If you’re not sure what messaging is, you’re not alone. Messaging is often poorly defined and couched in other terms like brand personality, identity and values. You may not always notice messaging, but parents do. Whether it’s compelling or confusing, messaging always leaves an impression.
Messaging shows up everywhere: websites, newsletters, event speeches—even hallway conversations. It’s more than the words you use; it’s also reflected in photos, videos and design.
Done well, it reflects not just what your school says, but what it stands for. Messaging tells people why your school exists, what it believes in, what it promises students and families, and what kind of future it’s trying to build for its community. It’s about values, voice, and vision.
So, what does strong school messaging look like in action?
After working with dozens of independent schools across North America, I’ve identified 12 attributes that make the difference between messaging that fades away and messaging that gets results.
Consistency. Whether on your website, in emails, in parent newsletters or in spoken remarks, key messages are always the same. Likewise, no matter who parents speak with at your school – teachers, administrators or trustees, the messages that are conveyed will all be the same.
Differentiating. Effective messaging communicates your school’s unique identity and how it is different from other schools.
Builds trust. Consistent, differentiating, and authentic messaging builds the trust of current parents, and it’s validating because they see their experience and that of their kids reflected in the messaging. Messaging well done also builds trust with prospective parents when what they see on tours or visits matches what they have read and perceived about a school.
Drives Engagement. Messaging can bolster engagement in two ways. Obviously, this refers to social media with clicks, shares, and comments. But messaging also has the power to engage in a traditional sense, rallying current parents, faculty, and community members, leading to more volunteers, better morale, and more positive word of mouth.
Communicates Culture. Messaging helps to describe what it’s like to be part of your school’s community. It defines and fosters the elements of culture – the rituals, traditions, language, expectations and aspirations.
Establishes Voice. Messaging presents the way a school talks about itself – the tone, lexicon, and the characteristics of communication.
Married to MVV. Effective messaging is firmly founded in the purposes, principles, values, and aspirations that are reflected in a school’s mission, vision and values.
Grounded in Strategy. Successful messaging is based on research, both qualitative and quantitative. It is linked to value propositions, target segments, positioning, and competitive advantage. Ultimately, it helps a school achieve its marketing objectives.
Exudes Authenticity. Your messaging has got to be both accurate and truthful. Accuracy refers to clarity and exactitude – providing a real picture of what the experience at your school is like. Truthful means not trying to be something that you’re not, not saying the things you think people want to hear or trying to be just like your competitors.
Memorable and Engaging. To do its job, messaging has to get and keep someone’s attention, give them a reason to read more, provide the impetus to take action, and be compelling enough that someone will remember it and share it with others
Benefits, not features. This is a classic but extremely important principle in marketing. To put that in context, features are things like the new STEM lab, athletics field, or IB program, but benefits are the ways in which those things will positively impact the lives of students. So, for example, the benefit of the STEM labs is that students will learn how to collaborate and use technology to solve real-world problems.
Fully Focused. A key to messaging success is defining key themes (I call them buckets)—those attributes that are most descriptive and critical to conveying the experience at a school. Messaging should then be clearly and consistently based on those key themes. Read more about buckets here.
Put these twelve attributes into place and your messaging will get noticed and get results.
You can also have a look at these resources:
- Mastering Messaging for Schools – a comprehensive ebook
- Messaging inventory – a blog post that will help build messaging
- Messaging for Enrollment Results – a webinar detailing the impact of great messaging
Good messaging doesn’t just sound nice—it drives enrollment, fundraising, and school reputation. If your messaging isn’t doing that, it’s time to fix it.
My Messaging Guide is a proven process rooted in research and strategy, developed with the insight of working with schools just like yours. Let’s talk if you’re ready to make your messaging a real asset.
