6 Things To Consider Before You Start Marketing To Schools
Marketing to schools can be tricky. But if you get it right, it’s a smart business move. U.S. public schools spend an average of $12,250 per student each school year. If you have a product that’s creative, simple and educational, your business could thrive in this market. Here are some things to consider before you launch your plan for marketing to schools.
1. School scheduling
When marketing to schools, it’s all about the timing. Know your dates—school break and testing weeks are not good times for outreach. Learn when schools are in the market for new products and when their budget is available to them, and focus your efforts there. It will save you time and money to get this timing right.
2. Audience
With schools, there’s another “catch:” Many times the person who will use the product isn’t going to be the one purchasing it. And, while your two main audiences for school products are typically teachers and administrators, it may be that your product targets a different user group all together: students! This means your product needs to not only be appealing to administrators (if they make the decisions to purchase), but also to teachers and students. Quite a challenge!
3. Marketing channels
Use them all or as many as you can. Bring your product to schools via email marketing, pay-per-click advertising (PPC), search-engine optimization (SEO), display advertising, social media marketing and content marketing. Don’t just focus on one. Try several of these channels and see which gets you the best results.
4. Be ready for success
Having a strong marketing team is of the utmost importance when it comes to getting your brand and product(s) out there. And you’ll also want to be sure you have a team in place that can, because of your successful campaign, handle the volume of calls, emails, and inquiries from potential customers. Don’t get caught unprepared.
5. User input
Sometimes the most helpful tips can come from early users of your product. Think of them as trial customers, and ask them what they like best about your product and what they would change. This gives you insight to potentially modify certain things and to be ready to address issues as they come up.
6. Is a pilot the best approach?
Figure out the best approach for you and your product. Perhaps you want to start small by contacting only a few local institutions. As your company begins to grow, you can branch out and contact other schools. Steady growth may be a stronger business plan for you.
Not sure your team is knowledgeable enough or ready to navigate marketing to schools? MMS Education can help.
Clients choose MMS Education because of our deep understanding of the education market, backed by nearly 40 years of working with schools, systems, administrators, and agencies.
Most importantly, we embrace your mission and deliver on time and on budget, whether you’re outsourcing one specific project or need a complete turnkey operation.
Call us today at 866-382-6116 or fill out this form to see how MMS Education can help you reach, engage, and measure impact in the PreK-12 education market.
