Remember My Name

     This Marketing Matter could have had several song titles - "Who Are You?"  "Try To Remember" "What's Your Name?" - but I decided on this line from the song "Fame" since sometimes it's easy to forget your own name.

     Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?  But I've seen school newsletters that have tons of information, yet, no mention of the school.  Then, to add to the confusion, articles would tell of events coming up that sound like a lot of fun.  The last line of the article says, "Call us for more information."

     If the school's name isn't published at the top of the newsletter, I don't know who the "us" is.  Even a phone number or email address would have helped identify the school.

     One school that did this told me, "Well, our return address is on the envelope."  That's good - but what if someone opens my mail?  Administrative Assistants open mail, so perhaps the envelope has been recycled and/or shredded by the time I get to read the newsletter.

     Rather than just saying, "call us for details" in a brochure or article, give the phone number right then.

     As silly as this may sound, forgetting identifiers is extremely common.  We're so familiar with what we're doing and who we are that we forget there are others out there who have no clue we exist!!  Radio stations announcers are told to always say the call letters during breaks so that people know what station they're listening to!  Not only do they state the call letters over and over and over, they have slogans that are always repeated ("Your 10 in a row station," "We play anything," "The greatest hits of the 60's and 70's," etc.).  It's in cable television too - I'll bet you can guess these networks from their tag lines:

- "Characters Welcome"

- "We Know Drama"

- "Very Funny"

     Not only can you be known by your name, but by your "branding" and your "positioning."  If your target audience can remember those three things about you, you're winning the struggle for their mind, and keeping your school at the top of theirs so they'll enroll their children.  There will be more about the relationship among "Name," "Brand," and "Position" in upcoming Marketing Matters.

© Michael V. Ziemski, SchoolAdvancement, 2010 (Original Publication Date - 20100125)

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