Retention Tips: If Momma Ain’t Happy, Ain’t Nobody Happy

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When it comes to retention, parent satisfaction is essential. Whether through SurveyMonkey or casual conversations, you should have your finger on the pulse of the majority of parents at your school. Moms (and Dads and Grandparents, too) must be satisfied with the experience at your school or they will not re-enroll their kids. Simple truth you already know. But are you intentionally doing anything about it?

In our new course, “RETENTION: Keeping Your Best”, we offer 5 mini-courses on topics of retention, including how to include teachers in on the retention game, how run a re-enrollment campaign, and we give you a host of practical and actionable tips that you can implement right away in your intentional retention efforts.

The following tips are part of the large “39 Retention Tips” report that will accompany this premium course. The report breaks down retention into 13 different categories of retention so that your retention specialist/champion/coordinator will have a guide for being giving INTENTION and ATTENTION to your RETENTION!

In the area of working to ensure parents are understanding the value they are receiving, here are a few tips:

PARENT SATISFACTION:

• Give authentic open door access to your administration. While some parents can be know-it-alls and even high-maintenance nuisances, most parents simply want to know that they are treated as investors who want value for what they sow into your school. Host regularly scheduled coffees each month with the Headmaster, invite parents to hear from the Head of School via a podcast each week or some other venue where the parents know they can ask questions, express frustrations and catch and repeat the vision that the administration has for the school.
• Offer consistent “attaboys” to the parents about things that their children are doing well on and off campus. Certainly on-campus achievements in athletics or arts is worthy of acknowledgement, but do no underestimate the handwritten note to a dad about their son’s character in the classroom. Moms and dads beam with pride when others recognize their kids’ goodness on display. Look for these, and create a culture where teachers, coaches and staff are on the lookout for reasons to offer praise.
• In addition to (or in lieu of), offer parents bite-sized communication pieces that showcase value and excellence. Parents of lower school students need to see the value that parents of middle schoolers are receiving and how well your graduates are scoring on the SAT and in merit-based scholarships. Parents of elementary kids need regular reminders that smaller class size makes a palatable difference. When competing with free public schools (where a lot of elementary schools are strong), you have to showcase value frequently.

PARENT INVOLVEMENT:

• 20% of your parent pool will do 80% of the work, but work to shift this by seeking year-round jobs for all moms, dads and grandparents. It is frequently frustrating to ask for volunteers and not get anyone, thus, the default is to do it yourself. But if you solely rely on paid staff, you will not only burn out your staff, you will leave out families who need a reason to stay. Keep asking, be creative in the job descriptions and create a culture where each parent has a place to belong and feel needed.
• Especially important is to to note the “fence-sitting” families who you have doubts about their level of long-term commitment. Even if you have some high-maintenance families that always love to complain before they congratulate you, invite these individuals to participate in a “school improvement” committee where they have a platform to constructively express frustrations and suggest changes. Your committee can admit that not never idea would be implemented, but if you can allow a place of participation and look for tangible ideas to improve the school experience for everyone, you will turn these individuals into raving fans!
• Create specific family pages on your website that allow specific ambassador families to tell their story. Create unique videos, audio testimonials and written reviews from this family that other current families can relate to. Certainly a great recruiting tool, but these stories, placed on specific pages that these families can post on social media, are reinforcement for established families.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS PREMIUM COURSE ON RETENTION!

Retention Tip: Transition Year Marketing

One of the most common areas of enrollment marketing and retention strategy is to focus on the ever-important transition years. As you look to retain students, keeping them on through the transition years is an important strategy to have in place.

TIPS ON TRANSITION YEAR MARKETING:

PRESCHOOL to KINDERGARTEN

• REALITY: Parents will often take advantage of tax deductions for preschools, so private schools are viable options. However, as parents face Kindergarten, many assume that they will move back to a free public school option.
• RETENTION STRATEGY: Your Kindergarten teachers are the key to a preschool mom keeping her babies at your school. Every mom and dad is concerned about who will take care of their babies once they hit the Kinder age. Make sure your Kindergarten teachers are front-and-center at preschool pickup. Have your Kindergarten teachers provide videos about issues related to reading readiness, behavioral/parenting tips, and general discussion of the things that make a positive Kinder experience (mom will love your brief videos on their smart phones). Have fun, too, so create some parodies, some humorous routines on parenting strong-willed boys, and make them laugh and cry!

