Word of Mouth Toolkit

75%

of applicants for independent schools come through referrals from current families or families of alumni

Use this toolkit to guide admissions, marketing, and communications teams in taking advantage of the full potential of word-of-mouth for recruitment purposes.

Traditionally, mission-aligned families have been familiar with the value of an independent school education and have actively pursued it for their children. Recently, increased competition and the rising cost of tuition have resulted in a need for independent schools to actively recruit prospective families and sell them on the benefits of an independent school education.

Among the various marketing and recruitment strategies best suited for independent schools, word of mouth marketing remains one of the most effective, affordable techniques available. However, many admissions offices have underinvested the time and planning needed to boost referrals through word of mouth, which has limited its potential in recruitment.

This toolkit aims to help admission teams develop a structured approach to word of mouth in an effort to maximize its impact on recruitment. Included are five tools to develop a structured approach to word of mouth at your school:

Tool #1: Word of Mouth Audit

Assess your current use of word-of-mouth practices and identify appropriate word-of-mouth tools to expand the enrollment funnel. Download the audit.

Tool #2: Clarifying Your School’s Key Messaging

Brainstorm ways to help parent ambassadors dispel misperceptions and convincingly describe the value of an education at your school. Download the tool.

Tool #3: Net Promoter Score® Guide

Implement a system that identifies all potential parent advocates and allows your admissions team to track parent sentiment towards your school. Download the guide.

Tool #4: Parent Ambassador Network Guide

Use a training guide to outline parent ambassador responsibilities and help ambassadors present a consistent and powerful message to prospective families. Download the guide.