Teacher to Preacher

If we asked you to think about marketing, chances are you’d mostly think of marketing to customers: ‘How can we enrol more students here?’ Naturally, there are KPIs to hit and classrooms to fill, which makes it so easy to forget another hugely important market: your staff. Staff are the life and soul of your school’s brand, but they can be left behind in the hustle and bustle of a busy marketing office.

But why is internal marketing so vital? Choosing a school is a hugely emotional decision and families decide where they think their child will be happiest. This relies on the school developing a powerful connection with prospective families and ensuring they have positive experiences at every touchpoint. Sure, your website and prospectus need to look sharp, but you should never presume that teaching staff understand (or have even bothered to find out about) marketing messages. This can undermine expectations set by your advertising and leave a negative impression on prospective families. 

School marketing offices often have to balance things they need to do, want to do and, worst of all, odd jobs that for some reason, they’ve always done. This means that improving internal communications rarely reaches the top of the to-do list. Occasionally, you might tell staff about a new advertising campaign or an upcoming rebrand, but it’s usually to inform rather than to sell them on the idea.

By applying advertising principles to internal marketing, it will help you to build a greater understanding of, and passion for, your school’s vision amongst staff. This allows them to live the brand in their day-to-day activities and ensures that when families come for a tour, they’re more likely to experience the school in a way that is consistent with your external messaging.

We’re sure this all sounds great in theory, but how can you put this into action and ensure your staff choir sings from the same hymn sheet? 

Timing is everything

• Before you get started, you need to make sure you choose your moment. This is a critical to ensure that your objectives are successful. Rather than trying to convince staff of your brand vision ‘off the cuff’ at an 8am staff meeting, choose a point when the school is already undergoing change. Perhaps a new head has just taken the reins and want to make their mark, or maybe you’ve had a slightly wayward inspection report and need to rebuild. Times like this make staff more receptive and open to a new direction; ideal for implementing an internal marketing campaign.

CHOOSE A KEY

• The goal of an internal marketing campaign should be very similar to that of an external one: to create a meaningful connection with your audience. Therefore, the process should be similar too, so start with some research. Ask staff what they think the school stands for and what its brand represents. You could use a quick online survey or even arrange some in-depth focus groups; this will help you to establish where you’re at. Only then can you formulate a plan to execute an internal marketing strategy that convinces your staff of the school’s vision. This might include developing marketing collateral for your staff (if so, make sure it’s just as nicely done as external – even if you have to go digital to save some money!), building a micro-site or even having new recruits spend some time with the marketing team. By engaging staff with the school’s brand vision, their views will instinctively become more aligned with external marketing messages.

SING IT LOUD AND PROUD

• Once you’ve rehearsed and helped to shape the phrasing, let your staff sing loud and proud. In the majority of cases, teachers will know the school and the pupils ten times better than a marketer who sits in an office all day, so let them have their chance to shine. Authenticity is the key to effective storytelling and it is vital that you trust staff to effectively communicate with prospective parents. Teachers are proud people. They care hugely about their profession, the young people they work with, and more often than not, the school that employs them. So definitely don’t try to instruct them, but allow them to convey their passion, commitment and drive; the traits of every great teacher.

“Authenticity is the key to effective storytelling.”

Independent schools undoubtedly have a tough time ahead and bursars are likely to take a closer look at marketing budgets in the years to come. But if staff show no interest in understanding their school’s vision then that is a greater risk to a school than any financial metric. Your job as brand guardian? Give them reason to care.