Word of Mouth - #1 Strategy to Market Schools

Let's keep it simple. From my experience there are a number of classic and contemporary methods to market your school. These should be at the forefront of any successful school marketing plan. A number of these are free or relatively inexpensive. The number 1 method though is ‘Word of Mouth’ is free!

School and Wider Community Support Needed

Now this may seem quite obvious and simple to many, that the number one strategy in a school marketing plan is word of mouth, unfortunately it can be anything but that. Word of mouth requires the great majority of people to be speaking positively about your school. This not only includes those directly in the school community e.g. staff, students and parents, but also those in the wider community who may influence those within and without of the school community. This would include: grandparents of students within the school, others directly associated with the school e.g. suppliers of school goods, professionals e.g. those charged with the finance guidance and auditing, architects and engineers of the building plan, people on the school parents and friends / citizens association and the school board, past students association, etc.

Hence, these people need to be fully informed and communicated with, concerning all the events and happenings within the school. This includes the positive and the negative.

Negative News Can Become Positive News

Why the negative you may ask? If the school is run effectively it will have policies and procedures to deal with most, if not all, circumstances it may face. When people within and without the school see that the school is dealing with those negative aspects in a professional, caring and effective way, they will more than likely support the school. For many of these people they will go much further and espouse how wonderful the school is in the way that it deals with negative issues. This can be a very effective method, overall.

Conclusion

Once this strategy is accepted as the primary means to market a school, it then becomes evident that the next challenge is to select numerous forms of communication and a number of strategies, which are going to be needed for the ‘word of mouth’ strategy to be fully informed and hence, successful.

The 'The Number One Strategy of School Marketing - Word of Mouth' blog post was written by Bryan Foster, author of School Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (3rd ed), (2011) - the paperback and ebook manual for school communications and marketing personnel - 340 pages of easy to read and implement summarized points - allowing for a considerably large number of quality strategies and examples to be detailed - with copyright remaining GDPL. Book available from Amazon.com and Createspace.com

Photographic images are the basis of any successful school marketing plan. The more relevant and appealing the better! Remember - 'a picture tells a thousand words'!!!

How often have you been inspired by a photo or image? The higher the content relevance of the image the greater the success should be. In any school marketing campaign it is the relevance of each component, which will decide the campaign's success. One poor choice can turn that campaign into a flop. A poorly chosen photo / image can lead to the viewer ignoring or not seeing the message on the one extreme, to being totally against the whole message on the other extreme.

The quality of the image is also important, yet this would also depend on the artistic use of it. Most often a quality photo of the chosen subject is necessary for success. Yet, sometimes a poorer quality, or artistically enhanced, image may be quite appealing in a specific circumstance. The product and demographic of the campaign would decide this.

The digital camera has opened up a whole new world for most people. No longer are very expensive cameras and add-ons needed for that successful photo. The quality of many of these digital cameras is quite extraordinary now. The raw photo is often quite good, however add to this the qualities that software, such as Photoshop can add, and a whole new world opens up to even the least qualified photographer.

Of course, quality DSLR cameras, associated lenses, lighting apparatus and software such as Photoshop, will lead to considerably higher quality images in the hands of a photographer of merit. The marketing campaign will dictate the quality of image required.

Even the basic editing tools included with most Windows, Apple and Android products can enhance an image. Often all that is needed is a little cropping or light adjustment.

The smart phone supporting a large enough camera these days can become a part of a successful marketing plan. A smart phone with the appropriate apps downloaded will allow various images to take on that 'Wow' factor.

The digital camera allows for a large number of photos to be taken. Don't be a miser here. You will find that some photos work for you while others won't. Hence, the more you take, the more chance of that 'magic' shot. In time you will develop an appreciation of the number of shots needed to achieve your aim.
The moving video image also has a place to play. The photo image is more often used within a video for special effect.

The photo image is a key component of any successful marketing campaign within so many common media. When an image is used effectively it grabs the attention of the viewer and makes them take note. Use it well and that 'thousand words' will become part of your marketing campaign.

The 'Photos - Key to a Successful School Marketing Plan' blog post was written by Bryan Foster, author of School Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (3rd ed), (2011) - the paperback and ebook manual for school communications and marketing personnel - 340 pages of easy to read and implement summarized points - allowing for a considerably large number of quality strategies and examples to be detailed - with copyright remaining GDPL. Book available from Amazon.com and Createspace.com

Branding is often a person’s first contact with the school. It is usually a visual image seen. It may also be a verbal input. This should be a key aspect of your school marketing plan.


