Welcome to Gorilla Marketing!

Is your school shouting the same message as your competitors? Are you trying to reach the same people in the same places through the same methods? Your leads could be getting lost in translation.

With ads from competing schools placed side-by-side, neither one is going to stand out when they’re both banking on phrases like “hands-on education.” Potential students certainly aren’t left with your message resonating. They are not feeling motivated and ready to take action. More than likely, they’re left with headaches from trying to decipher the meaning of your message.

Get Your Message Heard

Let’s face it. As the competition gets tougher, you’ve got to do better than keep up. You’ve got to get ahead. That means your message has to rise above the chorus of increasing competition.

Use Alternative Methods

This web site was created for those who are looking for break-away tactics that could help outpace competitors and increase message range. You can supplement your traditional advertising methods by adding alternative opportunities to your marketing mix.

In a sector of higher education competing for name recognition and brand differentiation, leading career schools know the importance of gorilla marketing. Now, it’s your turn.

New Campus Locations

Make the Most of Your First Impression

You’ve taken the time to make sure that your facility is state-of-the-art. You’ve painstakingly selected the programs your school will offer. You’ve hired an experienced faculty. You’ve reached a critical moment: You’re ready to open your new campus.

First impressions are crucial. Your introduction to the community is about more than letting the public know where your new campus is located; it’s about communicating a meaningful, lasting message.

You should carefully develop the message you send to the community. Make sure that it is effective, creative and clear. Ultimately, your message should help position your school as a legitimate force of positive change. It should motivate potential students to take action.

Grand Opening Event

You’ve settled into your new building and everything is in place. That’s well worth promoting! Why not invite the community to join you in the celebration? Holding a grand opening event is a great way to introduce your school to the community.

Your admission representatives can man information booths, pass out business cards, answer questions, and set up appointments with potential students. And don’t forget that your Chamber of Commerce can be a great resource. They’ve got connections with local dignitaries and can help arrange commemorative ceremonies.

But before you go cutting any red ribbons, you have to make sure that people know about the event. You’d look pretty silly holding an oversized pair of scissors if no one was there to cheer you on and take photos, wouldn’t you?

Get People Talking!

Word of mouth is one of the most influential and effective forms of promotion. Check out the following tactics that can help send your school’s message.

Broadcast Your Message

Communicate your school’s message by sponsoring a radio remote for your grand opening and get people in the community talking. Broadcasting live from your grand opening will spark interest in your school. Make sure that you’ve carefully selected a station that will speak straight to your core demographic.

Buy a radio schedule to promote the celebration. This will increase your reach and frequency and result in a larger turnout. It stands to reason that getting the word out to the public will get more people inside your school.

Reach Out to the Local Media

Education plays a vital role in shaping society. Simply put, the service your school provides is much more newsworthy than Britney Spears' latest haircut. And if you ask most journalists, they’ll be more interested in writing about your school than about pop culture faux pas. But it’s up to you to let the media know about your event. Using a comprehensive public relations campaign could get your event covered by trusted news sources. Consider sending press releases about your grand opening to local journalists and placing pre- and post-event phone calls.

Invite the Community

Send formal invitations to people interested in the role your school plays in the community. Your invite list may include local business owners, high school counselors, journalists and potential students.

Make it Program Specific

If your school offers career training in the healthcare field, why not hold a health fair? It’s a surefire way to generate public interest. Set up booths where people can get basic tests performed and learn about the benefits of staying healthy. You can team up with local hospitals and clinics.

Providing the community with these types of events will increase health awareness. It will also work to position your school as a force of positive change and help establish your credibility in the community.

New Curricula

Promoting Your New Program

You’ve done your research and you’ve carefully weighed your options. Adding a new program sends the message that you’re actively involved in meeting the needs of students and the community. This works to reinforce student enthusiasm as well as drive the energy of your faculty and staff.

In-house promotional events can help you spread the word about the new opportunity you’ve decided to provide. These events will help communicate your school’s message to your staff and student body while creating public awareness of your school.

Open House Events

Inviting the community to attend an Open House event is a simple and effective way to promote your new program. You can provide attendees with an informative introduction to the program.

