Some charter schools are under-enrolled. Others meet their numbers comfortably. And many have very healthy waitlists. Enrollment is the most critical number for a charter school. The number one reason for charter schools closing is enrollment.
What does your brand have to do with a school’s enrollment?
An investigation into the correlation between brand image and a school led to researchers concluding that
your brand image significantly and positively influences loyalty;
satisfaction significantly and positively influences loyalty;
loyalty significantly and positively influences hearing of satisfying experience;
and loyalty significantly and positively influences recommendations to others.
In shorter words, brand image and satisfaction influence word-of-mouth marketing by parents and students.
So, what stories are students and parents sharing?
The stories your word-of-mouth marketers share is your brand.
If you’re struggling with maintaining a student population, you need to reexamine the story you’re telling families of current and prospective students. Here are some tips.
Speak Your Community’s Language
Pinecrest North is a school in Miami-Dade. The surrounding area has a lot of Hispanic lower to middle-class families. Many families have both parents working multiple jobs. They want a better life for their children. They want their children to grow up and be successful business people. That’s why Pinecrest North’s brand story has language positioning them as a business school.
Your school needs to be aware of meeting the community on common ground. Let the community's desires help you develop your brand standards. No two schools should have the same brand story simply for the fact that communities are different, among other reasons.
Unique Learning Experiences
Your unique learning experiences make a big impression in your brand story. However, be careful to make sure that you are truly unique in your learning experiences. If your school offers S.T.E.M education and so does the next school, then this is not a unique selling point. You have to bring something totally unique to the story if the community is going to desire your school over another.
TAKE ACTION
If you want to achieve a recognizable, genuine, and authoritative brand in the community, you have to make sure you’re giving parents and students a brand they can be proud to share.
Determine what value you offer to your students, their families, and the community.
What makes your charter school unique? What do you do best?
What are you offering the community and families to remember about your charter school?
Identify experiences specific to your school in which students can or do participate. Discuss ways (e.g., signs, brochures, student celebrations) to better showcase and express those opportunities to your students and to the community.
Educational Brands guides schools with a wide range of brand strategy and marketing communication challenges. Partnering alongside charter management organizations and their networks, we work closely with school principals and their staff to provide expert insight and practical day-to-day guidance to ensure they develop achievable plans, stay on track and achieve their strategic goals.
To schedule a discovery call, click here.
תגובות