We'll admit it. We're like everyone else that works in the world of public education. We look at what other districts are doing to see how we can enhance our clients' communications practices. Part of our research recently involved looking at other school districts' websites to get ideas for a new design for one of our clients. In the process, we found that a number of school districts, albeit larger districts, are utilizing
email marketing. Boy, were we happy to see that!
So, we signed up to receive updates from these districts and have been getting them in the inbox for a couple weeks! Three Cheers for these school districts and email marketing!
- Every district deserves a pat on the back for implementing email as a channel for communications. Studies show that email is a highly efficient and cost-effective channel for communications, which fits well for many school districts.
- These districts are infusing interactive components that drive subscribers to different areas of the district website. A-Plus! The more interaction you can provide with your emails and drive people to your website, the more likely subscribers will browse other areas of your website.
- Finally, these districts have embraced the concept that you need to communicate with people on their terms, not on yours. This is one of the most difficult concepts for public school districts to embrace because they expect everyone to come knocking at their door with questions and requests for information. In the "Internet-Era", school districts must realize that they have to meet their stakeholders where they live.
While we were excited to see districts embracing this channel of communication, we have some food for thought that we think can help improve the overall appearance and performance of their messages. Four pieces of constructive criticism, if you will.
- Content - The majority of the emails we've received have been jam-packed with information. In some cases, almost too much information. Pick the BIG headlines you want to highlight and make those the focus of your main content area. A word of caution. Even for the big headlines, don't use the whole story in the body of the email. Remember, the goal of using email as a communications channel is to drive subscribers back to your website to read the "rest of the story" (say it like Paul Harvey, it sounds better). For the "less" important stories, if there is such a thing, put those in the right or left margin as headlines linked to the stories on the website. The whole idea here is to keep the subscriber from having to scroll down the page forever.
Personalization - While this may seem like a minor detail, it's still one that should not be over looked. It all starts with data collection. If you're not asking for subscribers' first and last name, along with their email address, start immediately. Then, you can use the merge tags within your ESP's software to custom the greeting to each person that receives the email.- Design - If you're a large school district, our guess is that you've spent some cash to have a stellar website built for your district. Extend the branding of your website to your emails. While many of the ESPs offer "off-the-shelf" templates, you should have the ability to create custom designs around your current website's branding efforts. If your ESP doesn't offer this ability or it's too "bulky", find an ESP that offers simple code migration from a website to the application.
- Images - Many of the emails we've seen have been using images that expand across the width of the content. Not good. This causes subscribers to scroll even more than usual, and could lead to quick closes before reading the whole newsletter. Resize all of your content images to 150 pixels wide or 150 pixels tall. Then, right or left justify the images with your content. Then, link the images to a larger version on your Flickr page (if you have one) or use the image gallery on your website. The absolute best thing to do is link the image to the story it corresponds with on your website. Give the subscriber every possible chance to get to more content on your website.
To those school districts embracing email as a viable channel for communications, we salute you! Take the 4 points above and try to apply them to the next email you're creating!
Now, go forth and email!
Change is difficult, especially when dealing with creatures of habit. And those of us with experience in education know there are no greater creatures of habit than school administration and personnel. That being said, not all change is for the worse. Making the decision to bring new technology into your district or not, should be just like making any other decision, well researched and thought out. The big problem many school districts face is they are not sure how or why they should use social media and other interactive marketing outlets.
1) Identify Your Needs - School districts are as unique as the communities and students they serve. What works for similar sized districts might not be the best approach for yours. The first question you need to ask yourself is simple; how can we better communicate with all of our stakeholders? From parents, to businesses, to senior citizens, all of a district's audiences need to be taken into consideration when identifying communication needs within a district. Other questions to ask yourself during this step include: Are our current communication efforts effective? How do we know if those efforts are effective? What do our stakeholders expect from our district in regards to communication?
2) Do Some Research -This may sound like a simple step, but it is the step that will make or break the whole process. Over the past 4 years, countless social media outlets have emerged, everything from basic outlets such as Facebook and Twitter, to more niche outlets like Yelp and Foursquare. The important thing about this step is to try to and keep it simple. There is no reason for schools to use unique outlets just because they are the "flavor of the month." Stick to what you think would work best for your district. Our suggestion; a multi-faceted approach. Facebook allows districts to set up their page as an extension of their district website. If it is important enough to have on the district site, it is probably worthy of being mentioned on the district's Facebook page. However, that is simply our suggestion. Remember, your district is unique!
3) Make A Decision - Your needs are identified, and you know what you want. Maybe your district has decided to keep it simple and just launch a Facebook page, or maybe your district wants to try and bring in everything but the kitchen sink. Either way, you need to make a decision! In dealing with school administration, decisions often take long periods of time to turn into results. The earlier your district can make a decision to use new marketing outlets, the sooner that decision can result in action.
4) Hire The Right Help - If you have made it this far don't negate all your hard work with the wrong help. When trying to decide what kind of help to hire, look to the amount of technology and marketing outlets you have decided to utilize. If your district is keeping it simple, paying a district staff member to take on the extra work may be the right direction to go. However, if your district plans on undertaking a communication overhaul, you should probably look at hiring a person or persons from outside the district. There are many firms beginning to break into the education industry with specific concentration on communications and marketing. Like everything else in this process, your help is specific to your district and your fiscal situation.
5) Stick It Out - This change is not going to yield earth-shattering results over night, it will not save your district from a financial disaster and it will not improve test scores. It will, however, ensure improved communication within the district, open two-way communication between the district and its' shareholders and do it all in a very cost-effective manner.
