Is It Illegal For Teachers To Sell Things To Students? Top Answer Update

Compliance Resource Center

As a GSI, you have a number of regulatory compliance issues to consider. You are a U-M employee and are responsible for carrying out your work as an educator in accordance with the various legal and regulatory requirements binding on the university. As the primary interface with students, you are also in a unique position to spot potential issues that arise in the classroom and discuss them with someone in your department before they become bigger problems.

The four most important legal aspects to be aware of are:

Student records – protecting student information; safety – for you and your students; Copyright – ensuring educational materials are used and distributed legally; and Appropriate Treatment of Students.

1. Student Records – Protection of Student Information

All information about a student – ​​e.g. B. his personal information, enrollment details, assignments, and grades — are part of his “student record” which is protected by a federal law, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (commonly referred to as “FERPA”). Student records must be treated in accordance with this law by anyone who has access to them. For example, the requirements mean the following:

You may not post grades using the student’s name or ID number;

when returning student tests and papers, a system must be used to prevent access and/or disclosure to anyone other than the student;

You should password protect spreadsheets that contain student information.

You may only use Student Information for purposes directly related to your role as an Instructor: it would be inappropriate to disclose personal information that you learn about a Student in your capacity as a GSI to others in your capacity as a Student.

Visit this Student Records Compliance page for more information.

2. Safety – for you and your students

The university has strict obligations to protect its students and staff. Never do anything that seems unsafe, and never allow others to do anything that seems unsafe. Here are some handy things you can do to help keep everyone safe:

The university has strict obligations to retain its students. At the start of the semester, take a moment to familiarize yourself with the safety and emergency protocols of every classroom and lab you teach in—what would you do if an alarm went off? Class? Where would you evacuate to? Where is the nearest fire extinguisher?

If your class has lab components, make sure you know who your lab’s security coordinator is. Follow all relevant safety procedures and ensure students do the same. Familiarize yourself with the General Laboratory Safety Requirements (http://ehs.umich.edu/research-clinical-safety/). If you observe something unsafe and cannot locate your safety coordinator, contact Environmental Health and Safety (http://ehs.umich.edu). See Laboratory Safety for more information.

If you are injured at work or witness an incident that injures someone else, you must report it to your department (or to Work Connections, http://www.workconnections.umich.edu/) according to normal procedures.

Program the Department of Public Safety’s emergency number (734) 763-1131 (http://www.dpss.umich.edu/) into your phone so you know you can call them anytime.

3. Copyright – ensuring that educational materials are used and distributed legally

When creating and reproducing educational materials, aspects of copyright compliance must be taken into account. Make sure you understand the legal limits on how you can use or distribute materials in your classes (or publish them on Canvas) by visiting the U-M Library Copyright Office website (http://www.lib.umich.edu /copyright -office-michigan-publishing) to use copyrighted materials.

4. Appropriate treatment of students

Keep your interactions with and treatment of students professional at all times: See U-M Policy on Faculty-Student Relations for more information.

As an instructor, you must apply the same standards and provide the same opportunities to all students in your class. This includes students in special programs such as athletics. For example, you may grant a student-athlete an extension or agree to an alternative evaluation if every other student in similar circumstances would be given the same opportunity; But you can’t give them special treatment just because they’re athletes, nor can you deny them the opportunities for academic flexibility that you would normally give other students.

This includes students in special programs such as athletics. You must make reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities to provide them with an equal opportunity to succeed in the classroom. The faculty handbook, developed by Services for Students with Disabilities (http://ssd.umich.edu/), provides an overview of disabilities that interfere with learning in a college or university setting and provides guidance on the adjustments that will be made can, to accommodate students with disabilities Disabilities.

For more information, resources, and links on legal and compliance topics relevant to the classroom, see the Classroom Teaching Guide on the Compliance Resource Center website (http://www.compliance.umich.edu/).

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Teachers sometimes take your phone or other items away if they think it will distract you or the other students in your class. This is often within their power, if only for the duration of the lesson or the rest of the day. By learning the rules at your school, you can make sure you don’t break them. Also, ensure that your property is never stolen or searched in violation of your rights.

