Marketing Ideas for Private Schools

Private school marketing requires time, budget, and resources that can be challenging to allocate. Traditional marketing worked in the past, but today digital marketing is the best way to gain more students. Regardless of your budget, your school can stay relevant using inbound marketing strategies without having to spend a lot of money.

11 Marketing Ideas for Private Schools

Here are 11 marketing ideas for private schools.

  1. Evaluate and optimize your website

In today’s online world, many families will have made a decision about enrolling in your school before an application is submitted. Therefore, it’s essential your website is findable and answers families’ questions in an easy-to-read format.

Considering a redesign? Click here for “It’s Time to Rethink the School Redesign Process”.

Additionally, here are a few posts that will help you update your website:

  1. Publish blog posts regularly

While it can be challenging to find the time to blog regularly, a school blog can position your school as an expert on topics related to education, improve your school’s website in search, increase enrollment and boost retention. A blog is the foundation of a content marketing strategy while giving you content to publish on social media. Need ideas for school blog topics? Click here for “50 Captivating Blog Topics for Schools”.

  1. Optimize for local search engines (SEO)

Local search engine optimization (SEO) for schools is an important marketing strategy. Local SEO will help you get your school listed in Google and other search engines. If SEO is done correctly, your school will show up in Google Maps, making it possible for families to find your school and calculate the distance from home or work. You can get an SEO audit report of your school's website using my free tool: Free SEO Audit for Schools.

Here are a few more SEO posts worth checking out:

  1. Develop a robust social media plan

Social media networks offer schools an opportunity to convey a sense of familiarity in addition to building community with families by sharing content that encourages engagement. Social media should keep families up-to-date on school activities, events, and news, as well as promote educational content published on your blog. Want more ideas for your school’s social media strategy? Click here for “10 Creative Ways to Boost Your School’s Social Media Presence”.

Check out these other posts to help improve social media at your school:

  1. Email marketing

Email marketing for schools is one of the most powerful marketing tools on the planet. Everyone checks their email – most people several times a day! For ideas on how to improve your email marketing strategy, click here for “8 Reasons Parents Aren’t Reading Your Emails and What To Do About It.”

  1. Share stories about your school’s successes

People love stories, and parents are no exception. They want more than the latest statistics about how great your school is – they want real examples of your program in action. Use testimonials and real-life examples to show how successful your educational programs are. This will give parents the information they need to make a decision to enroll their children in your school. Read more: Storytelling is Key to Forming Strong Connections with Parents

  1. Create parent personas

Parent personas are based on a profile of your ideal target audience. They are used to focus your marketing activities to attract parents that are likely to enroll their children in your school. For more information on how to create a parent persona, click here: “How to Create Accurate Parent Personas that Work for Your School”. For more information on conducting a social media audience analysis, click here: “How to Conduct a Social Media Audience Audit for Your School”.

  1. Video marketing

Video continues to be one of the best marketing strategies of our decade. If it isn’t already, video marketing should be central to your outreach and campaign efforts.

Video is a versatile tool that can be used throughout the entire parent enrollment journey. Want ideas for video marketing topics? Click here for “27 Video Marketing Ideas for School Marketers”.

  1. Offer gated content

Gated content is used to generate leads by providing prospective parents with valuable information in exchange for their name, email address, and possibly other information such as the number and ages of school-age children.

Gated content, also called a content offer, is usually a downloadable ebook, whitepaper, webinar, or other assets that offers information parents will find valuable. The benefit of using gated content is to gather contact information from families so you can nurture your relationship with them in the future.

  1. Adopt marketing automation

Marketing automation can be a very useful marketing tool by automating repetitive tasks such as emails and social media posts. Organizations that invest in marketing automation find an increase in enrollments and productivity. To learn more about marketing automation for schools, click here: “10 Benefits of Marketing Automation for School Marketing”.

  1. Invest in paid advertising

Online paid advertising is commonly referred to as pay-per-click (PPC) ads. PPC ads, usually Google or Facebook Ads, can be a great way to drive traffic to a landing page. With Google Ads, schools can optimize for relevant keywords. Facebook Ads are effective due to the granular nature of audience targeting possible. Well-written ads address the needs of the family and encourage them to take action on a landing page.

A retargeting advertising campaign is usually one of the best uses of school marketing budget funds. These campaigns allow schools to display ads to users who may have visited the website or, at the very least, have searched for terms related to your school.

Marketing ideas for private schools may vary from small-scale SEO campaigns to large-scale initiatives. The key to success lies in consistently implementing your marketing plan. The marketing ideas listed above will help your school ensure you’re found by parents likely to enroll their child(ren) in your institution.

About the author 

Brendan Schneider

Hey, I’m Brendan, and this is my blog. After 28 years working in private, independent schools in mostly admissions, enrollment, marketing, communications, and fundraising roles, I decided to make SchneiderB Media my full-time job, where I help schools get more inquiries through my Fractional Digital Marketer program. I also started the MarCom Society, a membership created expressly to help, support, and train marketing and communications professionals at schools.