Ideal Rules for a Successful School

a.      Get personal

When schools are full of students, you don’t always have time to personally get to know leaders in your local industry. When your marketing budget is restricted, your MUST network¬†personally with people working in the industry for which you school prepares students. Print an extra 1000 business cards, start Googling for addresses, and get to know them. These people are often asked about how they started in their own careers, so if they like your school (and you), then they’ll recommend attending your program(s).

b.      Career advisers and high school counselors

Like people working in the industry, if education advisers and high school guidance counselors know and like you personally, they are more likely to remember and therefore recommend your school to students who they think would be a good fit.

c.       Brag a Little!

Share your school's unique advantages with parents. Is your school centrally located in the community? Is your school committed to keeping student resources and equipment on the cutting edge of technology? Those benefits can set you apart from other schools and help convince parents you have something special to offer their child. Begin by making a list of “bragging rights” (the most impressive aspects of your school), then work backward by thinking of ways to promote these points. For example, if you have an exceptional art program, why not make student art projects the focal point of your entryway? A student mural would be a great way to accentuate and advertise such a unique benefit point to visitors.

d.      Address Concerns

What are the key educational concerns of parents in your area? Academic excellence? School safety? Class size? Character Building? Your qualifications/expertise/experiences in these areas will be the main reasons parents choose your school over other private and public institutions. Since school violence and bullying are obvious concerns today, why not address the subjects head on—instead of allowing it to be whispered about and worried over.

Host a “Parent Day” at the beginning of each school year, so these issues can be discussed in an open forum and parents can be invited to share their ideas. Events where parents can communicate concerns and the management can answer questions are invaluable occasions for attracting new families. Welcoming prospective families shows just how open and accessible your school truly is.

e.       Say It Often

Communicate often with your community and let the people around you know the great things you’re doing, not just during your enrollment drive. Frequency in your message and through a variety of communication methods. It is the most important strategy toward becoming the first name that comes to mind. If your school wins an event, send out press releases about this victory to local television stations, radio stations, community publications, etc. Include this good news in your monthly newsletter, on your Web site, and as a voice message on your telecommunications system. In addition, print a banner to display outside your school. It will not only make students proud of their academic success, it also communicates to passersby that your school is active and doing well—thereby increasing your chances of reaching new families.

f.       Get Ready - Company is Here

The quality of your facility is under strict scrutiny, since parents are paying fees of their children. Parents need visible proof of their money is being well spent. Ideally, your facility should have a clean, welcoming, professional look. Make sure your main office – the place a parent’s visit usually begins, is neat, decorated and orderly. The children’s area should be cheerful and inviting, with obvious attention to cleanliness and safety. Fresh paint once a year (especially in the bathrooms) and regularly cleaned carpets are trademarks of an inviting facility. However, proper signage is also vital, especially if you are meeting in a church building. Parents should be able to enter the school and immediately find the classrooms, office, and bathrooms. If your facility is organized, friendly, and inviting, parents will assume your school is too.

g.      Schedule the Educational Tours

A tour is typically the first opportunity new parents have to interact with your school and students and can also be the most influential factor in selecting your school. So don’t leave this important and strategic marketing opportunity to chance. By scheduling regular tour times, you can make sure the best parts of your school are ready to showcase. You may have a really great playground, but it is clearly not as dynamic if you can’t pass by when kids are playing on the equipment and interacting with one another. Try to feature a variety of classroom activities including academics, creativity, and technology. Finally, make sure there is a comfortable place available for you and your visitors to sit and discuss the school’s benefits after the tour. Giving parents your undivided attention and a little hospitality can be the foundation for a positive ongoing relationship.

h.      Leave Your Mark

Presenting yourself properly and with excellence is one key to winning the trust of incoming parents. A well-planned and executed school identity is one facet of being awarded this trust. From business cards to memos, pamphlets to logos, your school’s written communication (both internally and externally) is important to attracting new parents.

Make well-designed handouts available (on quality paper stock) which clearly explain your history, educational philosophy, admissions policy, staff and administration bios, etc. Everything that leaves your office or is used in the office should contain your logo and contact information (don’t forget your Web address!) as well as any slogan or tagline your school utilizes. A great logo might include your school’s mascot, a geographical landmark near the school, or an artistic representation of your school’s name.