Inviting community members to speak at the open house can also generate interest in your event. Local dignitaries or people who work in fields related to the new program can motivate potential students.

Career Day Events

You can reach out to potential students by hosting a Career Day event. This will work to promote your new program among your target audience. It will also help to position your school as a source for career-related information.

Employers in fields related to your new program can give presentations, answer questions and offer further information about opportunities for graduates. Speakers, panel discussions and additional presentations may also be arranged to provide information about the program.

School Hour Events

Take advantage of a captive audience by holding small-scale events during school hours. You can easily raise awareness among students, staff and faculty by providing information booths. Simply set up tables to give passersby the chance to learn about the new program.

For example, if you’re launching a nursing program, set up a table providing information about good health practices. Take each student’s blood pressure and give out informational brochures on nationally recognized health days. These occur on a monthly basis and will further promote your new program in an interactive and helpful manner.

On-Site Events for Adult Audience

Generate interest and excitement about a new program or campus opening by hosting an on-site event. You can offer prospective students the chance to tour school facilities, meet instructors and current students and learn about program offerings.

Pay Attention to Key Details

Planning a successful on-site event is all in the details. You’ll have to determine several essential factors such as:

• Timing
  
• Key staff members
  
• Method of program presentation
  
• Promotional strategies
  

Read on for some helpful tips that could shed some light on successful event planning.

Time it Right

Timing is a key factor in hosting successful on-site events. In general, people are attracted to energizing gatherings. Hold the open house during a highly trafficked time of the school day. This will ensure that there is activity at the school during the event and allow attendees to see students in action.

Key Players

Always make sure that key members of your staff are present. Admissions representatives and a placement director are essential to the success of your open house. Potential students will have a lot of questions and concerns. These individuals can competently provide them with answers and put their fears to rest.

Presenting Your Programs

You can set up information booths to present your programs to prospective students. These should be program-specific and offer in-depth information. You can cover topics such as:

• Courses offered
  
• Potential career paths
  
• True-life anecdotes from graduates
  

Traditional Promotion Strategies

You can support your advertising group’s promotional efforts in many ways. Get the word out and spread your message prior to the event through the following traditional tactics:

• Direct mail and e-mail. Send postcards or e-mail blasts inviting old leads to the open house. Include all relevant information such as time, date, place and nature of the event.
  
• Newspaper and television. Place newspaper ads featuring the open house or include bursts on your regular program ads. Scrolls may be added to your television spots. Tip: Stations typically do this for free or for a nominal charge if given plenty of notice.
  
• Press releases. Send press releases to local news outlets. Television stations, newspapers and radio stations may cover your open house in the events sections. Smaller community newspapers are more likely to cover the event for feature-length stories.
  

Grass-roots Promotion Strategies

You can promote your upcoming event through grass-roots efforts as well. The following tactics will help generate a buzz in the community at little or no cost:

• Marketing cross-promotions. Explore marketing cross-promotion opportunities with local businesses. Pizza shops or grocery stores can hand out your event notices on boxes or at the register. In exchange, coupons for their businesses may be dispersed at your open house events. 
  
• Flyers. Hand out or post flyers in the neighborhood surrounding your school. When posting flyers, make sure they’re placed in highly trafficked areas.
  
• Word of mouth. Encourage current students and members of your faculty to promote the event through word of mouth. Consider offering a non-monetary incentive to those who generate the most referrals.
  
• Student success stories. Send open house invitations to recent successful graduates. These graduates are the best proponents for you school’s programs. They can provide compelling testimonials that could resonate with potential students.
  

You can also enhance your open house by creating a buzz the day of the event. The following are tactics designed to maximize your event’s effectiveness while it’s in progress:

• Radio remotes. Work with your agency to host a radio remote. Select a radio station that speaks to your target audience. A popular station personality can invite the public to attend and recruit people to play games and enter contests.
  
• Balloons and giant inflatables. Harness a giant balloon or inflatable in front of the school to draw attention to the event and create a buzz in the community.
  

Open Houses/Remotes

On-site Events for High School Audience

Tap into a source of potential leads by reaching out to local high school students. You can generate interest in your school through holding open houses at your campus.

