SchoolCEO: Marketing for School Leaders

Summary: 

Today we discuss the 3 key elements of a good story. 

Show Notes: 

Read our Storytelling guide to learn more great tips. 

If you know a great storyteller in school comms, nominate them for the SchoolCEO Excellence in School Marketing Award. Finalists receive a free ticket to the SchoolCEO Conference in September and a write-up in our magazine!

Don’t forget to buy your tickets for the SchoolCEO Conference i...

Summary: 

Today we discuss how to generate stories instead of waiting for them to come to you. 

Show Notes: 

The SchoolCEO Podcast is written by Eileen Beard and produced by Tanner Cox.

Read School Shoutout: A Joyful Revolution from the Winter 2025 issue of SchoolCEO Magazine. 

This episode mentions Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara. 

For more school marketing strategies and insights, check out our free webinars at <...

Summary: 

In this episode we share how one district in Georgia attracted families with a unique new feature. 

Show Notes: 

Read the full article: School Shoutout: Sliding into Success. 

Learn more about us and subscribe to our school marketing newsletter at schoolceo.com. If you have a story you’d like to share with the SchoolCEO team, email me at eileen@schoolceo.com or schedule a call with me! 

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Summary: 

In this episode we share a SWOT analysis of school communications nationwide. 

Show Notes: 

Listen to our interview with Greg Turchetta on Season 2 of the podcast: Winning at School Communications. 

Read the original research cited in this episode: A Seat at the Table, Who Speaks for Your Brand and Layers of Leadership. 

Learn more about us and subscribe to our newsletter at schoolceo.com. If you have a story you’d like to sha...

Summary: 

We’re kicking off a brand new season with a fresh format. In this episode, we talk about how to cultivate a beginner’s mindset. 

Show Notes: 

Read Look Again by Tali Sharot and Cass R. Sunstein.

Learn more about us and subscribe to our newsletter at schoolceo.com. If you have a story you’d like to share with us, email me at eileen@schoolceo.com or schedule a call with me! 

Follow SchoolCEO on LinkedIn or X/Twitter @school_ceo....

This season, we've taken a deep dive into school marketing, exploring everything from brand to digital experience. Today, we're connecting all the pieces and providing you with actionable steps to transform how your community thinks and feels about your schools.

Follow SchoolCEO on LinkedIn or X/Twitter @school_ceo. 

Subscribe to SchoolCEO at SchoolCEO.com for research, stories, and strategies for leading your schools. ...

In this episode we’ll discuss how to create advocates for your schools. First, you have to focus your attention toward people who can actually be converted. Second, you have to wow them with intention and thoughtfulness. 

Follow SchoolCEO on LinkedIn or X/Twitter @school_ceo. 

Subscribe to SchoolCEO at SchoolCEO.com for research, stories, and strategies for leading your schools. And if you have a story you’d like to sha...

It’s time to address the elephant in the room: crisis communications. Crises are unavoidable. As a district comms professional, your role is pivotal to saving your reputation when a crisis lands on your doorstep.

In this episode, we’ll show you how to prepare for a crisis, what to do to maintain trust in the midst of a crisis, and how to recover after a crisis. 

After all, a crisis is also a unique opportunity to come to the aid of y...

Today’s focus is on a vital topic in K-12 education: enrollment marketing. Enrollment numbers impact funding and nearly all district operations. A key tool for improving enrollment is understanding the customer journey.

This episode will explore the customer journey to help boost student enrollment.

These phases are Awareness, Interest, Decision, Retention, and Advocacy. Each phase requires different marketing strategies and each one...

Schools need to use social media selectively and strategically to get the most out of it. Focusing on already-established communication channels may be a better use of your time and lead to stronger relationships with your school community. 

In this episode, we discuss the rise and fall of different communication channels, why social media is different for schools than it is for the private sector, how it can and can’t work for your...

Correction: A previous version of this episode referred to Molly McGowan Gorsuch as Rhodes Branding's Marketing Strategy Director. Molly is actually Rhodes' Director of Client Engagement.

Online communities matter—but how can you make your school district’s online spaces shine just as brightly as your physical ones? In this episode of SchoolCEO Podcast, we dig into how to optimize your online communities to make sure that they’re ju...

Experiential marketing started with flash mobs and has since become the cutting edge of advertising. Live branded events that are interactive, multi-sensory and emotionally resonant have a much greater pull on audiences than other forms of marketing. That’s why it’s so important K-12 leaders think about how they can adapt experiential marketing tactics for their own use.

In this episode, we’ll share what experiential marketing is ex...

Organizational culture has become a buzzword like AI, NFT or Bitcoin—everyone is talking about it but very few people know how it actually works. In this episode, we explain what organizational culture really is, and how it shapes the success of individual employees and your company as a whole. 

We’ll take a look at real world examples of excellent organizational culture at work, hear expert opinions on the science of employee motiv...

How does effective communication shape your schools? What are the best practices to keep your community informed & to allow them to know that you’re listening to their concerns? Schools communicate all the time which means families are inundated with information, but schools need to listen to know what’s actually important to their families. 

In this episode, we’ll explore exactly how to engage with effective communication and the i...

What is marketing? How can you take the best marketing ideas from the private sector and implement them in your schools? Marketing has evolved over time to become more brand & identity focused. Having a strong set of values & consistent core messaging is the pathway to developing a strong marketing strategy.

In this episode, we’ll explore exactly how marketing has changed and what you can do to strengthen your school’s identity. Lis...

Every great school district’s heart lies in its identity What is the identity of your district? What is it known for? What is uniquely true about your schools? Your district’s identity is made up of its values, strengths, and culture. These, along with your community’s direct interactions with your district, ultimately shape your community’s perception and reputation of your brand. School marketing begins and ends with establishing...

School marketing has gone from a rarity to a necessity for public schools. From public opinion to family engagement, capturing and keeping the attention of your school community is a must to leading and running a successful school district. 

In each episode of Season 3, SchoolCEO explores some of the most important and foundational concepts to change how others think and feel about your schools. We talk to experts, share stories alo...

In Season 2 of the SchoolCEO podcast we have had some of the brightest school leaders tell us about their work, inspiration, and strategies. Along the way, experts in influence, storytelling, culture building, hiring, and more from outside of K-12 have joined in to share additional perspectives. 

We’ve curated some of the very best comments and insights on how to build a high performing culture, the best way to reach your community,...

In this episode, Dr. Rafal-Baer discusses her work in addressing the gender gap in education leadership and various initiatives such as the Forum for Educational Leadership and Women Leading ED,  a national network of women education leaders she founded. She also highlights the importance of supporting current and aspiring education leaders, providing comprehensive project management and implementation support, and creating a power...