Rick Newberry, Ph.D.

Rick.Newberry@EnrollmentCatalyst.com www.EnrollmentCatalyst.com

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

During this webinar, we will focus our discussion on using the WEB to inspire WOM for your school.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Michigan State

Starbucks

Family

Blog

Coaching

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Enrollment Catalyst partners with schools to provide coaching for school leaders in their

school’s enrollment management and marketing strategies needed to reach their goals.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Word of Mouth is the number one way that prospective families discover your school.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Do you remember the old Faberge Organic Shampoo TV commercial?

Complete with 80’s hair, a young model appears on the screen and begins by saying: “I told two friends about Faberge Organic Shampoo with pure wheat germ oil and honey. “

She concludes by saying: “You will tell two friends, and they’ll tell two friends, and so on and so on and so on.”

Word-of-mouth is the number one way that your parents first

find out about your school.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

The Web is the first place a parent looks when they hear about your school from a word-of-mouth referral. ◦ Google search

◦ Website

◦ Facebook page

◦ Reviews

“So what is word of mouth marketing? In this book, I define it as ‘Giving people a reason to

talk about your stuff, and making it easier for that conversation to take place’.”

• Sernovitz, Word of Mouth Marketing

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

What is Word-of-Mouth Marketing?

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Inbound Marketing Outbound Marketing

New media

Web-based

Pull

Listen

Engage

Hub

Authentic

Content

Stories

Old media

Traditional

Push

Interrupt

Broadcast

Megaphone

Slick

Ads

Slogans

Word of Mouth and the Web

The desire for authenticity

The power of in-person and online referrals

The need to be in a conversation

The importance of creating remarkable content

The power of telling a story

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

The WEB is a tool to tell the story of your school so that it can be shared through WOM.

We live in a story.

We relate to stories.

We listen to stories.

We can see ourselves in a story.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

“Stories are real. Slogans are made up. Stories pull you in. Slogans try to push out a message.

Stories are deep. Slogans are shallow. Stories are personal. Slogans are impersonal.

Stories are passed on by word of mouth. Slogans are forced on us by ads.

Stories are part of who we are.

After all, you don’t tell slogans about your grandfather, or how your parents met, or even how

you were treated in a restaurant.”

• Phillips, Cordell, Church: Brains on Fire

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Stories about your people and your school ◦ Faculty, students, parents and alumni

◦ Your brand in story form

◦ Real stats connected to real people

◦ Vision for the future

◦ How your school is remarkable

◦ How your school makes a life-changing difference in students

Educational topics

Parenting topics

We will take a look at some WEB strategies you can use at your school to inspire WOM.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Each “Dot” Represents a Story

Four “unbound” short books that tell the Dana Hall story in four different ways

Throwback Thursday Posts

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Homepage features several quotes from students, faculty and alumni. The user can click on the image to read and view more of the story.

Homepage features a rotating student story that can be clicked on to find out what CA means to the student.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

In the Spotlight highlights key stories on the homepage

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Student bloggers tell the Crystal Springs story

Cushing Students and faculty write blog posts to share their trip to Bhutan

Student Ambassador Blog

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Pictures with captions and stories

Blog posts

Video vignettes

Ask for likes

Ask questions

Summer vacation pictures

Photos tell the story at Miami Country Day

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

When a parent enrolls in your school send them an email and ask them to share a post online: ◦ “I just enrolled my child at Country Day School for

the 2012-13 year. Check out their website at (school web address) to discover why more families like ours are choosing this school!”

◦ “Selecting a school is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. Ask me why I enrolled my children at Country Day School for the 2012-13 year!”

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Produce short video vignettes to provide real-life testimonials and stories about your school.

Post videos to YouTube, Vimeo or another service.

Feed them back into your website or send them out through an email.

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst

Ask Current Parents – “What do you like best about your school?”

Ask New Parents – “Why did you select this school for your child?”

Ask Alumni – “How did your school prepare you for success in college and in life?”

Ask Faculty – “What do you like best about teaching at your school?”

Ask Seniors – “What college do you plan to attend next year?”

Assumption “Firework” Lip Dub now has over 45,000 views on YouTube!

Video tells the story from a student’s perspective of the 10 things they love about Deerfield

Video vignettes showcase why students and parents chose DVFS

Brookwood’s BTube page contains a variety of videos showcasing the life of the school.

Brookwood’s BPod page contains a picture and caption of the day.

Actually, this is the beginning for you to go and implement WEB strategies to inspire WOM.

For More Information:

Enrollment Catalyst

Rick Newberry, Ph.D.

9770 Indian Key Trail

Seminole, FL 33776

727.647.0378

Rick.Newberry@enrollmentcatalyst.com

www.EnrollmentCatalyst.com

© 2012 Enrollment Catalyst