You’ve crafted the perfect school email newsletter that you’re sure will capture the attention of the families on your email list. But sure enough, school faculty and administration staff report they’re getting comments like these from parents:
- I didn’t know [event, vacation, activity] was coming up!
- When and where do I register for [insert program here]?
- There is a new policy on [insert policy area]?
Even if you’re getting a fairly high open rate (according to Hubspot, the average for the Education Industry is 25%) there’s likely still quite a few parents who aren’t reading your email messages as evidenced by the reports from your faculty and staff.
Despite its shortcomings, email messaging is still an effective form of communication because it’s fast, reliable and people can read them on their own schedules. Since emails can be read on mobile devices, they are even more accessible and portable than ever. Plus, email saves money on postage and time spent addressing and stamping them (remember those days)?
As a school marketer I’m sure you’re aware how important communication with enrolled parents is as it relates to satisfaction and retention. No matter how many emails you send out, if parents aren’t reading them, morale is going to suffer, and you might even lose enrollments.
Parents are busy people, often with overflowing inboxes and crazy schedules that prevent them from taking the time to read their emails. It’s easy for school messages to get lost in the shuffle. And yes, I know it’s parents’ responsibilities to read their emails. However, it’s our responsibility to make that task as easy as possible.
Here are 8 reasons parents might not be reading your school email messages, and what you can do to help make it easier for them.
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The message doesn’t match the communication media
Not all media is appropriate for every type of school message. In general, most schools communicate these types of messages:
- Admissions / enrollment / scholarship information
- School events and activities
- Sports events
- Time-sensitive info, i.e. weather-related closures or delays, safety notices
- School policy changes
- Individual student updates (grades, progress reports, behavior issues, etc.)
- Human interest (fun stories related to your school, encouragement, parent resources, etc.)
Take the time to figure out what type of communication tool is right for each type of message. For example, email is not the best medium for weather-related closures but is probably a good way to communicate about an upcoming school event.
One thing to remember when planning your communication strategy is to make it parent-focused, not staff-focused. In other words, don’t go with what’s most convenient for staff, but instead think about what will work the best for parents.
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Not aware of email preferences
Each school community is different, so take the time to find out the preferences of your parent audience. Try sending out a survey, conducting a focus group or just talking with involved parents to find out what they would like in terms of email communication. Ask them why they think parents might not be reading the emails you’ve been sending and take their feedback into consideration when crafting email messages in the future.
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Emails are too long
In the age of the Internet, people’s attention spans are shrinking. Most of the time people prefer small bites of information. Increase readership and comprehension by writing emails that are shorter and easier to read. Use writing techniques such as:
- Brief sentences and paragraphs
- Bold text
- Bullet points and numbered lists whenever possible
- Links to supplement information
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Lack of promotion
You can’t only send out one email and expect people to see it. In order to boost engagement you need to also:
- Post the information on your website
- Publish on your social media channels
- Text messages highlighting key information
- Coordinate with local press or community groups if appropriate
Read more: 17 Promotion Tactics to Include in Your Social Media Strategy
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Sent as an attachment
Too often schools send their newsletters as an attachment. Attachments negatively affect deliverability. Plus, people usually don’t want to take the extra step to download an attachment. And for sure people will not take the time to download the latest version of Adobe before reading an attachment.
If you must attach a newsletter to an email, give the user a short description of the content and offer a link to the content online to make it easier for them to access.
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Can’t read on a mobile phone
The majority of emails are read on a smartphone, so if it’s hard to read on small screen, most of the time it just won’t get read. If you’re not designing emails in a format that works for parents’ phones, chances are they won’t read your messages.
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Not using personalization
Parents today thrive on technology and expect to receive personalized emails. Personalizing your emails is a proven technique for delivering content to parents, adding value to their experience along the way. Personalized emails drive the highest open rates, engagement and inquiries.
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Not using a reputable email platform
Using an email service that has a credible reputation increases security, deliverability and metrics. Not only do top email platforms protect your emails from being flagged as spam, they offer insights into the habits and interests of your parent community. You can discover the best times for sending your messages as well as the types of emails your parents open. Commonly used email services include Hubspot, Constant Contact, Infusionsoft, ConvertKit, Mailchimp, Aweber and Active Campaign, although there are many other reputable services available.
Even though parents don’t always read their messages, school marketers should continue to rely on email messaging as a way to communicate with and strengthen their relationship with parents. Take the time to review the above suggestions for improving your email strategy to increase readership, leading to a better-informed and active school community.
What strategies have you used to improve your email marketing campaigns? Please share your thoughts in the comments below…
Disclaimer: I am an affiliate for some of these resources which means that, at no cost additional to you, I make a commission if you purchase via my link.