In the real world (i.e. outside of your school), law enforcement agencies absolutely need a search warrant to search people’s personal belongings. Thank you, Fourth Amendment! However, during school hours, students are not guaranteed all the protections that the Constitution offers us. One of these limited safeguards is the right to privacy. Schools are not required to obtain a search warrant before searching a student’s belongings.

But don’t fret. Even if a search warrant is not required, school officials cannot search your belongings without a reason. School officials need “reasonable suspicion” before searching your belongings, and there is a two-part test that determines the reasonableness of the search. For the search to be reasonable, the school must demonstrate that (1) the search was “justified from the outset” and (2) the search was reasonable given the circumstances giving rise to the search. To be “justified from the outset,” or in other words, justified from the outset of the search, the school must believe that the search will show that the student has broken or is breaking the law or school rules. To meet the second requirement, the scope of the search must be reasonable and not overly intrusive given the student’s age, the student’s gender, the nature of the alleged violation, and the purpose of the search. For example, a school official may have reason to believe that a student under the age of 18 has just smoked a cigarette in the restroom if that student has recently posted selfies on social media of himself smoking or holding a pack of cigarettes. In this situation, the school official is likely to be able to search the backpack since there is reasonable grounds to believe that the student has a pack of cigarettes in the backpack.

Does this mean that school officials can search all of my belongings like my backpack, jacket or purse?

When it comes to your personal belongings, school officials have less of a right to search those items than something like a school locker. Although limited, students have an interest in the privacy of their personal belongings at school and this interest must be balanced against the school’s interest in maintaining safety and discipline. Remember that you are ultimately in school to learn and if something affects your education, schools have the right to provide a safe educational environment, even if it means that students’ rights are slightly affected.

We’ve already said that schools need reasonable suspicion to search your stuff, so what would that look like? Let’s say a couple of students complained to the principal about selling marijuana out of your backpack by the boys’ bathroom. If the principal catches you waiting with your backpack outside the bathroom during a lesson, he probably has enough reasonable suspicions to search your backpack. The principal would pass this two-part test, which requires reasonable suspicion because the search was warranted from the outset (the principal had reasonable cause to believe you were involved in illegal drug sales) and the search was reasonable because he only Searched her backpack where the marijuana was allegedly stored.

This also applies to cell phone searches. The school must have reasonable grounds to suspect that a student has used their phone to threaten the safety of another person, engaged in illegal activity on the phone, or used the phone to violate school policy while at school. Then the school would probably have reasonable suspicion of searching certain information over the phone. If you would like a more in-depth analysis of this issue, be sure to read our Student Cell Phone Search Questions and Answers.

So school officials need a legitimate reason to search my personal belongings. What about school belongings like lockers or computers?

School officials have far more power when it comes to searching school property. Regarding lockers, students simply occupy their lockers for the school year, but the school still owns the lockers. This rule is the reason why schools do not violate the privacy rights of students when conducting random police searches with sniffer dogs. Aside from schools having an interest in keeping drugs out, they also don’t actually violate your privacy rights by searching their own property. It’s like your mom going through your underwear drawer for something you’re hiding from her in the dresser she bought that’s in the house she owns. Your mom can absolutely search your underwear drawer (no matter how embarrassing that is), just like schools can search your lockers. Schools are required to monitor the lockers that students use temporarily, especially if anything dangerous or illegal is kept inside. Even though it’s embarrassing that you have pimple cream in your locker, your embarrassment won’t stop the school administration from searching your locker. We recommend keeping personal items that are not illegal, such as tampons, condoms, birth control medication, etc., in a purse or backpack, which is a bit more personal than a locker.

Similarly, school boards also have far fewer restrictions on finding school-owned computers and technology that you may borrow, as opposed to your technology that you own. Schools can’t randomly search your phone that you or your parents pay for, but that iPad you borrow from school to do your homework? Yes, they can probably look for that. Well, we’d hope the school has a good reason before they search the tech they loan you, but sometimes they do random searches just like they do lockers. To be safe, think about what you are looking for or storing on school technology. If you do not want your parent or guardian to see certain information, you probably should not keep it on or in any school property. So delete these things from your school’s own tech and make sure everything you use your school’s own tech for is G-rated.

