When I was part of\u00a0a sales leads group back in the early 1990’s, one of the most\u00a0important segments of our meetings was the one titled, “Who Do You Know?”\u00a0\u00a0 The\u00a0group leader would begin the discussion by asking something that related to the services that he offered, rather than coming right out and stating his main line\u00a0of work.\u00a0 For instance, he was an investment counselor, but rather than asking\u00a0the group, “Who do you know that needs investment counseling,” he would say, “Who do you know that would like to retire before age 55?”\u00a0 That was the market\u00a0segment that he was targeting.\u00a0 Anyone could use investment counseling, but he\u00a0focused on a particular segment of the population to create a win-win\u00a0situation for both him and his “target” clients.\u00a0 Remember that concept – “target clients.”\u00a0 More about that in a bit.<\/p>\n
All of us gathered around the table would then try to think\u00a0of people we knew that fit that target, and would suggest individuals he could contact.\u00a0 Since at that time, I was producing on-hold advertising for businesses for my own company, I wanted to target businesses that used a radio station as their “on hold” music source.\u00a0 Not only was doing so violating music publishing rights, customers that were calling could hear a commercial for that business’ competitor!\u00a0 Targeting who would be contacted was an efficient use of time, and because the business was personally referred, it was a great way to “open the door” too.\u00a0 Before long, a relationship was initiated and on its way to\u00a0being developed.<\/p>\n
Sadly, the concept of “who do you know” has deteriorated into precisely that, rather than a multi-faceted approach to relationship building.<\/p>\n
Let me explain.<\/p>\n
The concept of “who do you know” works because of the underlying principle of “who knows you.”\u00a0 The people in the sales leads group had created a relationship with one another.\u00a0 In fact, its how I met our auto insurance agent, whom we’ve been with for the past 28 years.\u00a0 No one can beat the service and value we’ve received, and it’s kind of difficult to sever a 28-year relationship to go with another company that we have had no experience with, yet offers “exceptional service and value.”\u00a0 Guess what?\u00a0 EVERYONE says they offer exceptional service and value, as they should.\u00a0 Otherwise, they wouldn’t be in business.<\/p>\n
Today, many “who do you know” sessions at the corporate level have become confused with a brainstorming meeting – a placed where people around the table think of all the people they know in a particular business and feed it to one individual that has the sole responsibility of following up on every lead given to them.\u00a0 The difficulty is that many of the people around the table feeding the leads to the unfortunate funnel person then say, “But don’t tell them I told you to call.”\u00a0 If that happens, the “who knows you” component has been taken out of the equation, creating a potential cold call rather than a warm lead.<\/p>\n
Today, with social media, the availability of tools to create an Internet presence, and the propensity of mobile connectivity devices, marketing becomes an indispensable avenue to allow people to know your school.\u00a0 Indeed, if you build a remarkable educational program, parents will come to check it out…but they still need to know the way to get there.<\/p>\n
And what about marketing yourself, and creating your own personal brand?\u00a0 Although that sounds kind of strange, members of an administration of any organization become synonymous with the institution itself.\u00a0 That’s why we’re so devastated when we hear that a church leader, a school teacher or an administrator of a non-profit organization is accused and convicted of embezzlement or other inappropriate and illegal behaviors.<\/p>\n
Trust is built for your school through you.\u00a0 Therefore, as you work through your day to day marketing efforts, are\u00a0you a person that practices integrity (which is doing the right thing when nobody’s watching), is dependable, and follows through with promises made?\u00a0 If\u00a0you become known as a person who does those things, your reputation is being\u00a0built, and so is the school’s.\u00a0 As the Book of Proverbs states, \u201cIf you have to choose between a good\u00a0reputation and great wealth, choose a good reputation\u201d (Proverbs\u00a0 22:1).<\/p>\n
So what about those “target clients” mentioned earlier?<\/p>\n
It’s very important to your school’s future to know which clients you want to target.\u00a0 Of course, it’s important to know your market, and much has been written about Generation X parents (the “helicopters”) and Millennials (the “snowplows”).\u00a0 But it’s even more important to know your target clients’ economic detail.\u00a0 While many schools say they want to say that “all are welcome,” the way to serve all people is to choose to focus on one end of the spectrum or the other – either those who CAN pay the tuition you’re charging for your school’s educational experience, or the people who CAN’T pay the tuition you’re charging for your school’s educational experience – and then construct your school’s approach to revenue and staffing based on that focus.\u00a0 Stay tuned for more information about this new approach to school sustainability.<\/p>\n
\u00a9 Michael V. Ziemski, SchoolAdvancement, 2007-2022 (Original Publication Date: 20071029)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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