Internal Marketing in Education

We all know the importance of external marketing. But what about internal marketing? As an essential prerequisite for external marketing and the overall success of an organization, internal marketing is the practice of promoting a company’s mission, objectives, products, and services to its own employees through proper communication. The idea is that your employees can be your best ambassadors - given that they are informed, motivated, engaged and unified. A successful internal marketing plan achieves the following:

• Keeps employees motivated
• Improves transparency
• Dispels rumors
• Encourages organizational unity
• Defines the district’s culture
• Increases engagement

Video is a great way to accomplish all of the above. Keep in mind, people are much more likely to watch short videos than to read long documents. Here are some tangible components of a robust internal marketing plan that can be achieved through video:

Ensuring that all employees know that their contributions are essential to the school’s success

This applies to everyone from senior leadership to custodians. Every department is essential to the success of a school district, and communicating this raises morale and helps create a team atmosphere. In order to communicate this, create videos highlighting various departments and employees. It’s easy to underestimate the importance of support staff, but this can be avoided by letting employees share their stories and explain their contributions to the district.

Educating all employees about the district’s mission and goals

The more informed an organization’s employees are, the more dedicated they are to the overall mission. Once again, this applies to not only senior leadership but also to support staff. Everyone needs to be informed in order to successfully achieve these goals. The beginning of the school year is a great time to focus on this. Sending out a video to all employees reinforcing the district’s mission helps start the year off on a high note. One way to keep this spirit up throughout the year is to livestream or share video of school board meetings. The school board should not be the only ones focused on the district’s mission and goals.

Communicating effectively and regularly with staff in order to dispel rumors

Rumors often trickle down to students. When these rumors involve alleged major changes to the students' educational experience they can cause a great deal of anxiety. Staff needs to be informed on the truth in order for staff to help dispel these rumors and not let rumors negatively impact staff or students. An effective way to ensure all staff has accurate information is to send out video updates from administrators such as the superintendent or School Board President.

Reinforcing the concept that the students are, when all is said and done, the main focus

In business, this means reinforcing the idea that customers are the priority and the source of employees’ salaries. When applied to education, this means making students the priority. Districts should always put the success and happiness of their student bodies in the spotlight. Let students tell their stories through video and share the video with the entire team. As a result of feeling like the staff cares, students are motivated and encouraged. Don’t let employees lose sight of this. 

There are a number of ways to share these videos and ensure that they are disseminated throughout the organization. Emailing video to staff on a regular basis is a great way to reach employees directly. Videos can also be posted on the school website or on their social media. An added benefit of this approach is that the videos reach parents and students as well.

Successful internal marketing keeps employees motivated, informed, and inspired, which ultimately benefits the students. When viewed as a tool to achieve this, it becomes clear that video isn’t just a tool for students, but also for the administration in order to optimize the organizational health of a school district and its schools.