How to effectively incorporate video in your school’s marketing mix.
It’s no secret that if you want your school to stand out online, you need video as part of your school marketing toolkit. But gone are the days where that video has to be glossy, well polished content. In fact, more amateur videography is considered more authentic – particularly by the younger, more savvy generation of digital natives. And thus, its effectiveness is multiplied.
The great news is, this style of video is also a lot less costly to produce and offers endless potential in its use.
So why is video content so vital for your school’s marketing strategy?
Video has long been the most effective medium in marketing communications. It’s ability to evoke emotion via both audio and visual means is proven to prompt a greater response from the viewer.
Historically video was an expensive medium, so any brand that could afford to produce and air a TV commercial was one to aspire to be associated with. And to an extent, the same is still true today, albeit achieved through slightly different tactics. With the rise of smartphones and social media platforms, video has become more accessible than ever and consumers more discerning in its consumption.
For Generation Z – that’s those born mid-late 1990’s – 2010 (so potentially late primary and early secondary school age students or parents of younger children), video content forms a significant percentage of day-to-day life. However unlike Millennials, they consume their video content via social media channels rather than the TV.
Storytelling without the big sell
Video offers the opportunity to tell a story without the need for the big sell. By utilising subtle cues, schools can effectively combine brand messaging with unique and entertaining content, which helps to build an emotional connection, authenticity and trust. Videos can vary vastly in length and the ability to create a catalogue of episodes within the same series generates greater flexibility and ROI within your marketing campaign.
Strong ROI for your school
Video marketing in its various forms has always provided a strong ROI, but none more so than today when it is so readily and cheaply accessible, with free video cameras with every smart phone and free or low cost video editing software available at the download of an app.
Footage can be edited and repurposed for a multitude of applications – from social media stories and ‘reels’ to video content within your newsfeed and even features within blogs and content on your website, offering greater ‘value for money’.
When use video on your social media channels or indeed your school website, the data is readily available to measure the effectiveness of each piece of communication and help you formulate more successful communications for the future.
Increased student engagement
Not only is video effective in engaging your target audience for new admissions, but your incumbent students too. Providing your current students with a key role in the production of your video content, either in front of the camera or behind it, generates endless value in the development of valuable soft and hard skills, as well as creating an effective piece of marketing communication. Engage your students in your marketing efforts and they may be able to teach you a thing or two too!
Peer to peer marketing is a really effective strategy when communicating with this savvy generation, so the more you can engage this untapped resource within your school, the better for your schools admissions figures.
Inspiration for your video content marketing strategy
When you’re busy with day-to-day tasks, it can be tricky to come up with new ideas, so we’ve compiled a list of a few of our favourites to get you started.
Demo videos – these are great for generating intrigue and excitement and perfect for those hands-on practical science, tech and sporting sessions where photography just doesn’t cut the mustard.
Live videos – great for an authentic insight into a snippet of school life.
Testimonials – Parent and pupil videos are a great way of informing and assuring every member of the family and a proven means of significantly increasing conversion rates through peer-to-peer marketing.
Real life – ‘A day in the life of’ videos create a genuine student’s eye view of life at your school rather than a more formal ‘staged’ interview style set up.
Walk-around videos – These are a great way to showcase various aspects of your campus to prospective students and their families. Remember there’s no need to feature your whole school site in one video. Instead, you could concentrate on one faculty at a time.
Promotional videos – When it comes to special events a promotional video is king, when it comes to communicating what’s going on. Music and other audio/visual cues can help build excitement around your event.
Seasonal videos – your school changes so much between seasons, as do the lessons and activities that your student’s participate in, so it’s vital to showcase this through video.
‘Best bits’ videos – little snippets and anecdotes from staff and students can make humorous and engaging pieces of content for reels and stories as well as longer posts.
Preparation is key
As with any marketing activation it’s vital to plan your video content marketing strategy carefully to align with your audience’s potential position in your admissions journey and your wider marketing strategy. Think ‘awareness’, ‘interest’ and ‘decision’ and consider the results you want to see at each stage.
