Marketing Your School in Troubled Times -- 12 Strategies to Turnaround a Declining Enrollment, Rick Newberry, AISAP 2013

OUR GOAL

During this workshop we will discuss how several schools experienced an enrollment turnaround.

©ASSOCIATION OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ADMISSION PROFESSIONALS ANNUAL SUMMER INSTITUTE 2013 5

Enrollment Catalyst partners with schools to provide coaching for school leaders in their school’s enrollment management and marketing systems, strategies, and

solutions needed to reach their goals.

WWW.ENROLLMENTCATALYST.COM/BLOG

School Growth

Leadership

Quality School Experience

Vision

Faculty and Staff

Parent Satisfaction

Reputation

Location

Price

Competition

Enrollment & Marketing Plan

CURRENT STATE OF THE SCHOOL MARKET

Economic uncertainty Enrollment instability Parent entitlement, consumerism and disloyalty Increased competition Increased dependence on financial aid Increased focus on branding and marketing Strong schools are in demand

SOME MARKETING/ENROLLMENT OBSERVATIONS

We lack marketing knowledge, training and expertise. We lack resources and staffing (and the commitment to make this a budget priority). We gripe about not getting our school published in the local newspaper when we can publish anything we want on the web. We place priority on traditional advertising strategies to reach our community and often neglect our most strategy—word of mouth through our parents!

SOME MARKETING/ENROLLMENT OBSERVATIONS

We often take a shotgun approach to marketing. We have a plan for improving our school but don’t have a marketing and enrollment plan for growth. We are intrigued by social media and web-based strategies but don’t know how to use them effectively. We don’t tell our story very well.

School Growth Turnaround Stories

1.  Committed, Personal and Visionary Leadership 2.   Develop and communicate your brand 3.   Set goals and analyze enrollment results 4.   Devote resources to staff and the team 5.   Launch a parent ambassadors program 6.   Consistently follow-up with inquiries 7.  Re-recruit your current families 8.   Implement a word of mouth campaign 9.   Focus your resources on your website 10.   Generate leads through online marketing strategies 11.   Tell your school’s story through social media 12.   Aggressive use of financial aid

STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

“Enrollment rises or falls on

leadership.”


BRANDING

What is branding? “From a business point of view, branding in the marketplace is very similar to branding on the ranch. A branding program should be designed to differentiate your product [school] from all the other cattle [schools] on the range. Even if all the other cattle on the range look pretty much alike.”

§  Al and Laura Reis, The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding

“The brand on the outside is only

as strong as the brand on the inside.” – Karl Speak, President, Beyond Marketing Thought

BRAND DEVELOPMENT

Develop a compelling visual brand for your school that includes the following: § Logomark § Typography § Color palette § Photography § Messaging

CONSISTENCY

Consistent use of your school’s brand elements: § Logo § Tagline § Colors § Message

FOCUS ON TALKING ABOUT THEIR SCHOOL

Most administrators haven’t considered this question as a key part of their marketing strategy. We need to begin asking the question: What do you want them to talk about?

OPTIMAL AND ANNUAL ENROLLMENT GOALS

Determine/Define the optimal enrollment your school. Develop annual incremental goals to reach desired enrollment: § 2013 § 2014 § 2015

ENROLLMENT GOALS

Develop specific enrollment goals for the following areas: § Total Enrollment § Retention § Admissions § Inquiries § Campus Visits § Applications § Deposits § New students

Provides a data snapshot overview of the re-enrollment of current families and enrollment of new families.

ENROLLMENT DASHBOARD REPORT

STAFFING

Increase staffing to increase the enrollment results. Key skills include: •  Passion •  Personal •  Initiative •  Communication

Direct administrative responsibilities for admissions § Director of Admissions/Enrollment § Head of School/Principal

Additional involvement in admissions § Secretary/Receptionist § Administration § Faculty and Staff § Parents § Students

THE ADMISSIONS TEAM

Develop, implement and manage the recruitment plan Strive to reach and exceed all of the goals Provide an outstanding campus visit experience and follow-up for all inquiries and applicants Increase awareness of the school through feeder schools, churches and other groups Encourage and facilitate the involvement of parents in the recruitment strategy Report weekly on the progress toward recruitment goals

ESSENTIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

ROLE OF FACULTY AND STAFF

Quality/excellence in their job Tell your school’s story Turn negative moments into positive moments Channel concerns to the administration Communication with parents Relationships with parents Create memorable moments Positive ambassadors for the school

PARENT AMBASSADORS

Recruit a team of parent ambassadors to expand the reach of the enrollment office.

