Did you know that roughly 4 million users around the world are on social media? The abundance of people and organizations that use social media on a daily bases make tools such as Facebook and Instagram invaluable marketing opportunities to meet school communities where they are—on social media.
Learning to market on social media, however, works differently depending on what kind of business you’re marketing. As such, schools have to approach their social marketing strategy in a different manner than a fortune 500 company.
Do you want to learn how to market a school on social media? Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about how to market your school on social media platforms.
1. Choose a Primary Channel
Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat…it seems that there is a new social media channel introduced to us daily, which can make it tough for schools to select what channel to use. Furthermore, many schools try to market on every channel so that they don’t miss out on any potential marketing opportunities.
However, it can be difficult for schools to manage multiple platforms at the same time. Furthermore, not every social media outlet will target the audience your school is trying to reach. For example, if your school is marketing an upcoming admissions event, TikTok may not be the best options since the primary target would be parents.
As you are learning how to market a school on social media, begin with a single channel to avoid target audience challenges, and consider adding more as you grow your social media presence.
Facebook is a great platform for you to start with because it has a tremendous reach. Facebook draws in roughly 70% of Americans, making it a prime platform for schools to take advantage of. However, keep in mind that if you’re marketing to kids, Facebook is not the best option because they spend most of their time on Instagram and TikTok.
Instagram is a great platform for schools because it targets younger users including new parents and students. To give you a demographic idea, roughly 67% of 18 to 29 year-olds use the Instagram regularly.
Schools should choose their channels based on their target audience. If you want to reach parents, you may have better success on Facebook, while schools aiming their marketing efforts at students are more likely to succeed on Instagram.
Regardless of the channel you end up going with; you’ll have the option of using either PPC tools or organic content. Both types of content have benefits for your school’s marketing efforts.
2. Keep Your Brand Consistent
Another important component of marketing your school on social media is creating a consistent brand. Your spoken and visual materials all need to contain the same school brand image.
Moreover, to help you develop a consistent brand, you’ll want to ask yourself some key questions. Think about what type of school you are, the programs you offer, the benefits you offer to students, your teachers, and what differentiates your school.
Accordingly, your school website should answer all these questions. Albeit an elegant and optimized will bring new eyes to the school, it may not be enough to convert a lead to a new enrollment. That’s why your social media needs to be consistent with your website to provide a steady image of who your school is and what it offers to target audiences.
Schools with inconsistent branding don’t inspire confidence. Students and parents may turn away from these schools because they aren’t entirely sure who the school is or whether the information they provide is accurate.
3. Build a Sub-Brand
Now that we’ve outlined how to build a consistent brand, it’s time to consider sub-brands. Schools might consider creating sub-brands that highlight areas in which they excel. For example, your school might develop a sub brand focusing entirely on entrepreneurship, arts or athletics.
Once you’ve chosen an area to focus on, begin publishing content on your social media channels. Prospective students and their families will have an opportunity to view and engage with posts about curricular activities, events, and more!
Ultimately, sub brands will help prospective students learn more about their areas of interest that may result in them scheduling a school visit or filling out an application.
Remember, you don’t need to build an expensive or flashy sub-brand. All you need to do is build a sub-brand that will draw consistent attention from your audience and entice students to enroll in your school.
4. Comment on and Share Other Posts
Another tip for building a successful social media marketing strategy for schools is to comment on and share other people’s posts. We live in a world of social validation as many people using social media focus solely on likes and hearts. By leaving your stamp of approval on other’s posts, you help connect with new people and businesses.
To implement this strategy, look for other education-related organizations and schools. When you find something that’s related to your school or that you want to promote, leave a comment or share the post to your story.
While it’s true that everyone loves a compliment, it’s also true that most people don’t want to be overwhelmed with your social activity. Has your social feed ever been flooded by posts that you don’t care about? Create a social calendar that will help you limit your shares, likes, and comments so that people are engaged rather than annoyed.
5. Provide Followers With Information and News
Social media can be a a fun and entertaining outlet encouraging people to share important information and news updates with their followers.
Most of us scroll through posts and stories with little engagement because of the type of content that floods our feeds. Generally, what stands out is interesting content in the form of are videos, photos, and breaking news stories
Schools need to keep this in mind when posting because most social media tools have a built-in algorithm that only puts content in front of people that is likely to cause them to like, share, or comment. Accordingly, schools should consider creating posts using video to highlight what’s happening in the school, important updates, or news will make their followers more likely to interact with the post.
Plan to publish posts about upcoming events both in the school and in the community. Even if you’ve had the event on the your website for months, followers won’t necessarily have it on their radar.
If you remind your followers through social media posts, however, they’ll be more likely to not only engage with your social media account but to actually attend the event or support your school.
6. Create a Posting Schedule
Another key aspect of a successful school social media marketing plan is to create a posting schedule. Posting schedules is an actionable strategy that helps you keep your followers engaged with your institution.
Knowing the types of content to publish on your page and where you’ll share it is an important part of building your schedule. Once you have that information, you can begin planning how regularly and frequently you’ll share your posts.
First, you’ll need to get an idea of how many posts you want to share with your followers each week without overwhelming them. Moreover, you’ll need to figure out which channels you’ll be sharing posts with.
Remember that you should focus on your primary channel first and then publish posts on secondary channels. If Facebook is your chosen social channel, for instance, you should make sure that you publish the most posts on that platform and only publish a few on other platforms.
Next, you may want to cross-reference your school’s social media posting calendar with your admissions calendar. You can amp up the posts around key deadlines and enrollment timelines.
7. Make Your Posts Entertaining
Aside from the value schools provide to their students and overall community—education is fun.
Many schools post regularly on social media, however, the posts are often focus on what administrators consider to be important as opposed to what the community wants to see.
Students are more likely to engage with entertainment than they are to serious business, and parents want to see what their kids are doing in school. Moreover, students want to find an educational institution where they can engage in every aspect of the institution and have fun doing it.
As part of your online marketing plan, communicate the positive atmosphere and fun of learning on your social channels. Make it known that these are hallmarks of your school and are the reasons why so many students enjoy being a part of your community.
Keep in mind that people may gossip about issues they are concerned with, especially on social media. Make your social media page a place where your students feel uplifted and inspired rather than bogged down with negativity. Schools might also consider eliciting positive reviews from parents to combat the negativity.
Learn How to Market a School on Social Media
Learning how to market a school on social media isn’t hard when you implement these tips, tricks, and strategies. You can begin connecting with your students and boosting your institution’s enrollment by implementing them in your social media marketing strategy.
Do you need additional assistance with marketing your school on social media? Get in touch with VujaDay Creative Digital Agency, and we’ll help you get to work building a successful social presence.
