School Marketing Strategies to Fuel Your Enrollment & Retention
Let’s discuss the elephant in the room.
Our Virtual Summit is about bringing everyone together to get to the heart of these issues with tangible tactics you can implement regardless of your team size or budget.
The best-kept enrollment marketing secrets are still waiting to be heard.
Browse the Sessions
No Surprises: Using DEI Messaging to Enroll Right-Fit Families
Now that schools are the latest institutions to be inserted into the culture wars, with parents questioning everything from the value of social-emotional learning to when and how to discuss race, it’s more important than ever to make sure that prospective families are aligned with a school’s equitable practices before they sign a tuition contract. And, once families do join your community, they may need to be reminded that your DEIB initiatives align with your school’s mission and values. Join the Browning School’s Director of Admission, Director of Enrollment, and Chief Communications Officer to hear how a boys’ school on the Upper East Side of Manhattan illuminates its DEIB focus throughout the admissions process and beyond so that myths are dispelled, assumptions are corrected, and there are no surprises for the school or the family once their son enrolls. Our goal is to have families know right from the start—whether that is in kindergarten or ninth grade—how equity and inclusion are lived at Browning and the benefit that it will have for all children, no matter which identities they embrace.
Jan Abernathy, Chief Communications Officer, The Browning School
Janetta Lien, Assistant Head of School/Director of Enrollment, The Browning School
Kelly West, Director of Admission, The Browning School
How to Build a Magnetic School Brand that Recruits and Retains
In the world of school choice, your brand can build loyalty and make connections, but it can also be a deal breaker. Learn how to make your brand work for you and whether a brand refresh or expansion could enhance your future. From social media to your website, what you display in your buildings, the usage of storytelling through student voice, and building community partnerships—all aspects of your brand play an integral role in your communications and marketing. Leverage your brand to engage students and families and be a center of influence for your community.
Chelsea Janke, Vice President, Integrated Marketing, CEL Marketing PR Design
Kelly May, Design Director, CEL Marketing PR Design
Academic Excellence is Not a Value Proposition: Digging into the Heart and Soul of Your School
Small class sizes, rigorous academics, warm community…have you recently used one or more of these features to promote your school? In an ideal world, when your school is placed alongside 3-4 others and everyone’s branding is stripped away, yours will stand out among the rest. Given the sheer amount of noise and everyday stressors that overtake the attention of parents everywhere, your messaging, and accompanying marketing and communications, must be succinct, yet information-rich, and differentiated, yet flexible enough for your target audience(s). In this session, we will address capturing usable feedback from current parents, alumni, faculty, students, and other constituencies; clarifying features vs. benefits, and amplifying the latter; and more.
Laurie Ehrlich, Founder + Chief Strategist, Elevate Marketing Strategy
The “New Normal” of School Search
The last few years of the pandemic have fundamentally changed how students learn. It has also changed how parents navigate the school search process for good. This session will leverage data and insights from Niche users and industry trends to show what is changing and what you need to consider to adapt to this “new normal.”
Ryan Bell, Principal Strategist, Niche
How to Make a “Wow-Worthy” School Tour: Lessons from a Professional Secret Shopper
The school tour is one of the most critical parts of your enrollment process. A great tour will turn a family that is just interested family into one ready to enroll. But how do you maximize this “last-mile” part of your enrollment funnel? In this presentation, Nick LeRoy will share with you the best practices he has observed in his over 100 evaluations of school tours across the country.
Nick LeRoy, Chief Enrollment Officer, SchoolMint
The Value of Hospitality in Enrollment Management
Using lessons learned from leaders in the hospitality industry, Kevin will share how Fairfield Prep has increased yield and retention in a shrinking demographic pool. From getting the entire leadership team on the same page to empowering the faculty and staff, and even to counseling families out of the process earlier in the season, Kevin has used the lessons of Danny Meyer (Union Square Hospitality Group, Shake Shack) and other leaders in the hospitality industry to transform his office from “Gate-keeper” to “Hospitality Agent” and wants to share his keys to success with you.
Kevin Altieri, VP for Enrollment Management, Fairfield College Preparatory School
Winning and Retaining Students with Data-Driven Marketing Strategies
In a battle to win and retain students, learn how to succeed in a digital landscape from Niche senior marketing leaders. Senior Digital Marketing Manager Meghan Tracy will share industry trends and how Niche is staying ahead of constant change. Digital Sales Leader Cooper Obenreder will equip you with tools and strategies to measure and maximize your efforts.
Cooper Obenreder, Digital Sales Leader, Niche
Meghan Tracy, Senior Digital Marketing Manager, Niche
Know Your Audience: Getting Your School Message Through to Gen Z
In today’s admissions world, data shows that students often have as much say in their final school decision as their parents (if not more!). Yet, all too often, schools produce admissions materials that are tailored just to the adult community. What about the kids? This session will provide strategies and examples for creating materials and messaging that will revolutionize how you think about and approach your work with prospective students and families. Through examples of our own work and those from other schools, hear how small (and big) changes can help distinguish you in the marketplace, tell unique stories, and inspire joy and connection among your current and prospective school community.
Deborah Baum, Director of Communications and Strategic Institutional Marketing, The Bryn Mawr School
Rebekah Jackson, Senior Director of Enrollment Management, The Bryn Mawr School
The Rules of Social Media Engagement in 2023
My, how things have changed in regard to school social media! While navigating the negativity in a highly politicized climate can drain your energy, there is still so much to celebrate. Grab a pep talk from School PR’s biggest cheerleader, Andrea Gribble. She’ll break down the proven strategies for social media success and engagement. You’ll learn: how to rethink the content shared on social media; how to build an army of storytellers; easy ways to save time; and more!
Andrea Gribble, Founder, #SocialSchool4EDU
Hidden Opportunities in Your Enrollment Process: The Power of Journey Modeling
In today’s competitive landscape, providing a seamless enrollment experience for prospective families is critical for the success of K-12 schools. Journey modeling, a method for visualizing and analyzing prospective families’ steps in their enrollment journey, can help schools identify pain points and opportunities for improvement. In this session, Rhodes Branding will explore the benefits of journey modeling and discuss practical steps to improve your enrollment experience.
