- Perform A/B testing: Test one element at a time, sending two versions of your mailer or email to two separate segments of your list. Determine what gets the most interest and use that going forward.
- Add some social proof: Families are looking for evidence to trust you. Include parent and student quotes that back up your claims and inspire confidence in what you're communicating.
- Use strong calls to action in every email: Include a clear action on each email or mailing you send out.
- Use descriptive headers: A header like "You are Invited" doesn't say much, but "You are Invited to White Hill School's Fall Open House" sounds far more personal.
- Focus on smaller groups within the list. Don't start with all the students on the list at once. Start by targeting those families that may be most familiar with your school by filtering on location. This will start a history of emails that are likely to be opened rather than sent to spam.
- Pull a new list before each communication to ensure you are excluding families who choose to opt out through EMA's system.
- Send emails from a person rather than a group or "noreply" email address.
- About spam: If another user on your IP address has been flagged for spamming, you could be flagged, too.
- Use permission marketing: Once somebody has given you permission to communicate with them, make sure you listen to them and gauge their responses so you don’t overdo it and make them change their mind about your messages.
- Pay attention to your metrics: It’s important to choose which metrics you want to measure against before you send and consistently monitor them with each send so you can track your improvements.
COVID-19 Resources for Schools
Take Me ThereMost Recent Articles
Understand Your Families Better with Parent Personas
COVID-19 has forced us all, schools and families alike, to examine our priorities and to reexamine the ways in which we work to achieve our most important goals.
Tips to Help Drive Participant Engagement in Your Next Virtual Meeting
Running an online meeting? Check out our best practices to encourage participant engagement.
Building Your Strategy For Enrollment Melt During COVID-19
Melt, from an enrollment management perspective, is the number of students, sometimes 5–10% of your newly enrolled, who pay a deposit in the spring, but exit the process and
Refresh Your School Storytelling During COVID-19
If you’re feeling scattered and unfocused as you try to conduct business as usual and simultaneously adjust to working from home, you’re not alone.
How to Create and Enhance a Virtual Campus Visit Now and in the Future
One of the most powerful tools in the Admissions’ toolkit is the in-person campus tour. These visits give school representatives a chance to show the personality of their campus and to highlight what
Envisioning the Schools of the Future
Every school leader in our industry should be prioritizing visioning work today. It is not just about the day-to-day anymore—it is about the future.
A Critical Marketing Tactic for Virtual Admissions
You know when you see an ad on Facebook that just … speaks to you? Even if it’s for a product or service that you’ve never heard of, and never thought about?
Vericant Poll Results: Impact of COVID-19 on Study Abroad
Sharing results from a poll of counselors and consultants working with #Chinesestudents applying to university or high school North America! #studyabroad #covid19
A Message From Heather Hoerle: Announcing the SSAT At Home
We are excited to share that beginning in fall 2020, EMA will offer large-scale, at-home administration of the SSAT.
What Is Our New Normal? COVID-19 as an Opportunity to Build Resilience
It would go without saying that we are living through exceptional times, a kind of medieval experience in a time of technological wonder.
Questions That Boards Should and Should Not Be Asking Right Now
Are you a head of school, enrollment director, or administrator hoping to help your board ask the right questions? This list is for you.
Do You Have a Crisis Communications Plan?
Don’t panic — it’s time to talk crisis communications. The way you choose to communicate in a crisis reflects your school’s brand, personality, community, and so much more.
Virtual Admissions: Tips for Bringing Your In-Person Process Online
Independent schools are rushing to transform their admissions process to fit the new “normal” of COVID-19 social distancing. How can you bring such a complex experience online?
Summer Camp as an Enrollment Driver
Does your school offer summer camps or programs? Chances are, the answer is yes. According to NAIS’s recent Survey on Non-Tuition Sources of Income, 84% do.
A Comprehensive Communication Plan Aids the Successful Rollout of The Character Skills Snapshot at Marist School
At Marist School (Georgia), the admission team has long been focused on finding a way to measure character in the admission process.
The Best Way to Prepare for the SSAT? Practice, Practice, Practice.
Test Innovators has teamed up with The Enrollment Management Association to provide official SSAT-developed content on the Test Innovators platform.
Understanding SSAT Score Reports
Our testing team has developed score report primers to help you interpret test scores so that you can better compare students and track performance from year to year.
There Are Many Paths to Leadership
As Head of School at Massachusetts' Applewild School, Amy Jolly has been taking bold steps to build up enrollment with international students. Like many heads, she honed her skill set in admissions.