Passion for your school Credibility among their peers Connections at the school and in the community Opportunity to be involved

RECOGNIZE THE RIGHT TALKERS

PARENT AMBASSADOR PROGRAM

Recruit a team of parents to help you in your enrollment effort by: § Presenting tours of campus. § Hosting new family “desserts” in their homes. § Mentoring a new family throughout their first school year. § Follow-up for prospective parents. § Calling and/or writing personal notes to parents and welcoming

them to your school. § Reaching out to churches and schools. § Posting online reviews.

New parents can be the best resources for your school to reach out to their previous school, church, neighborhood or other group.

USING YOUR NEW PARENTS

FOLLOW-UP

Implement a 30-day follow-up plan for parent inquiries. This follow-up plan should include mailings, calls and emails that encourage the parent to apply/enroll at your school.

Step 1 – Make initial contact with inquiry Step 2 – Send information packet on school with personal letter (within 24 hours of inquiry). § Make sure the letter is personalized and well-written to sell your

school.

30-DAY FOLLOW UP PLAN

Step 3 – Call one week later to discuss your school and encourage the parent to take the next step (seven days after inquiry date). § Phone call should focus on the following: § Make sure information was received in the mail. § Encourage the family to visit. § Use the time to better understand the parent’s needs and sell

the parent on your school. § Send hand-written note immediately after call is made.


Step 4 – Send email or postcard with key message (15 days after inquiry date). Step 5 – Personal contact from a current parent (25 days after inquiry). § Use a parent ambassador from a similar grade level to contact the

inquiry.

Step 6 – Send email or postcard with key message (30 days after inquiry).


FOLLOW-UP AFTER 30 DAYS

What should you do with your inquiries after your 30 day follow-up? § Email messages § Monthly contact with inquiries. § Send your school’s email newsletter.

RE-RECRUITMENT

The strategy and process for recruiting your current families to continue enrollment in your school for the next year. Re-recruitment is the activity that leads to retention.

Parent Satisfaction Vision and leadership Retention statistics and reports Responsibility of re-recruitment Connections to community Customer service Identify at-risk students and families The re-enrollment process Focus on the transition grades Parent communication Internal marketing Parent feedback

RE-RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES

FOCUS ON INTERNAL MARKETING

When your parents are very satisfied with their experience at your school, they will be your greatest asset to reaching your community. Do everything you can to market your school internally to your parents.

RETENTION OF CURRENT FAMILIES

Be proactive in working with current families to keep them enrolled at your school § Grade all of your families on their likelihood to return next year. § Meet with all families personally that are “on the fence” regarding

their decision to re-enroll. § Host small group coffees and events for parents. §  Implement “Next Year and Beyond” meetings for families to

understand the next level. § Reach out personally to current families.

RE-ENROLLMENT CAMPAIGN

Launch an internal marketing campaign that coincides with re-enrollment (Jan. and ongoing): § Re-enrollment package that communicates the value for the

continued investment at your school. § Design banners that communicate the brand and tagline. § Personal phone calls to all families encouraging them to re-enroll. § Communicate key messages that reflect features and benefits of

continuing at your school. § Develop bragging points and boast about the remarkability of your

school.

PARENT FEEDBACK

Survey your parents annually by conducting an overall parent satisfaction and perception survey. § Look for areas of dissatisfaction to improve the quality of the

school. § Report findings from the survey back to parents. § Best time to survey parents is October/November and February.

Conduct exit interviews when parents choose not to re-enroll at your school.

“This is the foundation of buzz: in order to get people talking about your product or service, you must provide a

great experience.”

•  Rosen, The Anatomy of Buzz Revisited

WOM is Based on Experience

Strong Retention

Parent Satisfaction

Positive Word of Mouth

POSITIVE WOM

5 T’S OF WORD OF MOUTH MARKETING

1.  Talkers—who will tell their friends about you? 2.   Topics—what will they talk about? 3.   Tools—how can you help the message travel? 4.   Taking Part—how should you join the conversation? 5.   Tracking—what are people saying about you?