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I never had pocket money at school, so I had to think of creative ways to raise some money for the extra field trip or anything I wanted to buy. Most entry-level high schooler jobs are a real pain. Especially since the pandemic, retail workers have had to contend with increasingly angry customers. For aspiring entrepreneurs: read on!

I’m here to tell you the best sweets that will give you the biggest win. It’s not just about taste, but also about size and margins. For each candy, I’ll give you an estimate of how much money it can bring in per bag sold to schools across the country.

Things to consider when selling candy at school

Don’t get caught!

Snitches get stung – Don’t get caught!

This is difficult because every school has different rules. If you get caught, don’t expect leniency from the administration or your parents. Most importantly, don’t blame us. hehe.

An important lesson is not to make enemies, especially those who betray. Selling only to friends or friends of friends helps. My backpack was small so I could only carry enough candy to sell anyway.

This means I had to make a decision on what to sell as I had limited options on what and how much candy to bring.

My personal favorite candies were Airheads and Warheads because they are compact. I could fit loads of these in my backpack compared to candy bars or worse, air sacs (chips).

How much candy can you bring to school?

Candy comes in many sizes and shapes due to their packaging.

Carrying more units of candy means more profit (assuming you can sell them all). Not only can you serve a larger number of people, but smaller candies can yield a higher overall profit even if you don’t make as much per sale.

Compact candies

Chewing Gum ($1-$2)

Airheads ($0.50)

Warheads ($0.50)

Fun Size Candies ($0.50 to $1)

The lowest price for these candies is usually around $0.50 and you can carry plenty of them in your backpack. I would recommend taking airheads with you because they are compact and everyone loves them (I know some people hate sour candy like warheads).

Tip: If you’re selling smaller candies, try bundling them in dollar amounts. While you may want to take change with you, dollar bills are much lighter.

You can find these candies online or at a local grocery store.

Be sure to sell candy that people will want to buy! There’s no point in selling what nobody wants. Make friends and ask for popular sweets before you start buying everything on this list.

When to sell sweets

fundraisers? I find that the times that candy is sold is at its lowest when other clubs/organizations start raising funds by selling their own candy.

Is the big exam coming up? Everyone is a hard learner (or should be) and could use a temporary boost of energy or a treat to keep learning.

lunch time? Another good time to push your candy products would definitely be around lunchtime. Do you see anyone staring at the vending machine? Undercut those vending machines and offer them airheads! After eating boring school lunches, a sweet treat was just the ticket.

I would take the same product they sell and offer discounts on purchases of 3 or more candies. Of course, do not sell your sweets near these clubs or their members. The worst that can happen is the administration will fine you, confiscate your candy and possibly take your hard-earned money.

Things to consider when pricing your candy

Easy transaction competition demand

Once you start selling candy, people will eventually notice. Whether they see you selling candy directly or just notice a general increase in the number of people eating candy at school. Some other people might want a piece of the pie and there’s nothing wrong with that! Just be prepared!

If you’re selling a candy that’s known for its novelty (e.g. Warheads or other extremely sour candy), sales will eventually drop. I mean, have you ever eaten warheads all the time? I still remember my tongue screaming after eating one too many warheads.

Top 5 popular sweets for sale at school

The more popular the candy, the higher the demand.

If you sell a bag of Skittles to 10 kids for $2 each one day at school and make out with twenty dollars (before profit), it’s not so bad!

1. Chocolate

Watch out for heat near your backpack!

Snickers, Hershey’s, and other popular candy bars are quick sellers at school. They’re small, filling, and taste great. Candy bars are one of the most popular candies sold at high-margin schools across America.

If it’s a little hot outside, bring your chocolates in an insulated lunch box (bonus points for using an ice pack).

You can make just over $1 per candy bar sold if you sell them for $2 for a standard sized candy bar.

2. Chewing Gum

Chewing gum is a hot seller!

The second popular candy sold is chewing gum. While gum sells very quickly (in my experience), you may have trouble selling more than 1 pack to one person.

