With countless school options out there for parents to choose from, schools are constantly searching for innovative ways to attract and retain students. Like with any other business, effective marketing strategies play a crucial role in increasing enrollment and creating a positive brand image for schools. If you’re hoping to decrease your marketing costs while boosting your enrollment numbers and stand out from the competition, you’re in luck. We’re breaking down three marketing strategies that will give you the upper hand.
School Marketing Ideas to Help You Stand Out
Engaging Social Media Campaigns
There’s no denying that social media has become an integral part of our daily lives. Kids and parents alike spend hours at a time scrolling Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Schools can leverage the power of these platforms to reach a wider audience and engage with potential students and parents. Creating engaging social media campaigns highlighting the school’s unique selling points can effectively attract new enrollments.
To create an engaging social media campaign, start by identifying your target audience. You can then craft compelling content, such as videos showcasing the school’s facilities, testimonials from satisfied parents, and success stories of alumni. Schools should also encourage current students and parents to share their positive experiences on social media platforms, which can create a sense of authenticity and trust among the audience.
Recommended Reading: Why It’s Important to Amplify Your School’s Brand on Social
Personalized Email Marketing
Email marketing is a powerful tool for schools to communicate with prospective students and their parents. However, a generic email sent to a large list of recipients will unlikely make a lasting impact. To increase enrollment, schools should consider implementing personalized email marketing campaigns.
Personalized emails can be tailored to the interests and needs of individual recipients. You can segment your email lists based on factors such as grade level, academic interests, and extracurricular activities. By sending targeted emails that address each recipient’s specific concerns and goals, you can demonstrate your commitment to providing a holistic and personalized education experience.
Additionally, you can use email marketing to share relevant and informative content, such as blogs on educational trends, tips for academic success, and upcoming school events. By providing valuable information, you can position yourself as a thought leader in the education industry and build trust with potential students and parents.
Recommended Reading: SEO For Schools: All That You Need to Know
Leverage Your Content & Current Families’ Social Media
If you’re like most schools, you have hundreds of events per year and tens of thousands of photos and videos taken at them. New, AI-powered content management platforms, like Waldo, can take these event photos and deliver them as school-branded assets to the students (and their families) who are in them. Sharing these school-made memories with your families will strengthen their connection to the school and your community. It will also–if delivered in near real-time as platforms like Waldo enable–encourage the recipients to post them to social.
Since the photos are automatically branded upon upload, these posts act as miniature billboards across social media and provide invaluable brand awareness with like-minded families that are connected on social to your current families. Turning your current families into natural influencers on social can dramatically increase your school’s exposure and reduce the need for expensive marketing campaigns.
Final Thoughts
Implementing these marketing strategies can help you increase enrollment while decreasing your paid marketing. We know that social media can be frustrating, though. Creating new content constantly is not only difficult but time-consuming–especially when it comes to the images you’re using. Using a platform like WaldoPhotos will help you crowdsource more content from staff, students, parents, and outside photographers and then naturally spread it through the social feeds of your current families.
You’ll get more photos from events like football games, prom, homecoming, fundraisers, and more. This makes getting real images of real students easier than ever before. To get started, start a 14-day free trial today!
