School will be starting before we know it… are you ready for it!?
Preparation is key for school communicators during back-to-school season. You don’t want to be scrambling when families call with questions! Plus, you can ensure a steady flow of social media content (all year long!) by creating a simple submission system. Trust me, your future self will thank you!
Today’s blog is inspired by my recent podcast interview with Brian Bridges, the Director of Communications and Public Relations for Lake Hamilton School District in Arkansas. He provided a ton of powerful strategies for back-to-school communications and social media success. Let’s dig in!
Create a “One-Stop-Shop” Mailer
Brian created a simple PDF in Canva that is mailed to all enrolled families by August 1, two weeks before school starts. This gives families enough time to take action while prepping their kids for the first day of school.
This mailer includes a welcome message from the superintendent and QR codes that link to essential information. Note that using QR codes, which link to live webpages, allows Brian to make changes as needed – without having to reprint materials! For example, last year’s eclipse altered the school calendar.
“Doing a QR code pointing to a web page is more beneficial than printing it out because change is inevitable. I can update the web page but not the printed graphic.”
The mailer includes:
- Information about the first day of school
- How school supplies are provided
- A checklist of what students need for school
- Athletics information
- Sign up for the free lunch program
- Special services for students
- After-school program details
Plus, there’s a new section in Brian’s mailer:
I included a section on the power of positive communication and how they should use our official communication channels. It encourages families to address concerns directly, avoid posting to social media during conflicts, and stay informed and involved as much as possible.
Believe it or not, ALL of this information is contained within just four pages!! See for yourself.
By the way, all of the information in the flyer is already available to families on the website beginning in July. I know many of you were thinking August 1st might be too late. Providing this physical mailer creates an excellent “one-stop shop” for families who don’t want to search the website, social media channels, and digital newsletters.
Create a System for Collecting Social Media Content
Back to school also means thinking about social media content for the new school year. Many school communicators struggle to create an effective system – but don’t worry, it’s easier than you might think!
My team and I at #SocialSchool4EDU love creating efficient systems. After all, we successfully manage social media remotely for nearly 100 school districts across the country! Here’s a blog that provides some easy tips for implementing a social media content submission system at your school:
Remember, as a school communicator, your content creation system doesn’t have to be rocket science. Brian created a simple QR code that goes to a Jot Form for his staff to submit content to him. During the 2023/2024 school year, this resulted in 2,348 submissions.
Imagine having content flowing to you from all your teachers, coaches, and staff members! Brian has communications representatives at every building who run social media pages, and then he can pick and choose the very best post ideas to share at the district level. He distributes this QR code as a sticker on every classroom door in every building. And he didn’t leave it to others to put up for him. He physically applied every sticker in every school!
“I never have to search for content; it’s the best thing ever!”
Train Your Staff at the Beginning of the Year – and Beyond!
Brian emphasized the importance of continually training staff on policies, procedures, and expectations. This includes meeting with teachers, administrators, and coaching staff at the beginning of every school year to reinforce guidelines and share updates.
During this training, Brian covers policies, procedures, the content submission process, branding guidelines, and more.
He also noted that if his colleagues make mistakes, it’s nothing to get frustrated about:
I remind myself that those making mistakes are not the communications people. They are teachers, coaches, club sponsors, or administrators. My role should be one of helpfulness, consistent training, and positivity…It’s constant work, but you must repeat it until it sticks. Staying organized and prepared helps.
Throughout the year, he also gives a shout-out to people who submit at least one piece of content. This serves as a gentle reminder to those who haven’t submitted content that they can get involved.
Another way to encourage content submission is through awards! You know that I love giving out awards at #SocialSchool4EDU, and I’m so happy that Brian has this same celebratory attitude.
“We have awards for the building that submits the most, and I also give awards per building for first, second, and third-place submissions. It’s something they get very excited about!”
Wondering how to best train your staff? These three articles will help:
- Back to School – Checklist for Getting Staff Involved in Social Media
- How Lunch ‘n Learns Can Boost Staff Social Media Participation
- How to Get New Staff Involved with Social Media
Save Hours of Time with This Template!
When you join my Social Media Membership Program, you’ll also receive access to a fully designed back-to-school Canva Presentation for training your staff, which you can customize for your school! There are countless other resources available in the membership; learn more here.
I hope you feel empowered to tackle your back-to-school communications projects! Make sure you leave me a note over on X with your biggest takeaways. I can’t wait to hear from you!