Even though you may send out specific communications to prospective families, remember: God works in mysterious ways. Any document that has your school’s name on it can be a point of entry for a new student. For example, a woman visiting a new friend’s home for coffee might notice a child’s report card hanging on the refrigerator. The woman may first be impressed by the personal comments of the teacher, showing how much time and energy is being invested into the student. Then she notices your logo on the report card and decides to contact the school about enrolling her own child. The outcome of such a situation could be entirely different if the report card looks dated, doesn’t contain your logo, or isn’t built to be an informative tool of communication.

i.        Campaign for Enrollment

To boost enrollment, it is vital to execute a strategic marketing campaign that will raise public interest. Your fall enrollment campaign should begin one month before the start of admission. A direct mail postcard campaign is a wonderful way to personally invite families in your community to learn more about your school. The postcards should have an “offer” (free tour, gift, information booklet, etc.) and have an easy way for someone to respond. But don’t worry about including all your information on that one card. The point is not to generate an enrollment from the card, but to get a qualified contact. To compliment the direct mail campaign, place a banner in front of your building, ads in your local parent’s magazines, and start a referral campaign with incentives for existing families.

j.        Keep them Talking

The best form of advertising and promotion is word of mouth. Give parents and students a school they can be proud of. They will be your best marketers when they believe in what you are doing. This is where the excellence of your reputation and Christian values will make you shine. Make sure to gather any positive comments you get from parents and students and include these testimonies in ads, fliers, and on your Web site. Case studies of students who have improved grades or behavior are an invaluable way to prove the impact your school can have in a child’s life. Keep these studies in a binder in the front office with photos and examples of each child’s work. These are the tangible results new parents need to make an informed decision to enroll their child in your school.

k.      Local Gathering Events

Participate in the local exhibitions, fun fair and other such occasions where you have an opportunity to access a large number of people. Here you should have a booth and hand out literature about your school.

l.        Highlight Your Contribution

What are some of your student's accomplishments? (Science Fair winners, drama production, community service, etc.) Put photos of them on your webpage (with parental permission) and see if you can get them in local newspapers or tv news. Do you have a student newspaper, one with stories written by students, photos they've taken, drawings, etc? Put it online. Prospective parents love that stuff. Besides, any notable alumni that will say something nice about the school? Put a photo of them and their quote on your webpage.

m.    Arrange Seminars, etc.

Have a seminar at your school for current and prospective parents. Something free where an expert (staff, friend/relative of staff) speaks on something of interest e.g. national heroes, good manners,  history events, self experiences, etc.

n.      "Brand" your school

What makes your school unique? Prepare some quality items e.g. copies, pencils, pencil boxes, copy covers, etc. and sell those at lower prices. These will make increase your fame. Collection and contribution in relief activities may also lend a helping hand.

o.      Get the most out of your current

Smart business means getting the very most out of your existing resources. That means before you spend more money on marketing, you get the most out of your current budget; before hiring more people, you get your current staff working on the highest value activities; and before working longer hours, you make the best use of the time you spend working.

p.      Avoid Profit Killers

Avoiding profit killers is the best practice and business tool to uncover areas of untapped potential in your school — the money that you are “leaving on the table” through failings in your Enrollment Management processes. It will increase revenue and/or profit margins without spending more on advertising or extra staff. Profit killers are defined as:

• Marketing money spent on high cost, low return tactics, while low cost, high return tactics are ignored.
• Admissions systems that work against the best interest of your school and admissions staff.
• Too much time spent refining things you already do well, while ignoring new opportunities that could lead to a quantum leap in performance improvement.
• Ignoring the small oversights that, if fixed, can add hundreds of thousands of dollars to your revenue.

 q.      Performance Improvement Coach

Invite your management and the entire key staff to participate in weekly meetings. Get a thorough analysis and a detailed action plan to achieve improvements in your school. With mutual consensus, identify where you are strong and where you need improvement. Also, precise how you can capture lost revenue and profit. This approach is ideal for Directors, VPs and Owners responsible for Admissions and/or Marketing who want to create an immediate lift in revenue without having to hire additional sales representatives or buy more advertising. During these sessions:

• Conduct a thorough review of your current marketing, admissions and/or retention efforts to benchmark you against Industry Best Practices.
• Explore and understand the ROI for all your efforts.
• Implement low cost, high return marketing initiatives.
• Review and implement tested admissions systems to increase lead-to-start conversions.
• Conduct additional research to support or refute the findings uncovered in the process.