Open houses offer prospective students the chance to tour the campus. While touring, they can meet instructors and students and learn more about the programs offered. High school students may especially appreciate the opportunity to bring friends and family along to share in the experience.

Key Players

Be sure to select key members of your staff to help facilitate the event. Admissions representatives and a placement director are essential to your open house's success. High school students and their families will have a lot of questions and concerns. They’ll need to talk with people who can give them good answers and put their fears to rest.

You should also be sure to invite recent successful graduates of your school to attend the open house. They can talk with high school students and their families and provide insight on the education provided by your school. Your graduates can provide compelling testimonials that will resonate with potential students.

Presenting Your Programs

You can set up information booths to present your programs to prospective students. These should be program-specific and offer in-depth information. You can cover topics such as:

• Courses offered
  
• Potential career paths
  
• True-life anecdotes from graduates
  

You may also consider including an interactive feature at the booth to give students an idea of what they’ll be learning. For example, if you offer nursing, give blood pressures readings. Or if you offer video game design, allow them to play a game designed by one of your graduates.

Promoting Your Event

You can help promote open house events geared toward high school students. Word of mouth is especially important in this population. Get the word out and start a buzz. You can do so by implementing the following tactics:

• Invitations. Send formal invitations to high school guidance counselors.
  
• Press releases. Send press releases to local high school newspapers. Make sure to include all relevant information, such as date, time, place and nature of the event.
  
• Flyers. Hand out or post flyers in surrounding neighborhoods. Make sure to place them in highly trafficked areas.
  
• High school visits. Visit the high school during the 2 weeks preceding the event. You can give presentations on various career paths and distribute invitations to the open house to those who express interest.
  
• Word of mouth. Encourage current students and members of your faculty to promote the event through word of mouth. Consider offering a non-monetary incentive to those who generate the most referrals.
  

Partnerships with Charitable Organizations

Your school is already providing an essential service to the local community. You’re working to meet the needs of local employers. And you’re educating people to enter well-paying fields. Is your school widely recognized for the positive role it plays in society? What are you doing to communicate this message?

Reach Out to the Local Community

You can get started by getting involved with a local charitable organization. Forming these partnerships will reinforce the idea that your school is a provider of vital public services.

Implementing this tactic as part of comprehensive public relations campaign can help position your school as a source of positive change. It can also distance your school from competitors that don’t reach out to the community through charitable endeavors.

Despite the fact that your partnership with a charity won’t directly increase your enrollment numbers, your association with a good cause can be invaluable to your lead generation efforts.

Getting Involved

Establishing a partnership with a charity doesn’t have to take a ton of energy. Your advertising agency can seek out contacts in the community. Or, if you prefer, you can find contact information provided on a charity’s web site.

Charity of Choice

Since there are a wide variety of charitable organizations, you’ll get the benefit of selecting one that complements your interests and offerings.

For example, if your school offers programs in the health field, you might choose to partner with the American Red Cross or the American Cancer Society. You can hold events that provide free health screenings for local community members and inform attendees about heart-healthy lifestyles.

Maximize Your Publicity

When holding events in conjunction with larger philanthropic organizations, your students, faculty and staff will get the satisfaction of giving back to society. They also tend to generate a good deal of publicity. This is just as good for your charity as it is for you.

You can maximize the benefits of these events by inviting the media to attend. Send event announcements to local newspapers and news stations. These events are also usually listed on a community calendar in the paper and with most news stations.

Media Relations

Public relations is best summed up by the old saying: Advertising is what you pay for; PR is what you pray for. Your relationship with the local media is invaluable. When a journalist covers your school, you’re getting more than free publicity.

You’re getting a third-party endorsement from a trusted news source. A news story providing information about your school typically carries more credibility than an advertisement.

Building Relationships with the Local News Media

You need to know the names of the journalists who cover the education and community events beats in your campus area. If you don't already, start reading newspapers and watching the local news. That way, you can make sure you’re reaching out to the correct contacts.

Why bother talking about how your school’s new program will support the cities infrastructure with someone who writes about sports? You’ll save your time and theirs.

