How to Increase Enrollment at Your School
5 essential steps to building your community
The search phrase “private schools near me” peaks, predictably, each August, as families make last-minute plans for their kids’ new school year. What’s less predictable is the selection that each parent makes after they’ve hit the “search” button. Every family prioritizes different elements of education and community; they each take their own path to discovering the right fit for their child.
And while August is the busy season for school searches, Google Trends also shows us that parents research schools and programming all year-round.
With such a wide sales window and so many variables to consider, how can you increase your school enrollment? We’ll look at this question through the lens private schools here, but really—this information can be used by dance studios, daycares, summer camps, and other educational and childcare programs, too.
There’s no one magic pill to boost student enrollment. Growth takes time and a range of tactics that all work together to increase engagement and convert families from prospect to enrollee. Here are a few tips to attract parents for school admission!
Know thyself and thy ideal family
Your administrators, board, and teachers should be on the same page about what is most important to your school community. What do you value most? What are your goals for this school year? Next school year? How about five and ten years down the road?
Work together to make sure your mission and vision statements clear and concise. Ask several students to read them and explain them in their own words. These statements should be down-to-earth and digestible! Having a good grasp on what’s important to your institution, your values and goals, will help you craft the right school marketing plan.
Think about your ideal new student.
How old are they?
What are their hobbies and interests?
What are the really good at? What do they need extra help with?
What is their family structure like?
What do the adults in their lives do for a living?
What is their family’s income level?
Write a 5-7 paragraph description of your ideal student. Then write one about your ideal family.
It’s important to have a specific image of your target. This specificity will allow you to develop an efficient marketing plan—one that saves you time, money, and energy by directing your resources toward the families who are most likely to feel like they’re a good fit for your school and vice-versa.
Solicit feedback and make improvements
We live in the age of adaptability, so if your school culture isn’t constantly changing, it time for a mindset shift. Make a habit of seeking out family input through quarterly surveys and regular town hall meetings. Ask what families need (and give it to them).
Adapting to the needs of your current families is not only going to make folks happier. It also increases the likelihood that they’ll encourage other families to join your school community (more thoughts on that below). Moreover, it means that you’ll ultimately be a better fit for those new families and will continue to grow and learn as a community.
And it’s not just current families that have great ideas for improvement. Prospects can be a great resource, too. When a parent tours your school and ultimately decides to pursue their child’s education elsewhere, call them. It might take a few trys to get them on the phone, but don’t give up. Leave gentle messages. Acknowledge that it seems they’ve made a different choice, and let them know that you’re hopeful they’ll share some insight so that you can make changes that will improve the experience for future families.
When you do reach them, don’t try to sell them on your school. Just ask thoughtful questions, listen to their responses, and take their feedback to heart.
Afterward, send them a thank-you note to tell them so. A real thank-you note with a stamp. And handwritten words. In ink that came out of a pen.
If you don’t reach them by phone, follow up with an online survey. When they complete it, send them a real, stamped, inky thank-you note, too.
Ask for referrals and give an incentive
Even in our digital age, word-of-mouth is the best marketing tool. Give your current families shareable content and incentivize sharing it.
29% of satisfied consumers refer a product or service by word of mouth. Cool! Nearly one out of three sounds pretty great, right? . . . Until you learn that of all satisfied consumers, 83% are willing to spread the word. What? 83% are cool with sharing the great services your school offers, but only 29% will? What happens to the other 54%?!
They’re simply 1) not incentivized and 2) not reminded to do it.
So create an easy-to-follow referral program with five or fewer steps. Outline each step so the trial is clear from satisfied current family to referred student enrollment.
Illustrate your referral program with a super-shareable infographic. People learn way better when text is paired with illustrations—according to one study, over 300% better. 60% of marketers surveyed indicate that original graphics and data visualizations (i.e. infographics) performed best of all visual marketing tactics.
Pair your shiny new infographic with a blog educating your current families on why bringing new families to your school will increase the educational and community value for everyone involved. Encourage your current families to share the infographic (even better if they add their own mini-review when they share it!), and incentivize it: when a new family enrolls, give the referring family something they’ll value—often, tuition vouchers, gift cards, or straight-up cash. Money talks.
Use digital media to your advantage
On average, we spend over three hours per day on our phones. That’s a lot of screen time, and it doesn’t even take into account time spent on a laptop, desktop, or tablet. Just phones. Sure, some of that’s from scrolling through facebook comments, some of it is from double-tapping Lil Bub’s new IG posts.
Some of it, though, is doing real research to answer questions that are important to the persn holding the phone—questions like where their child will attend school the next year. So you want to make sure that your school is highly visible, Each family’s needs are different, and they’re likely to build their short-list based on what they see online.
Make sure you have an online presence via Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and your own website, and that you curate it well with consistent, useful posts.
Ask for help
There’s no magic pill to overnight enrollment success, but with self-awareness, constant attention to feedback, commitment to improving your school community, and a carefully curated online presence, your student body will grow. It’s a tall order, I know! It can seem overwhelming.
So reach out to your community. Is there someone who will create post-tour surveys? Someone who will host school town hall meetings? Someone who can improve your website and write social media posts? It does, indeed, take a village. For each one of the suggestions listed in this article, there is someone with the skills to help you. Find those connections and begin making small changes now.