Small businesses are struggling to develop internet marketing strategies. 
During a presentation today to over 120 small business owners, attendees were asked 3 questions and asked to respond by raising their hands.
- How many people called a number for a company they saw on a billboard? No one raised their hand.
- How many people called a company based on a direct mail piece they received? 5 people raised their hand.
- How many people are going to do a Google search today? Everyone raised their hand.
The group's response to question #1 was not surprising, given the recent push by multiple agencies to encourage safe cell phone usage while driving. Response to question #2 was also not surprising as only 1-3% of direct mail actually results in generating business for the companies that send them. And, quite frankly, the overwhelming response to question #3 was not surprising.
What does this tell us? The internet is deeply engrained in every aspect of our lives. People are depending more on the internet today than they ever have, regardless of where they live. Whether for business or pleasure, people use the internet to research vacations, future purchases and anything else you can imagine. What makes this more compelling is that the group of business owners is located in a VERY rural area. An area which many people say is still lagging behind the technology curve. This area, contrary to popular belief, is not lagging behind the technology curve. Rather, this area is lagging behind in the area of critical thinking and analysis. For years, these same business owners found success in marketing and advertising through traditional outbound channels, just as many Fortune 1000 companies. But, with the advent of the internet, and the growth of accessibility, small businesses, especially in rural areas, have ignored the internet's power and its reach.
At the end of the presentation, the audience was asked 2 more questions and asked to respond by raising their hands. The first question asked how many people have a website. The overwhelming majority raised their hand to respond that they did have a website. The final question asked involved 2 parts and was very pointed and telling. The question revolved around the audience's ability to calculate a return on investment for their website based on the conversion rates of visitors to leads, and leads to customers. Only 1 person raised his hand, and it was a weak response at that.
The point. Every business, regardless of size, location or industry, needs to embrace the internet and their website as a viable source for developing new business. Websites, especially those selling B2B or selling B2C services, should produce a return on investment that is measurable. If you can't measure the return on investment of all your marketing activities, whether through traditional channels (radio, TV, billboard, etc.) or the internet, then it would be a wise decision to discontinue marketing in those channels.
We’ve all done it. We’ve fantasized about celebrities and sports icons we’d take to dinner, have coffee with, or who knows what else. Well, I’m no different, except that my focus would be on successful entrepreneurs or business leaders. I would love to sit down with these 5 individuals at one table and have a discussion about business. I would probe their minds for tidbits of wisdom about management, economics, staffing and life.
All of these individuals have left an indelible mark on the business landscape. So, without further delay and in no particular order, The Knights of the Hexagon Table! Oh, the sixth side is a place for me to sit at the table!!!
5. Paul Tagliabue – Tagliabue served as Commissioner of the National Football League from 1989 to 2006. During this period, the NFL experienced unprecedented growth, adding 6 new teams and bringing football back to Cleveland in 1999. In my opinion, Tagliabue’s guidance of the league is the reason that people stop their lives at 1pm every Sunday from August to February. And, lest we forget, that it was Tagliabue that guided the league through the horror that was 9-11-01. Many lessons in labor relations and crisis communication could be learned from this man.
4. Robert Kiyosaki – Kiyosaki has built an empire around the Rich Dad brand. His focus, and I’m paraphrasing, is to raise the financial literacy of the under-educated. This man, along with his wife, have built an empire around self-help books and speaking engagements worldwide. Aside from learning more about how the financial world really works, Kiyosaki can teach a thing or two about building a brand!
3. Henry Ford – Those who know me and my family’s history know that I am a devoted General Motors man. My grandfather retired from GM, and that’s the only vehicle brand I’ve driven in my adult life. But, Henry Ford was an innovator. He developed the assembly line, which today includes robots and tons of automation. I would love to see Ford’s face in one of his brain child’s plants. Innovation and risk-taking lessons from a man that revolutionized the automobile industry.
2. Warren Buffet – Who wouldn’t want the “Oracle of Omaha” and his mind at the dinner table? Innovation? He’s got it. Financial IQ? None higher. Risk-taker? Find me someone that will start a credit card business as part of an insurance company, and then a year later stop it and lay the blame for the flop squarely on his shoulders. I’ll bet if I took a poll of business owners today, regardless of industry, better than 75% would respond that they would love to have 30 minutes with Buffett. Sure he’s got a ton of cash. Sure he’s built a behemoth of an empire in Berkshire-Hathaway. But to hear the man speak in public, you’d never know that he’s the second richest man in the world.
1. Chuck Stone – Who in the hell is Chuck Stone, and why is he on this list? Chuck is my dad, and he makes this list because of one piece of advice he gave me when I started this business. The faster you grow, the steeper the fall if you fail. My dad’s a simple man. He never finished his college education (he played 4 years of football at NC State) and has worked in the construction industry since he left the NFL at the ripe age of 23. Growing up, his life wasn’t easy. Raised in a broken home with a father that didn’t care and a mother that had psychological issues, my dad made the commitment to break the cycle. He committed to raising his children with love, compassion and discipline. He took time to teach my brother and I trades and skills that he learned. He taught us how to be street smart. He taught us to respect our elders, to hold the door for women and to never forget where you came from. Dad’s simple outlook on life, and business for that matter, make him one of the 5 I’d like to have at the table.
Like it or hate it, these are the Knights of the Hexagon Table. I would love to get your feedback. Who would you sit at the table with for dinner?
Check please!