Contacting the Media

After you’ve identified the appropriate journalists, call them, introduce yourself and tell them a little about your school. Always be sure to ask if you’re calling at a good time. Journalists work under tight deadlines and may be more apt to talk on varying days of the week.

You can continue your efforts through various methods such as:

• Press releases
  
• Story pitches 
  
• Event invitations/announcements
  

Maintaining Your Relationships

Building relationships with the media is well worth your time and persistent efforts. Once you’ve established a relationship, maintaining it is just as important.

When a journalist covers your school, make sure to send them thank you letters. Once you’ve thanked them, you can maximize your opportunity by briefly suggesting an idea for another story they might be interested in writing.

Neighborhood News

Good publicity and positive press coverage about your students’ achievements are invaluable. Any time your students reach significant milestones, you can reach out to the local news media. Send customized press releases announcing your enrollments, graduates and placements to your student’s hometown.

You’ll not only get to celebrate your students, you could increase your media coverage in the neighborhoods from which you draw students.

Celebrate Your Students and Increase Your Media Coverage

The education your school provides changes lives. These press releases reinforce your school’s positive image by communicating your student’s milestones to the community. You could also get the benefits of:

• Increased referrals
  
• Increased retention
  
• Increased public awareness
  
• Increased placement opportunities
  

The 5 W’s of Neighborhood News

This grass-roots PR tactic is cost-effective and can help you connect with prospective students. Your agency can help you establish a comprehensive Neighborhood News campaign.

Who it’s for

Any school that wants to increase media coverage in the exact market from which it draws students.

What it is

Press releases announcing student successes, featuring a school’s logo.

When they’re sent

Any time a school has new starts, graduations or job placements. Releases should be sent on a regular, continual basis in order to establish name recognition and build relationships with journalists.

Where it’s sent

Releases are sent to media outlets in the student’s hometown.

Who receives it

Journalists who cover education and community events, or who write for the Neighborhood News section of local newspapers.

How it’s distributed

Most journalists have a preferred method for receiving press releases, whether it be through e-mail, fax or direct mail.

Local Event Sponsorship

To get your name out there, sometimes you’ve got to physically get out there. Participating in local events is an effective way to build your school’s brand. It sends the message that you’re invested in the community.

Identify Sponsorship Opportunities

Every community has a wide variety of sponsorship opportunities. Gain name recognition through showing support for:

• Concerts
  
• Festivals
  
• Sporting teams/events
  
• Indoor and outdoor theatres
  

You can research community happenings by simply visiting your city web site. Local chambers of commerce are also good sources for information and are usually eager to provide guidance.

Getting involved won’t necessarily translate directly into leads, but the name recognition you’ll gain will be invaluable.

Brochures

The next time you attend or host a career fair, community event or open house, be sure to have brochures on hand. This essential piece of collateral allows you to give prospective students something solid to take with them.

And, if you include a business reply card, they’re a great way for students to follow up with your admissions department.

Get the Right Look

Whether you want something people can fold and fit in their pockets or slip into their briefcases, brochures come in all sorts of shapes, colors and sizes like:

• One-page shell sheet
  
• Tri-fold
  
• View book
  

Even though all brochures are different, they should all have one thing in common: simplicity. Brochures should never be complicated or messy. They should have a clean layout and provide basic information.

Say the Right Things

Brochures provide helpful information about your school. It’s up to you to decide what to highlight. Whether your brochure provides a generic overview of your school or focuses on a specific program, the content shouldn’t give away too much. Brochures are meant to spark a prospective student’s interest. They should not provide every in-depth detail of your school.

Unless they’re a major selling point, it’s best to leave out information about tuition and program lengths. Subjects like these can make people apprehensive and should be communicated in person. That way, your admissions representative can answer specific questions and provide insight about any concerns a prospective student might have.

Business Cards

Business cards have been around since before you went into business. Why are we still using them? The answer is simple: They work.

If your business cards have been collecting dust on your desk, wipe them off and start handing them out. The key to successfully using these pocket-sized advertisements is to always have them on hand. You can create name/face recognition while providing prospective students with your contact information.

