and education companies we market, Apr to Sep 2026.

Mostly business hours: 24% of calls came outside Monday to Friday 9 to 5 (4% on weekends), and the busiest day is Monday. Of the calls that were answered, 49% were new-customer inquiries, 27% were existing customers, and 19% were sales pitches or wrong numbers.

That mix is why we report on qualified calls, not raw call counts.

Based on 8,100 calls to 13 schools and education companies we market, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026 (timing) and Apr to Sep 2026 (call types).

Across the Google Ads accounts of the 21 schools and education companies we manage, the median cost per lead over the last 12 months was $65, with a median cost per click of $3.00 and a median conversion rate of 5%.

Your number depends on your market, services and how well the landing page and phones convert. We use these medians as a starting benchmark, then work to beat them.

Source: Google Ads accounts managed by SmartSites, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026; a lead is a tracked call or form conversion as set up in each account.

For the 15 schools and education companies whose Google Business Profiles we manage, the median profile got about 1,290 views, 20 calls and 95 direction requests a month over the last year.

Reviews, photos, accurate hours and categories move those numbers, which is why local SEO is part of every plan we build for an online education company.

Source: Google Business Profile performance data for profiles managed by SmartSites, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026.

You don't have to choose. The best results come from doing both, with experts who know how to use AI responsibly:

  • AI-assisted audits: our initial and routine audits combine years of human expertise with AI to spot opportunities a person alone would miss.
  • Enterprise-grade data: professional SEO and ads tools give us visibility into organic, AI and paid search. You get the insights without the bill.
  • Always human-in-the-loop: every output is reviewed by a strategist before it ships, and you own all work product.

A good in-house marketer is only one person. With SmartSites you get a whole team (strategist, SEO specialist, paid media lead, web designer, email specialist and social manager) for less than the cost of a single hire, with no recruiting, no PTO and no learning curve.

No, and we'll always be straight with you about that. Effective marketing for online programs takes time; programs that expect instant ROI from SEO are usually disappointed. We don't do risky shortcuts. Here's what to realistically expect:

  • SEO can be a roller-coaster, but the long-term curve bends up and compounds.
  • Paid search typically generates enrollment inquiries within the first 30 days.
  • Web rebuilds pay for themselves through higher conversion rates.

Yes. We optimize for generative engines (GEO) as well as traditional search, so online education providers show up in ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Perplexity and the AI assistants prospective students increasingly use to compare programs. For NFC Academy, that meant ChatGPT traffic up 26x. Our tracking includes AI mentions and citations, not just rankings.

Online program leaders don't think in impressions or vanity metrics. They think in:

  • Cost per enrollment
  • Course completion rate
  • Revenue per student
  • ROI

We do too. Our online education case studies include revenue up 1,295% and orders up 276% (Northstar Aviation References), plus phones ringing consistently and enrollment forms that actually convert.

For most online programs we recommend three tracks: a nurture sequence for prospective students who haven't enrolled yet, automated re-engagement for lapsed leads, and course-specific drips that walk new students through onboarding. We write, design and send every campaign and report on the enrollments it brings back.

Online programs sell trust and outcomes, so short-form video on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube wins. We recommend one or two produced videos per week (student testimonials, course previews, instructor spotlights), regular story activity, and targeted paid social to drive new enrollment inquiries. We handle production, posting and reporting.