FLIER AND PACK OF CARDS SENT TO CURRENT PARENTS ABOUT WELCOME WEDNESDAY’S AT LAKELAND CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

WEBSITE

Your school’s website should be the hub of news, activity, information and stories about your school. It is the most important marketing and communication’s tool for today’s school.

KEY ELEMENTS OF WEBSITE DESIGN

Brand—It is important to convey a strong brand for your school—including your logo, colors, and tagline. Photos—Large, professional photos on the home page will draw the visitor to your school. Content—Dynamic content and a compelling message is important to keep users returning to your school’s website.

©ASSOCIATION OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOL ADMISSION PROFESSIONALS ANNUAL SUMMER INSTITUTE 2013



How can you use a blog in your strategy? § Share student, faculty and alumni stories. § Share how your school is achieving its mission, § Provide educational expertise on important and timely issues.

Benefits of blog: § Provides an additional website full of content on your school. § Regularly feeds into blog subscriber in-boxes §  Increases SEO for your school. § Can feed back into your website and provide dynamic content.

BLOG

WEB-BASED MARKETING STRATEGIES

Hire a web company to guide in the search engine optimization process for your website. Launch a PPC campaign on Google AdWords. Launch a Facebook ad campaign using multiple ads to target several key messages (Everyday is an open house, messages, etc.). Parents, faculty and staff should write positive reviews on GreatSchools.com and Google. Launch a blog integrated on your website.

SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION

SEO is the process of adjusting websites and pages to gain higher placement in search engine results. § Where does your school come up on a web search?

Organic versus Paid § Organic – page titles and keywords in your website § Google’s AdWords – pay-per-click advertising for keywords.

It is critical for you to focus on search engine optimization as part of your marketing strategy. § Keyword research § Page titles § Page descriptions § Keyword-rich content § Dynamic content

FOCUS ON SEO



School administrators most often focus on website design when launching a new site but fail to focus on the most important elements – SEO and content development. It is critical to focus on developing content that is: § Relevant § Keyword-rich § Dynamic § Compelling

FOCUS ON CONTENT

Pay-Per-Click Ads § Google AdWords § Facebook Ads

Online Reviews and Directory Sites § GreatSchools.com § PrivateSchoolReview.com § Yelp.com § Google+

ADDITIONAL STRATEGIES

Programs § Academics, Athletics, Arts, Service, Technology, Character

People § Students, Parents, Leadership, Faculty, Staff, Coaches, Alumni

Results

YOU HAVE A STORY TO TELL

TELL YOUR STORY

Tell the story of your school through students, alumni, parents, faculty and staff: § Motivate every faculty and staff member to share one story to the

leadership § Focus on linking stories to the USP’s § Develop video vignettes that can be posted on the website, YouTube

and Facebook § Lead story in every issue of your email newsletter § Stories on Facebook, website and blog § Create positive buzz about your school

TYPES OF STORIES

Grads at other schools looking back on their experience at your school Faculty expressing their unique passion for teaching at your school. Students conveying what they like best about your school. Students answering the question, “What makes your school special to you?” Parent sharing why they chose your school for their child and the difference this decision has made.

FACEBOOK

Facebook can be used to connect to alumni, parents and friends of your school. § Set up an alumni group for your school § Connect with alumni to keep in touch with them

§ Set up a fan page for your school § Provide regular updates on your fan page § Tell stories of your alumni and faculty § Encourage interaction among your fans § Enter into conversations with your fans

CAPTURE THE MOMENT

When something happens in your classroom, on the field, or on stage that is communicates your school, you need to capture the moment.

The Power of One Post •  2,846 Likes •  139 Comments •  175 Shares •  22,139 People saw

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LEVERAGING FINANCIAL AID TO FILL SEATS

With empty seats, the schools took an aggressive approach to discounting tuition to maximize enrollment.


Q & A


Rick Newberry, Ph.D. 9770 Indian Key Trail Seminole, FL 33776

727.647.0378 [email protected] Blog: www.EnrollmentCatalyst.com/Blog

Facebook.com/EnrollmentCatalyst @RickNewberry

P.O. BOX 709

BOSTON POST ROAD MADISON, CT 06443

WWW.AISAP.ORG 203.421.7051


Education

Marketing Your School in Troubled Times -- 12 Strategies to Turnaround a Declining Enrollment, Rick Newberry, AISAP 2013