When I started as a school marketing director, my goal was straightforward: increase enrollment. But that clarity turned into chaos as I faced an overwhelming number of tasks.
I soon realized that, without a structured school marketing plan, I was spinning my wheels.
What I needed was a way to break down my ultimate goal into actionable steps that guided parents through their journey, from learning about the school to enrolling their child.
Here’s how I turned a monumental task into manageable success!
A marketing plan isn’t just a document — it’s your roadmap to achieving your goals efficiently and effectively.
With limited resources and time, a plan helps you focus on efforts that yield the best results while ensuring consistency in your approach.
What does success look like for your school? It could be a 15% increase in applications or more engagement on social media.
Clear goals paired with metrics allow you to track progress and adjust as needed. For example:
By the way, we have a 30-minute recorded webinar on how to properly set goals for your school marketing plan in SchoolMint Enrollment Academy.
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Parents’ needs and concerns are central. Are they looking for strong academics, extracurricular activities, or proximity?
Use surveys, family feedback, or even exit interviews to gather insights into their priorities and challenges.
Questions to consider:
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Parents move through stages: awareness, consideration, and decision. Your marketing plan should align strategies to each stage:
Once the journey is clear, outline tasks to support each stage. For example:
Tools like Canva make creating professional designs simple, while CRMs help nurture leads.
Automating emails and follow-ups ensures no prospective family slips through the cracks, which is especially essential after you’ve hosted enrollment-focused events, such as school choice fairs or tours.
Additional reading:
Marketing is not a “set-it-and-forget-it” task. Analyze which efforts are yielding the most ROI and pivot as needed. For instance, are your Facebook ads driving sign-ups, or is your open house the big draw?
Looking back, my biggest challenge wasn’t setting the goal but figuring out how to achieve it. A simple plan helped me prioritize, execute, and ultimately, succeed. By understanding parents, aligning efforts to their needs, and continuously improving, I turned a daunting task into a repeatable success.
Your school’s story deserves to be told — and with a thoughtful marketing plan, it will resonate with the right families. So, don’t wait to start.
Your next enrolled student could be just a strategy away!
For over 10 years, SchoolMint has been helping schools, districts, and charter organizations attract and enroll more students through a range of tailored enrollment marketing services, including: