May 10, 2024 | Blog Posts, Digital Marketing, Social Media Management, Social Media Marketing
School social media content plays an important role in any school marketing strategy. It’s not just about reaching out to prospectives students and their families; it’s also a space where you can create a thriving community around your school.
If you’re feeling stuck on social media content ideas for your school, don’t worry! We’ve put together some post ideas to help you breathe new life into your social media strategy.
Resourceful and informative posts
As school social media content continues to evolve, it’s becoming a primary information hub. Your school’s social media pages aren’t just about schedules and closures anymore; they’re also becoming go-to resources for your existing students and parents.
Use your school’s social media platforms as a place for resources by sharing relevant information that your audience will find useful.
There’s lots of info you can share as part of your school social media content strategy, like:
-
Term dates
- Open day events
- Community event your school is exclusively hosting
See how Mentone Girls Grammar promoted their Verius Series Event on Instagram. Their post features a vibrant graphic that showcases the school’s branding and colours, making it instantly recognisable. The caption gives a sneak peek into what attendees can expect at the event, with a brief overview of the highlights. Plus, it includes a clear call-to-action, directing followers on where to buy their tickets. It’s a smart way to drum up excitement and drive ticket sales while staying true to the school’s identity.
Posts about your school’s culture
While your school’s social media platforms are fantastic for nurturing community among current students and their families, they also serve as tools for engaging with prospective students and their families. So, you want to share content that provides insight into your school and its offerings.
These type school social media content don’t have to mimic the content found in your school’s prospectus. Instead, aim to highlight unique accomplishments, or activities that might pique the interest of prospective students and their families.
The goal is to distinguish your school and foster connections between your school, your faculty, and your students. By sharing these stories, you create an emotional bond that resonates with your audience and sets your school apart.
Wesley College in Perth demonstrated their strong school culture by joining the World’s Greatest Shave. They shared photos of students and teachers shaving their heads and showing support for leukemia research. These images captured the school’s spirit of unity and compassion, showing their commitment to making a difference in their community.
Your school’s social media pages provide prospective students and their families with insights into what your school has to offers. What better way to give a glimpse into life at your school than through the voices of students, both current and former?
Testimonials serve as powerful tools for sharing uplifting stories that educate both current and prospective students about your school’s culture and values. Additionally, highlighting successful alumni showcases the impact of your institution beyond graduation, showcasing your school’s legacy of achievement.
Emmanuel College in the Gold Coast did a great job building their school’s brand on social media. Sharing video testimonials from alumni before their annual reunion weekend. These videos told the stories of former students, showing how Emmanuel College made a lasting impact on their lives.
School sporting highlight
If sports are a big deal at your school or college, make sure to highlight key rivalries and major events that students, parents, coaches, and the community will be excited about. Leave space for on-the-ground content—like game highlights, spirited fans, or memorable moments during close matches or rivalries. This kind of content gets people fired up and engaged.
Knox Grammar set a great example by showcasing their sporting achievements, such as retaining the Thyne Challenge Shield for the eighth consecutive year. They didn’t just announce the win; they also broke down the scores and records made during the event. It’s a great example of how to effectively communicate and celebrate sporting achievements on social media while keeping your audience informed and involved.
Students put in a lot of hard work, and what they achieve is pretty amazing. Sharing your student’s accomplishments does a few good things:
- First, it helps create a supportive and grateful atmosphere.
- Second, it lets students know they’re appreciated and valued.
- And finally, it gives your community a peek into the great stuff happening at your school—exactly the kind of content they love.
Once you start, you’ll see how quickly people will start cheering on your students on social media.
For example, Geelong Grammar School did an outstanding job of showcasing the accomplishments of its graduating class on social media. They broke down the ATAR scores and highlight the top two students who achieved the highest marks, celebrating their hard work and dedication. These posts not only recognise individual achievements but also inspire pride and motivation throughout the school community.
Another great way of showing off your school on social media is by regularly shining the light on your different staff members.
These posts not only show appreciation for the featured person or team but also give your audience a chance to get to know the people who make up your school’s story.
They tend to spark a lot of engagement, with friends, family, and supporters of the spotlighted staff member. It’s a great way to reach out to your community and connect with a wider audience.
Just take a look at Barker College. They made an amazing video to commemorate and honour the remarkable tenure of Mr. Phillip Heath AM, their 9th Head, who marked a decade of leadership.
The video beautifully captured Mr. Heath’s profound impact on Barker College, showcasing his dedication, vision, and unwavering commitment to excellence. The video not only celebrated Mr. Heath’s achievements but also highlighted the enduring legacy he leaves behind.
With so much happening on campus, from clubs and sports to events and classes, there’s always something exciting going on. Capture those moments, add a catchy caption, and share them with everyone.
Show off the variety of activities that make up campus life and give people a taste of what it’s like there. Provide some context so they understand what’s happening in each photo and how they can join in on the fun in the future.
Penrhos College hit the mark by wrapping up their Term 1 highlights in a feature. By showcasing key moments and achievements from the term, they provided a comprehensive overview of campus life and activities. This post not only captured the diversity of experiences at Penrhos College but also demonstrated their commitment to celebrating student successes and community events. It’s a great example of how to keep everyone informed and involved in the school’s journey throughout the term.
#TBT, or Throwback Thursday, isn’t just a social media trend; it’s a fantastic opportunity to showcase your school’s rich history and memorable moments. Whether it’s a snapshot from 20 years ago or a highlight from last summer, sharing these nostalgic memories helps tell your school’s story.
When you share a throwback photo, not only are you honouring your school’s heritage, but you’re also telling your audience about the milestones that shaped your establishment.
Brisbane Girls Grammar nailed this idea by sharing photos from their 1960 Open Day to promote their 2023 event. By blending nostalgia with anticipation, they sparked interest and excitement among their audience, showing how their tradition of excellence continues.
Apr 30, 2024 | Blog Posts, School Photography, strategy and branding
Transforming your school’s photography from mundane to memorable can be a challenge, but it’s an important step in standing out from your competition.
What many may not realise, is that quality school photography can serve as a powerful differentiator for your school, and choosing the right school photographer plays a big role in shaping your brand image.
Every facet of your school’s brand, from marketing materials to your website and advertisements, relies heavily on the quality of your school photos. Instead of settling for lacklustre snapshots, it’s time to up your standards by collaborating with a skilled professional school photographer.
By combining creativity and expertise into your visual content, you not only enhance your school’s aesthetic appeal but also leave a lasting impression to prospective parents and students.
Why hire a professional school photographer
It is easy to underestimate the vital role a school photographer plays in your overall marketing strategy. If you find a photographer that can capture the essence of your school and consistently deliver images that are on brand, build a long-term relationship with them and empower them to bring creative ideas to the table.
A professional photographer should help you build your school brand in the following ways:
1. Lift the first impression of your institution
A professional photographer will lift the appearance of your school across the board with shots that are well-finished and professional looking. They help you to get across the subtle secondary messages that you wish to convey through the staging of the shot, the warmth of the photograph, and the moments they capture.
2. School photographer provide artistic direction for your photoshoot
It’s time for us to step away from the “three students under a tree” approach to our school photography and start thinking about creative storytelling.
How can we reinforce our brand message through our photos and how can we give outsiders a glimpse into what it is like to be a student at our College? These are the questions we will need to work through with our photographer. They bring creative suggestions to the table on how to communicate your message through staging and styling.
3. Professional post-editing
We may think that all the hard work is done once our photos have been taken, but a photographer’s skill really comes to light in post-editing. Your school photographer will spend time refining your photographs to correct alignment, colours and tone.
You may have a specific ‘colour treatment’ applied to each photo that is a part of your brand feel, or you may have photos that ‘pop’ by adjusting the sharpness of the image.
It’s important that you have a chat about your post-editing expectations and how much time you want the photographer to put into doing this while you are planning the photoshoot with them.
4. Streamline your look
One of the most important things that your school photographer can achieve for you is a consistent look and feel to your photos. This will lift your brand and ensure your school always looks its best in marketing collateral and on your school website.
Once you have decided to go with a professional photographer, you must do your part to ensure you get the best product. The more you are involved in the process, the better the outcome will be.
How to plan your school photoshoot
Here are a few ways you can prepare and run a great photoshoot for your school.
1. Creative concept – look and feel
Start your planning by thinking about the look and feel you want for your school photos. Write down the subtle message you want to convey, for example, individual attention, genuine care for students, innovation, and opportunity. Think about how this is communicated through your images and discuss this with your photographer.
2. Put together a run sheet for the day
When deciding on a date for your photoshoot, make sure you check the whole school calendar and plan the day around student activities and the uniform they will be wearing. Once you have decided on a day, the next step is to put together a run sheet of the shooting schedule, locations and students involved.
We recommend putting all the information into a table, like the example below:
Ensure that you time any outdoor shots for either first thing in the morning or in the afternoons. This is so you get the best lighting while the sun is not too harsh for everyone. It is also a good idea to have shots with younger children before lunch while they are still ‘fresh’ and their uniform is tidy.
3. Pick students
Your run sheet will give you a great overview of how many students you will need for your photo day. A huge success factor for the day is to ensure that you have enough variety of students chosen for each shot. So many times, schools may end up with a great variety of shots but use the same students in many of their photographs.
Try to plan for as many different students as possible. Also have a backup set of students for each shot so that if a student does not feel right for the shot, you have a few students on hand to swap out. A student that does not work in one scenario, may work perfectly in the next, so try as many variations as possible.
Remember to also run your student shortlist through with academic staff to make sure that you have chosen students who represent the culture of your school, both inside and outside of the classroom.
4. Letters home and permission slips
The last thing you want is the perfect photo for use on a bus or billboard, only to have a family request that it be removed after the fact. It is important to go the extra step of getting students and parents on the same page for two reasons, so:
1. Students arrive for the day looking their best
2. Parents understand how the photos of their children may be used for promotions.
Letters home should provide examples of how the photos might be used so that parents are okay with this. The collection of these permissions can be made simpler by asking parents to opt out if they do not want to participate, rather than requiring every family to opt in before a specific date.
If possible, provide students with at least a week’s notice so that they can purchase any additional uniform items required and get a haircut if needed.
5. Organise additional help for the day
A photo day is surprisingly exhausting and having extra help on hand will ensure your success. Have another staff member clear their schedule for the day to help you collect students and prepare for the next shot, while you are overseeing the current shot.
This way, you will get the most out of your time with the photographer. Additional help at hand will also ensure you minimise small errors from appearing in shots, such as incorrect uniforms or non-uniform items worn, untidy hair and stains on clothing.
Apr 17, 2024 | Blog Posts, Marketing for Schools, Website Design
Nowadays, the first impression of your school doesn’t happen at the front door – it’s on your school website. Just like any organisation, a primary school is expected to have a website that accurately represents their education institution.
Your school website design could make or break the overall image and reputation of your school, potentially hurting your enrolments. The best primary school website design give a glimpse into the school’s offering and community spirit.
The key information every primary school website should have
While there’s no doubt that a great school website design encourages website visitors to stay on your school site, ultimately, it’s the content that sells your school.
Primary school website content has 2 main elements: Visual and written content
- Visual content, which come in the form of photos, videos, and graphics.
- Written content, of course, is the text and words used to tell your school’s story throughout your site. This comes in the form of call-to-actions, headlines, blogs, and paragraphs.
While the type of content used on your site are obvious, what we want to focus on is how you use them. On average, website visitors only read 20% of text written on your page.
People aren’t reading your content, they’re scanning it – especially if they’re using their phone! Your school’s webpages are primary real estate that should be used to its maximum potential.
International Grammar School’s website is an example of a great primary school website design. They were able to capture the essence of a childlike atmosphere. They were able to balance the use of their branding style while keeping the information easy and accessible.
Their website is also intuitively designed. With call-to-actions are strategically placed to help guide prospective parents to find the information they need without unnecessary searching.
Remember, a bare minimum, the content your primary school website design should have:
- Parents hub. Make the necessary information that parent’s wanting to see instantly accessible. This includes fees, enrolment procedures, open days, school tours, and contact information.
- Proven statistics and proof of claims. It’s one thing to say your school’s the best, and another to have the data to prove those statements. Add real examples of how great your school is by sprinkling student and testimonials across your school website.
Up to date, professional school photos and videos
Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words. Your school’s images have a powerful impact prospective enrolees and will leave a lasting impression on parents’ minds. When prospective parents are looking at your primary school website, they want to know:
- What your school and facilities really look like now. Show off your school campus, any unique facilities. A great way of doing this is through video. Videos help capture the essence and vibrancy of your school environment like no other medium can.
- Are the students happy. Including student photos on a website is crucial for parents eager to gauge their child’s happiness and sense of belonging, offering a glimpse into their educational experience. These images speak volumes, reassuring parents of their child’s wellbeing.
We love how Saint Margaret College uses visuals on their primary school website. Instead of a static image, they’ve created a video narrated by a student, showcasing a day in their life with great shots of classes and activities. They’ve manage to effectively communicates an authentic and engaging preview of what life at the school entails without relying on lengthy text, making it a smart and engaging choice.
If you’re thinking of updating your school visuals, whether it’s through photos or videos, we highly recommend investing in a professional school photographer to help prospective families envision what to expect from your school.
What makes YOUR primary school different
When you’re thinking about your primary school website design, don’t forget to let people know what makes your school different from all the others out there.
You want to really show off the amazing stuff your school does, like any special programs you offer, unique teaching methods you use, and the facilities you have.
Don’t forget to mention any awards your school has won, and share what parents and students have to say about their experience there. By doing this, you’re not only making your school look great, but you’re also helping families see why they should choose your school over others.
Work with specialists in Australian primary school website design and school branding
Remember, it’s your school and your story. Your primary school website design should shine for all parents and guardians to see.
Roberts Digital is a digital education design agency, focused on building outstanding primary school websites, along with effective school marketing and branding solutions.
Right from the start, we prioritise visual and creative thinking, collaborating closely with you and your team to boost your school’s online presence.
We at Robert Digital will build a high impact, feature-rich primary school website design to communicate the unique values and vision of your school. Contact us today to learn more.
Questions regarding this article? Please email me at mara@robertsdigital.com.au
Jan 3, 2024 | Media Buying, Opportunity Highlights
In the world of modern marketing, the age-old billboard should never be overlooked – and with the digitalisation of these advertising tools, it’s never been easier to get brand visibility through programmatic outdoor media!
This week, we’re taking a look at how you can use digital billboards and outdoor media to up your marketing strategy.
The Opportunity
Digital billboards and outdoor media are an amazing way to increase your audience engagement and get your message seen by the right people. By implementing the correct strategy, you can pin-point your ideal audience, achieve the optimum location for your campaign with on-demand bidding, and design eye-catching and unique creatives.
The Benefit
Buying your billboard spaces on-demand means that you can get your campaigns up in a matter of days and adjust the strategy as you go! Digital billboards also allow for eye-catching animations, videos and even integrate real-time data. In fact, studies have shown that 65% of people found digital billboards to be one of the best ways to learn about an organisation.
Programmatically booking your billboard will also reduce the cost of your campaign because billboard owners will compete to have your ads placed on their boards.
