Organization is essential for effective communication with your parent body. It’s possible that your parents receive daily communications from the school on everything from emailed classroom updates and event announcements to posts on social media to mailed letters and postcards. This amount of information can quickly become overwhelming.
It’s up to the Marketing and Communications Department to set the tone for your school’s parent communication strategy. We recommend using the three C’s to guide your efforts.
- Charge a specific person with overseeing parent communications.
- Consolidate information so each message is seen as important.
- Coordinate parent contacts by establishing a communications calendar.
Take Charge
Select one person to oversee all parent communications from the school, including all offices, individuals, and departments. This is an obvious task for someone with a global view of the school, such as the Director of Marketing Communications or a staff member in the Admission or Development Office. Do not delegate this role to a volunteer. Only a school employee can provide the consistent and careful oversight the job requires.
This person is a gatekeeper, obtaining information from various school groups and ensuring each item is disseminated effectively. The person generally is not responsible for all creating materials or content—instead helping pull it all together. If parents have questions, the gatekeeper can help them get in touch with the right person at the school.
Some groups may protest losing their freedom to contact parents directly. But show them how often the school contacts parents—it can help them see that a cohesive strategy is necessary.
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Consolidate Information
Establish a communication cadence. It can be once a week, biweekly, or monthly—whatever makes sense for your school.
How parents prefer to receive information
Your messages must resonate with baby boomers, Generation X, and millennials on everything from overall value to tactical, day-to-day information. How do you reach them where they are and ensure they get the information they need? Every generation wants to receive information differently.
Baby Boomers
- Preferred method of receiving information: In person or via telephone.
- Preferred method to consume news: Print periodicals such as newspapers, books, and magazines, and television news.
Generation X
- Preferred method of receiving information: Email.
- Preferred method to consume news: Online sources.
Millennials
- Preferred method of receiving information: Text messages.
- Preferred method to consume news: Social media, such as Twitter and Instagram.
Establish a predictable cadence
Send your information at the same time on the same day each week, so parents know what to expect.
In newsletters, for instance, follow a structured format. Always place calls-to-action (things parents need to do) on the top right-hand side and reminders (upcoming events and notices) on the bottom right-hand side.
Set a deadline with contributors on when and how content will be accepted. For example, the last day to submit content for a Monday morning e-letter may be Thursday afternoon. You’ll undoubtedly come up against people who miss deadlines and insist that their information be included. Unless it’s a true emergency, hold your ground. Eventually everyone will learn to respect your timeline.
Coordinate Your Strategy
With your cadence set, start to think about the larger picture. How will you coordinate the information you send throughout the year? Set up a communication calendar that includes all major items to be shared with parents. This strategy helps guarantee that you:
- have a clear overview of what is being communicated to parents and when it’s going out;
- avoid conflict. For example, you don’t want to send an annual fund solicitation and a tuition notice in the same week;
- space information out appropriately; and
- ensure that parents receive what they need in a timely fashion.
You’ll want to account for events that occur every year, such as enrollment contracts, report cards, and annual events. Then you’re free to decide the optimal time for special mailings, such as fundraising efforts. An added benefit of producing a coordinated communication calendar is that you have something tangible to share with faculty and staff that illustrates the “big picture” view of parent communication.
Following the three C’s of parent communication can help streamline your strategy and ensure parents are informed without being overwhelmed.
