Private schools are continuing to seek out ways to differentiate and showcase their uniqueness. As you market your school to prospective families, just in the same way you wish to make a strong first impression at your Open House event or Preview Night, make sure your Facebook Page is an impressive first impression as well.
The above image is a sample of how a private school could do a creative Timeline cover to have some fun and showcase the personality of the school. The custom tabs in the image (WANT A TOUR? / WANT MORE INFO? / WATCH OUR VIDEOS) allow you to drive new fans to specific custom landing pages (learn how to use the specific URLs of these landing pages on Facebook).
Giving prospective specific action steps increases the amount of time they stay on your page. In marketing, you never want to let the prospective family wander in and try and figure out what you are about. You take the lead, showcasing your school’s best features, and driving them to an action/commitment step!
To understand further their significance of your school, watch the video below: “The Importance of Custom Facebook Pages for Schools”:
In order to significantly increase your retention rate, you have to cultivate “loyal ambassadors” in your school. In this podcast episode, we begin a 2-part series on creating a culture throughout the year to ensure you have the highest retention rate as possible, and that your current families are enthusiastically spreading the word about your school.
In this episode of our school marketing podcast, we share some ideas on RETENTION.
In an upcoming episode on our private school marketing podcast, we are talking about retention and the efforts it takes to cultivate “loyal ambassadors.”
Today, I read 2 articles to encourage your school retention efforts:
The article by Bolden reinforces how simple efforts play such an important role in cultivating an environment where families return year after year (loyal) and they talk enthusiastically about your school to their friends as if they were on staff with the school’s marketing department (ambassadors)!
To learn more about retention ideas, download the free ebook, “3 Rs of School Marketing” at the bottom of our website. It’s FREE!
As you prepare for marketing events like a preview night or open house event, what if your Facebook page was a “virtual” open house?
What if they could get a “tour” of your school’s uniqueness even before they called or came to your campus?
What if they could watch videos, see sports schedules, and even schedule a tour – without having to leave Facebook?
With a custom Facebook page, this is all possible!
(NOTE: This post contains content that may be outdated. If you have questions about a custom Facebook page for your school, email Donny by clicking here)
By clicking the image at the top of this post (or just click here), you will see a new custom Facebook page that we recently did for The Woodlands Christian Academy in the north Houston area. On the enlarged image, you’ll also see our own Facebook page and some highlights of how we customized our page. This will give you a taste of all the possibilities for your custom Facebook page! And be sure to watch the video above to that explains the importance of having a custom Facebook page.
Here are some of the things you can do when we customize your page:
Be creative in the Timeline cover photo
Integrate your school’s logo into the profile image (and thumbnail image)
Showcase up to 3 custom “tabs” (see Woodland Christian’s WELCOME, ALUMNI and ATHLETICS as example)
Establish a “Like/Reveal” gate where you increase the capture of LIKES on your page (that is the goal!)
Up to 3 custom landing pages corresponding to the “tabs” mentioned above
On these landing pages, you can:
Link to an external site (i.e., your school’s website)
Link to a Facebook group (i.e., your Alumni group on FB)
Embed YouTube or Vimeo videos
Embed LIVE portions of your website (via iframe technology; i.e., sports schedules, staff directory, etc.)
Incorporate creative design that mirrors your school’s branding
Capture email addresses, newsletter signup (i.e., using MailChimp or Constant Contact embed code)
Link to other social media channels (i.e., Twitter, Pinterest)
Link to map
Include an on-screen QR code linking to another image, video or PDF
Drive traffic directly to these landing pages via FB ads, email marketing, etc… (each landing page has a unique URL)
. . . and so much more!
These custom landing pages act as a “mini-website” for some, and for others, it may be a more dynamic representation of who you are! When prospective families are searching for private schools, don’t you want your FIRST IMPRESSION to be a powerful one?
Through the end of Novtember, you can get all of the above for $150off the normal price! Use promo code: YSM600 (this promotion is no longer available)
In an upcoming episode on our 