KINDERGARTEN to ELEMENTARY

• REALITY: In many suburban areas, the challenge for private elementary schools is that the nearby public elementary schools are really pretty good. Pastors are reluctant to promote a Christian elementary school because his pews are filled with good-hearted public school teachers. Because there are so many loving men and women who pour out their passion on teaching young kids, public elementary schools in your neighborhood are hard to beat on price (free!) Parents are definitely more involved at the lower school ages, too, so moms and dads are heavily invested in their school.
• RETENTION STRATEGY: Differentiation is critical at this stage. When you are competing against FREE public schools, you have to do the hard work of identifying the key elements that make you unique compared to the free options, like public or charter schools. Also, focus as well on what makes you stand out from your private school competitors. If you are not absolutely clear on your uniqueness, create something! Especially parents who have not experienced the public school option may assume that the choices between schools is really only based on price . . . and that is a lousy place to compete. Educate them on why staying from Kindergarten on into Elementary would be a better choice than going anywhere else!

ELEMENTARY to MIDDLE SCHOOL

• REALITY: These are some of the most difficult transition years. First, on a positive note, you may be able to pick up some new students who find their public middle school (or homeschool middle school) unacceptable or unrealistic. They may be receptive to a new option where the class size would be smaller which often provides more accountability and a safer place for kids. Parents and students alike find this attractive. If it didn’t make you seem desperate, I would encourage you to stand out front of the nearby middle school on opening day with a sign that reads, “If you are sitting in the car right until the bell rings because this place scares you, then stop by for a tour of our school where kids and parents feel safe and secure!” 🙂 The other reality, is that this is a year where you may lose some of your bright elementary kids because of finances or access. First, money is an important factor. Some parents will begin to think about college or even the current cost of living with multiple kids. Secondly, some moms and dads idealize the other private school or public school with better technologies, nicer facilities, and a whole lot more potential friends for their kids.
• RETENTION STRATEGY: The teachers are key in this transition. Blow out of the water the notion that middle school teachers are heartless compared to elementary schoolteachers. Showcase regularly your middle school math teacher, the volleyball coach and the middle school principal to the parents and students in 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th grade. Do not wait until the latter year to rely on a “field trip” to the Middle School building to secure the deal. Secure the transition by having your students and parents fall in love with the personnel who will continue to care for their kids during the awkward preteen years. Talk about how you will help them academically, emotionally, physically and spiritually (if appropriate) in ways that a government-funded institution cannot. 6th and 7th graders should regularly mentor and befriend students in 4th and 5th grade so that students will have Middle School peers to look up to and to follow guide them through the transition. Have your Middle School boys basketball coach volunteer to lead dodge ball once a month for all 5th graders so they develop a special relationship with him. Your MS choir teacher can be the judge for the fun solo competition in 4th and 5th grade choir – have the MS teacher offer loving tips on improving vocal performance. It is all about getting the personnel into the line of sight and into the heart of students and their parents as far back as 3rd and 4th grade, not to mention 5th.

MIDDLE SCHOOL to HIGH SCHOOL

• REALITY: Some parents may pull out at 9th grade because they begin to calculate the cost of college. As well, some families begin to think about what “college preparatory” is really all about and think they want a more “real world” experience to prepare their child for post-secondary life.
• RETENTION STRATEGY: Information is important at this point, but even more so is inspiration! You will need to provide testimonies of parents who have stayed through high school and brag on the holistic preparation their child receives. You should easily be able to produce graphics and infographics that showcase the amount of merit-based scholarships your seniors have received over the past 5 years. Have alumni speak video and audio testimonies about how your school prepared them for college, both academically and in the other “real world” areas of life. Offer unique education for seniors about managing personal finances, time management, and how to discover their gifts and passions for their lives. This added value for seniors and their families will be invaluable and will make you stand out with parents when they even begin to explore other options.

For more information about RETENTION, sign up for our premium course:

Retention: Nurturing Loyalty in Your School

A Christian school Head of School once remarked, “having one family re-enroll is our best fundraiser we can have.”  Another popular retention marketing slogan often quoted reminds us that “it’s cheaper to keep ’em!”  The reality is that, whether you are an auto mechanic, Christian school marketing consultant (smile), or a Christian school, we spend a whole lot more money to chase after a new customer than it costs to retain a current one.  But in reality, aren’t our current customers the ones often overlooked?

When I consult with Christian schools all over the country, I perhaps shock their Admissions departments when I suggest that they are not in the business of enrolling new students.  Rather, I suggest that we are in the business of cultivating “loyal ambassadors” for your school.  Loyalty suggests retention while your ambassadors are your non-paid sales team promoting your school for you!

I have assembled a few articles from around our site but many external sites that speak about maximizing your retention efforts: (more…)