Branding’s importance must not be underestimated.

First impressions do count!


First Impressions

The first impression may be gained from the following:

•   Reputations of school as espoused from someone within the community or other family member, friend or work asscoiate

•   Website design

•   Welcome by office staff  / office decor, etc

•   Prospectus / Information Pack - cover, pages and inclusions

•   Uniform of students and office staff

•   Stationery received

•   e/i-Newsletter, newsletter or newsletter design and front page content

•   Telephone call response by office staff / voicemail response / telephone transfer instructions / dedicated line for upcoming events recording, etc

•   White and Yellow pages listings

•   Advertisement in newspaper or magazine, radio, etc

•   e/i Flyer or Flyer

•   Student or staff at school

The branding of the school needs to be well considered and representative of the school’s vision and mission.
It needs to show how the school is to be seen within the community.


Uniformity

Branding needs uniformity to be a powerful, positive tool.

Mixing and matching branding causes a weak and disjointed image to be apparent. This is to the disadvantage of the school in a number of ways. The confusing images distract and hence do not leave the desired impact. The school may be seen itself as disjointed and ‘not together’ and hence causing various follow-up difficulties.

Other sections covered in the school marketing manual include:

• Key Branding Areas - Primary, Secondary and Tertiary
• Branding Changes
• Creativity of Design

The 'Branding for School Marketing' blog post was written by Bryan Foster, author of School Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (3rd ed), (2011) - the paperback and ebook manual for school communications and marketing personnel - 340 pages of easy to read and implement summarized points - allowing for a considerably large number of quality strategies and examples to be detailed - with copyright remaining GDPL. Book available from Amazon.com and Createspace.com

This may seem quite difficult for most school staff, and it is, however, I very much believe every teacher and school leadership person has at least one good book within themselves. It may or may not be on the theme or genre that you initially expect, but it is there.

All school staff have particular skills, be these professional, trade-based, business, religious or spiritual, artistic, social or family-based, etc. These days people who 'have made it' want to tell us how they did it. May be this is your area. May be you are very creative, tell great stories, or consistently have people eager to listen to your every word - may be a fiction book or autobiography is your best approach.

Unfortunately, we are not going to see the fruits of all these skills as most people will not ever get to complete their masterpiece. Do not be one of these. Make the commitment, plan the process and Begin! Begin! Begin!

You will then need to commit to either a full time or part time writing schedule. Extended breaks dedicated to writing are the best options. However, a well scheduled weekly part time regime and out of work hours is another viable option.

Options to Sell Your Book / e-Book

The key approaches a new author could take are:

• Chasing a Publishing Company to Publish Your Book - often quite time consuming and with a minimal chance of success.
• Self Publishing - Printing, Marketing, Selling, etc - printing costs are high. The problem of getting your book marketed and into the stores - difficult.
• Creating Your Own Professional Website and Online Store for e-book sales - relatively expensive to do well, however cheaper options are developing right now - but this method will get your work out there in a reasonably quick time. Then there is the challenge of SEO (Search Engine Optimization), i.e. the process of getting your website high on search engines - quite difficult but not impossible.
• Selling e-Book Through Commercial Online Stores - probably the simplest and least expensive. This is the area which has taken giant leaps in the past  2 years.
• Creating a Hardcopy in a Way Which is Inexpensive and Then Sold Online Through a Commercial e-Book Store - developing now before our eyes - and often offered through the top end online commercial bookstores themselves. This way allows for both the book and e-book versions to be sold, often by the same company - doubling your marketing options.

Check out the top end online bookstores for what they offer, such as Amazon.com. At Amazon com you can Amazon self publish your books inexpensively as well as sell your book as an e-book at their Amazon Digital Text Platform.



Check out various options to build your own website in relatively simple and inexpensive ways, such as at Yahoo Site Builder. Also see various search engines and others who offer this option, as one possible route for this to occur. This will allow for both the sale of your book as a book and an e-book online through both commercial online bookstores and though your own website and its online shop.

The more options you give yourself for sales, the more books and e-books you will sell.

You may also be interested for more information the blog post: How to Write an e-Book Yourself - Yes You Can - My Experience Writing 5 Quality e-Books

The 'How to Write Your Own Book or e-Book and Get it Sold - for Schools' blog post was written by Bryan Foster, author of School Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (3rd ed), (2011) - the paperback and ebook manual for school communications and marketing personnel - 340 pages of easy to read and implement summarized points - allowing for a considerably large number of quality strategies and examples to be detailed - with copyright remaining GDPL. Book available from Amazon.com and Createspace.com