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Artwork for The Signal

The Signal

Jeff Dillon
Higher Education
Artificial Intelligence
Student Engagement
Education Technology
Generative AI
Digital Transformation
AI In Education
Higher Education Marketing
Digital Marketing
User Experience
SEO
Student Success
Marketing
Education
Student Experience
Digital Strategy
Digital Governance
Learning Management Systems
CRM
AI In Higher Education

With more than 450,000 downloads, The Signal is the podcast for higher education’s innovative leaders. Hosted by Jeff Dillon, The Signal cuts through the noise of the "status quo" to bring you the strategic intelligence needed to reshape how institutions recruit, support, and retain students. Every Friday, we sit down with the practitioners and technology builders who are actively defining the nex... more

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes96Founded2 years ago
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EducationTechnology

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Artwork for The Signal

Latest Episodes

Transfer credit is one of higher ed's most persistent headaches. Students lose credits, take longer to graduate, and navigate a labyrinth of institutional policies that often feel designed to frustrate rather than help. But according to Troy Holaday,... more

What if a college degree required not just passing classes—but launching a real business?

In this episode, host Jeff Dillon sits down with Jeff Meade, Founding Director of Entrepreneurship at Paul Quinn College, where "Every Quinnite Is an Entrepren... more

What if the biggest barrier to enrollment growth isn't your marketing budget—but your program portfolio itself?

In this episode, host Jeff Dillon sits down with Elysia Labita, Executive Director of Portfolio Strategy and Marketing at EdPlus at Arizo... more

What if the biggest barrier to student success isn't ability—but the belief that effort is even worth it?

In this episode, host Jeff Dillon sits down with Dave Tucker, founder and CEO of Genio, a learning technology company that's been quietly trans... more

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Recent Guests

Troy Holaday
President of College Source, veteran higher-ed technologist
College Source
Episode: Ep. 96 - Troy Holaday: 52,000 Degrees Were Already Earned. They Just Hadn't Been Found.
Jeff Meade
Founding director of entrepreneurship at Paul Quinn College
Paul Quinn College
Episode: Ep. 95 - Jeff Meade: Why Paul Quinn College Made Entrepreneurship a Graduation Requirement
Elysia Labita
Executive Director of Portfolio Strategy and Marketing at EdPlus, Arizona State University
Arizona State University, EdPlus
Episode: Ep. 94 - Elysia Labita: Marketing Can't Out-Optimize Misalignment
Dave Tucker Diaz
Founder and CEO of Genio
Genio
Episode: Ep. 93 - Dave Tucker: The Note Taker's Dilemma — Why Lectures Are Mostly Wasted
Paula French
Director of Sales and Marketing at Search Influence
Search Influence
Episode: Ep. 92 - Paula French: From Clicks to Conversions—A Practical Playbook for AI Search
Mallory Willsie
Strategist and consultant at the intersection of higher education, media, and AI
Willsea Consulting Services; Higher Ed Icons
Episode: Ep. 91 - Mallory Willsea: Activity vs. Strategy—Why Higher Ed Marketing Measures the Wrong Things
Haley Platt
Chief Marketing Officer at Siembra Mobile
Siembra Mobile
Episode: Ep. 90 - Haley Platt: Breaking the Information Barrier: How First-Gen Students Navigate College
Leslie Weller
Director of Product Marketing at SearchStax
SearchStax
Episode: Ep. 89 - Leslie Weller: How AI Site Search Turns Student Discovery Into a Competitive Advantage
Brian Clark
Senior Director of Digital Experience at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD)
Rhode Island School of Design (RISD)
Episode: Ep. 88 - Brian Clark: Building RISD's Digital Future at Scale

Host

Jeff Dillon
Host of The Signal

Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars from 10 ratings
  • 🎧

    Jeff asks great questions!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    ashley_budd
    United Statesa year ago
  • Review

    Well researched, top-notch guests, and relevant! 5 stars!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Lynsouthern
    United States2 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Guests are top-tier and topics stay highly relevant to higher education leadership.
The show delivers thoughtful, data-driven conversations that cut through hype.
Jeff asks insightful, well-researched questions that surface practical takeaways.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#155
United States/Education

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Ep. 95 - Jeff Meade: Why Paul Quinn College Made Entrepreneurship a Graduation Requirement
Q: What does the operational path for a student's journey from freshman year to launching a real venture look like on your campus?
The journey begins with a six-week problem-solution boot camp, moves into fall/spring coursework to expand and refine ideas, includes investor pitches to peers, and evolves into building real, market-facing ventures with support from a campus marketplace platform and partnerships, all aimed at reducing friction and enabling scale.
Ep. 95 - Jeff Meade: Why Paul Quinn College Made Entrepreneurship a Graduation Requirement
Q: In your LinkedIn bio, you say you're having the time of your life doing this work. What does a great day at Paul Quinn College actually look like?
A great day starts with engaging freshmen in the Six-Week boot camp, followed by seeing students develop and pitch real ideas, validate customers, and then watch those ideas progress through an organized journey toward building scalable ventures, all while connecting with faculty, mentors, and real-world investors to bring the concepts to life.
Ep. 92 - Paula French: From Clicks to Conversions—A Practical Playbook for AI Search
Q: What practical steps can a school take with a limited budget to improve visibility in AI Search before the next recruitment cycle?
The plan centers on prioritizing a small set of programs, optimizing those program pages, producing strategic blog content that links back to the program pages, leveraging paid profiles for deeper links, and using YouTube and LinkedIn to reinforce the same messages, all aimed at building recognizable patterns AI can cite.
Ep. 92 - Paula French: From Clicks to Conversions—A Practical Playbook for AI Search
Q: What was the catalyst for the Upcea study on AI search in higher education?
The catalyst came from ongoing conversations with higher-ed marketers who questioned whether prospects were using AI search to find programs. The team wanted data to back up intuition, understand how AI search integrates with traditional search, and establish a baseline to track changes year over year.
Ep. 92 - Paula French: From Clicks to Conversions—A Practical Playbook for AI Search
Q: What drew you in to Search Influence and the higher education space?
Paula explains that her interest grew from an early exposure to SEO as a marketing-technical hybrid and from working in client-facing roles that required translating complex concepts into practical terms. Her passion for higher education emerged as she realized there was a strong opportunity to help universities be found in a new AI-enabled search environment.

Audience Metrics

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Frequently Asked Questions About The Signal

What is The Signal about and what kind of topics does it cover?

A practical, practitioner-facing show focused on how higher education leaders transform campuses through human-centered innovation. Episodes routinely explore AI adoption with governance, data-driven enrollment and student-success strategies, and institutional transformation—from consolidating disparate digital ecosystems to building new revenue and partnerships. Guests come from universities, edtech providers, and education-focused organizations, sharing real-world challenges, measurable outcomes, and actionable playbooks for marketing, student support, and digital strategy. The format tends to surface thoughtful leadership, governance considerations, and scalable approaches that can be applied across institutions of varying size, making i... more

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How many listeners does The Signal get?

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Which podcasts are similar to The Signal?

These podcasts share a similar audience with The Signal:

1. The Daily

How many episodes of The Signal are there?

The Signal launched 2 years ago and published 96 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on The Signal?

Recent guests on The Signal include:

1. Troy Holaday
2. Jeff Meade
3. Elysia Labita
4. Dave Tucker Diaz
5. Paula French
6. Mallory Willsie
7. Haley Platt
8. Leslie Weller

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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