How to Do It
Once you have your target audience and creatives ready to go, here are some tips you can use to get the most out of your digital billboard and outdoor media campaign:
1. Mix your inbound, outbound and local exposure
You may think that we should always go for a bigger billboard in high-traffic locations, but this is not always the best strategy! Try to cover your inbound traffic with large sites on main roads and then ‘go deep’ by targeting local spots such as bus shelters, waiting rooms, and local shopping centers. This will give you the perfect coverage for your campaign as well as the best cost saving.
2. Consider the locations
Billboard and outdoor media advertising has so many great locations for you to consider. You’ll find excellent visibility at bus shelters and train stations along city exit routes, as well as food courts at shopping centres. Gyms have also been known to offer fantastic success rates, and with most gymgoers averaging around 1 hour visit, you can guarantee your campaign is achieving great visibility.
3. The best times to advertise
Peak hours offer you some of the best visibility when optimising digital billboards and outdoor media, it’s the time when traffic (both on road and on foot) are at their heaviest. That being said, experts suggest the afternoon peak hour as the ultimate time to get your message out, as people are more relaxed on their way home as opposed to the morning rush. It’s always best to consider the location in this decision, for example, if you choose to advertise in the food court at the shops, meal times would be the best time to have your campaign on display.
It is the flexibility to adapt your campaign that makes programmatic outdoor so powerful!
Interested in finding out more on how digital billboards and outdoor media can help your organisations marketing strategy?
Contact us today for a FREE “What’s available in my neighbourhood” strategy outline. Submit an enquiry here.
Jan 3, 2024 | Blog Posts, Opportunity Highlights, Social Media Marketing
Create impactful campaigns with the ultimate targeting strategy
When it comes to marketing strategy, reducing costs and bringing in quality enquiries is the ideal goal. One way to achieve this goal is by focusing your budget on a more qualified audience for a greater chance of conversions and reduced ad spend waste.
This week, we’ll take a dive into the benefits of targeting Lookalike Audiences and how this strategy can help your organisation hit budget and conversion goals.
The Opportunity
Lookalike Audience targeting is a marketing strategy used to connect your organisation with new prospects whose behaviours and characteristics are similar to that your existing audience. Your Lookalike Audience targets people through those who have converted, meaning these new prospects are more likely to be quality leads to your campaign.
The Benefit
Targeting your Lookalike Audience is a great way to improve your conversion rate by expanding your reach to a more accurate audience. This strategy not only gives you a greater return on investment through precise targeting, it heightens the likelihood of conversion. By creating your Lookalike Audience based on an established audience segment, you can guarantee the efficiency of your campaign. Simply analyse the best performing creatives and copy used on your existing audience and use these successful ads as inspiration.
How to Do It
Follow these steps to create an impactful campaign targeting your Lookalike Audience:
1. Establish your Lookalike Audience
Start by identifying your “seed audience” – this should be built off your existing audience – those who have shown desirable behaviours and interactions with your organisation, ideally, those who have converted. Once your seed audience is identified, analyse their behaviours and characteristics to create your lookalike audience. Include characteristics such as demographic information , interests, online behaviours, and purchase history.
2. Find the right platform
The majority of advertising platforms (including Meta, Google, LinkedIn and Programmatic Ad Platforms) can help make targeting your Lookalike Audience a lot easier for you. Choose the platform that best suits your organisation and campaign goals, and upload your seed audience data. This allows you to make use of your chosen platforms algorithms to identify and target your Lookalike prospects.
3. Keep up-to-date
Be sure to analyse and optimise your campaign consistently, ensuring your Lookalike Audience is up-to-date. By monitoring your Lookalike Audience campaign, you’ll stay on top of evolving audience behaviours and can adjust any targeting options that need optimising, improving the overall efficiency of your campaign.
Targeting your Lookalike Audience is a fantastic marketing strategy, enhancing conversions and providing a greater return on investment by honing in on the more quality leads for your campaign.
To learn more on how to create an impactful campaign using a Lookalike Audience, contact us today or submit an enquiry here.
