Revisiting school open days

10:54 PM 26 May 2010.

In a world of increasingly competitive demand for student enrolments most schools – public and non-government – are implementing more sophisticated advertising and enrolment campaigns to attract families to school open days.

Conventional approaches generally include advertisements in regional or suburban newspapers or perhaps flyers and direct mail circulars distributed throughout the school’s main residential drawing communities.

Advice on open days will certainly include email communication to waiting list recipients or perhaps notices to current families to encourage them to attend and bring their close acquaintances and friends to visit the school.

People are directed to the school website or asked to contact the school and book into a range of facility inspections, discussions with the principal and/or other staff led workshops and group discussions.

An inspection of the school is mandatory.

Savvy schools have long realised that much preliminary investigation on school quality and performance is undertaken by women hence open day planning will incorporate this gender consideration.

Other savvy schools acknowledge that parents will have undertaken some preliminary research on your school – and your competitors – before they attend an open day meaning they are probably already broadly familiar with the education offerings of each respective institution.

Regurgitating such detail will add little to convince a family to choose your school for an enrolment.

Some presentations to potential families will highlight important ancillary conditioners for choosing a particular school.

These may include music performances, sport or drama presentations, hands-on computer or visual arts presentations or displays which demonstrate the school’s history and culture, etc.

All these commendable activities are invariably amalgamated around some form of social interchange that may include a barbecue, a morning or afternoon tea, or perhaps an evening cocktail function with a string quartet and/or audio visual or power point presentation.

While such strategies offer various advantages according to a particular school’s individuality and resourcefulness this ‘traditional’ open day rationale is generally framed around processes and procedures that provide the ‘best fit’ within the school, its staff and its timetables.

Although such programs are worthwhile every school should stand back and reflect on the following question: does our school’s open day ‘busyness’, with all its frenetic processes and multi-presentations, actually address the ‘real’ education issues and answer deeper questions sought by our future families for their children?

The open day presentations may be flawless while the jazz band may perform admirably. School tours may be impressive but do these open day artefacts comprehensively address what the school’s targeted enrolment community actually desires?

In an enrolment market where the demarcation lines between competing institutions are narrowing many parents will seek more personalised, individualised answers to the following eight critical questions that should be considered in planning an open day experience:

i) Will my child’s educational experience create a happy yet challenged student rather than a stressed pupil in a pressure cooker learning environment?

ii) What makes education at an independent school different from other school offerings?

iii) Would my child do better by attending an independent school?

iv) Surely all schools offer basically similar services? Why is your school different?

v) Isn’t a private school elitist?

vi) How much do higher marks matter anyway?

vii) Is an independent school affordable and how do I know I’m getting value for money in paying tuition fees?

viii) What is the balance between study and lifestyle enjoyment at your school?

LHR has identified these issues in offering marketing and support services to a number of independent schools.

The company's ‘Ask me Anything’ approach addresses more fundamental issues around which most school enrolment choice is made.

LHR has implemented this innovative marketing approach that has been highly successful for a number of independent schools.

This approach has achieved outstanding results in terms of community attendance and enrolment conversions because the answers collectively build a growing sense of confidence and assurance that the school will deliver quality learning for every student.

Formal presentations have an important place in open day events but unless the school addresses these more personal, individual issues parents can be left with the impression that the show bag of education goodies and the school’s fine facilities are all that are offered for their child.

Because most independent schools provide such services and infrastructures anyway there is little institutional distinctiveness to trigger a positive enrolment choice decision. This outcome remains the critical objective of any open day event.

A confirmed enrolment provides the measureable difference between parents choosing your school or merely leaving your open day with fond recollections of a tasty steak sandwich or a memorable tour of the school’s impressive new assembly hall.

Comprehensive information on how your school can conduct its next 'Ask Me Anything' open day campaign can be obtained from Geoff Holt at Leonard Holt Robb.

Email holt@LHR.com.au

Revisiting school open days

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