Business Card Check List

 Before you start passing out your business cards like confetti at the Macy’s parade, make sure you’ve covered all the basics. Your business card should include the following information:

• Name
  
• Phone number
  
• E-mail address
  
• School web address
  
• School street address
  

More than a Wallet’s Worth

You should always have access to your business card, but there a few places where you should plan on bringing more than you can fit in your wallet:

• Trade shows
  
• Job/career fairs
  
• High schools
  
• Open houses
  
• Radio remotes
  
• Graduations
  

Business cards are useful icebreakers at events. Offering them to passersby will help you get their attention long enough to pull them into your booth. Or instead of handing them directly to prospective students, you can use them as bookmarks in course catalogs or pamphlets. That way leads can contact you as soon as they’ve looked through your school’s materials.

Make It Personal

People want to feel important. You create a personal, one-on-one interaction when you give someone your business card. Giving a potential student your contact information will send the message that you are personally interested in their future success.

You can amp up your personal touch by making your card stand out. Business cards do not have to be your standard, horizontal rectangles. They can be round or square, even triangles or rectangles turned the tall, skinny way.

In fact, they don’t even have to be cards. You can get creative! Add some pizzazz by printing your contact information fun, functional items like:

• Drink coasters
  
• Mini Frisbees
  
• Foam footballs
  
• Magnets
  
• Calendars
  

By handing out items that a prospective student is likely to use, you’ll help ensure that they are reminded of your school in the future.

CD-ROMs/Video

Grab prospective student’s attention and communicate your school’s message through CDs and video. Take advantage of one of the most powerful and widely used promotional tools available to the education industry.

CDs and videos offer prospective students visual interaction. Through artistic choices, you can control the exact message you want to send about you school. You will be able to provide leads with a solid perception of your school.

Visual Collateral Uses

You can use CD-ROMs and videos in a wide variety of promotional opportunities:

• Trade shows
  
• High school career fairs
  
• College recruitment fairs
  
• Your school lobby
  
• Direct mail insert
  

You can also reach out to perspective students through visual collateral by featuring different types of material. CD and video allow you to:

• Display recent television spots
  
• Highlight your school
  
• Focus on program offerings
  
• Introduce financial aid
  
• Feature student testimonials
  

Focus on Prospective Students

People who are making life-changing decisions should feel supported. Through CD-ROMs and Video, you can connect with leads on a personal level. Visual media provides your leads with one-on-one visual interactions with your school representatives.

CD-ROMs and video give you possibilities beyond print collateral. You can reach out to students with smiling, supportive faces and get them focused on student life.

Take Ones

Do you want to start a buzz about a new program or campus opening and create name recognition? Do you have access to a copy machine and a pair of scissors? Then you can start connecting with the community today!

Give Them Your Phone Number

“Take ones” are an easy, inexpensive way to promote your school. They can be as simple as a sheet of paper with your school name, programs and tear-away phone numbers at the bottom of a printed page.

These simple, spare “take ones” don’t provide much more than contact information and a snappy call to action. This gives your admissions representatives the chance to fill in the blanks.

Give Them a Whole Lot More

Or, if you want something with a professional look, you can print large posters that provide additional information about your offerings. You can encourage those who are interested to take one of the pamphlets or postcards with postage paid mailback forms you’ve provided.

You’ll have to keep a detailed list of locations for these types of “take ones” and periodically check them to ensure they are full. You can number them or use a tracking mechanism so you know where your responses are coming from.

Take Your “Take Ones” to the Street

With so many options for placement, you can get creative when choosing locations for your “take ones.” Think of high traffic areas that match your targeted demographic. You can even ask your current students for suggestions.

Consider placing your “take ones” in areas like:

• Local high schools
  
• Grocery stores
  
• Discount shopping centers
  
• Malls
  
• Community centers
  
• Public transit stops
  

If there’s a 4-year university or junior college in your area, place “take ones” on the campus. Hang these during times of the year when students are most likely to be thinking of life changes, like the beginning – or especially the end – of a semester.

Tip: It’s important that you have permission to hang "take ones&q