Gum is compact so you can fit many insides of a backpack or lunch box.

Grocery stores and drugstores always have a sale on chewing gum.

3. Airheads

While airheads are the cheapest candy to sell, you may think a lot more of them compared to candy bars or worse, bags of chips.

Airheads come in a variety of flavors to please everyone.

You can sell them for about $0.50 each. I hated carrying coins so I only sold bundles of 3 for $1.

You may want to buy Airheads online if you have more than a few bars to sell.

4. Warheads

Warheads is a quick and easy vendor for a quarter apiece. Sometimes they sold too fast and I got away with selling them for 50 cents each.

A small bag of about 20 Warheads goes for $2-$3 at most convenience stores, allowing you to sell the individual pieces in bulk without ripping off your customers. To avoid carrying too many coins, the 3-per-dollar top-up is a cheap price point.

With sour candies like this, it’s important that nobody overdoes it. Too much sour candy can make your tongue ache.

5. Skittles

Skittles are especially popular with college students because they’re a fun treat to eat and share!

The only downsides to selling skittles are how loud the rattle of the candy and wrapper is.

Finally, make sure your backpack is big enough to carry all those candies! You don’t want to miss out on potential sales because you ran out of candy.

Final Thoughts

The best candy to sell at school is one that is affordable, tasty, and easy to chew. Some of the best options include Skittles, Starburst, and Airheads. These candies are all affordable and can be bought in bulk, making them a great option for sale.

Try to only expand your business to people you trust; A snitch could shut down your entire operation and end up with disciplinary action! But if you’re smart and smart, selling candy at school is a great side hustle to get a bit of extra cash for that console or school event.

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A string of middle and high school students, officially barred from jobs at a young age and in dire need of cash, are cranking up their entrepreneurial — but unhealthy and technically illegal — endeavors and opening pop-up junk food outlets on campus to the Bay Area and beyond.

Last school year, a Pinole High School student who asked not to be named made hundreds of dollars selling candy and chips to friends — his duffel bag, converted into an underground office, was the center of all his transactions, one of which most of the classes in between took place.

He made so much money that his aunt urged her son, then a junior at El Cerrito High School, to start a similar business, according to a story first reported in Oakland Magazine.

The boy’s mother also pitched in. She wanted him to start saving for college. So she made regular trips to Costco to buy boxes of junk food, effectively turning her son into a mobile vending machine when the teachers weren’t looking. He had to pay her back for the products with his earnings, which averaged about $25 to $35 a week.

Not only high school students participate. Students at Claremont Middle School in Oakland often head out to buy candy, Cheetos, and takis at Eddie’s Liquor Store in Rockridge, and then sell the bags of salty, sweet, and greasy snacks to their friends for about a dollar a bag .

“Why not?” asked one student, who asked not to be named and who saw nothing wrong with the school term sales. He estimates there are about a dozen kids selling junk food throughout the week. And he said the teachers never seem to say anything even though it’s not okay.

No one keeps track of how many students and schools are involved in this phenomenon; Some school administrators contacted by KTVU were surprised to learn that this happened that evening. And the school districts contacted downplayed the prevalence of contraband chips circulating on their campuses.

Selling anything, but especially junk food, on school property violates both California and federal laws. Not only do children sell items without a business license, but it is against the law to sell any type of non-nutritive food during the school day on a campus that participates in government-subsidized free lunch and breakfast programs.

Cynthia Butler, spokeswoman for the California Department of Education, said the state began requiring more fruits, vegetables and whole grains in school meals in 2012 to create a healthier school environment. Two years later, the US Department of Agriculture developed national standards that match those in California, she said. That meant vending machines selling chocolate and chips were off.

Despite evidence that there are students selling junk food underground, Oakland Unified School District spokesman John Sasaki said there doesn’t seem to be a “big problem,” in part because principals at the moment in If you find out about this, shut it down.”

He added that if students are caught with “the “product” it will be confiscated, as will any monies received as payment for that product. The students involved in this type of venture are dealt with quickly, and their parents are involved in the process.”

He said sometimes the students didn’t even know they weren’t allowed to, so the staff would explain it to them.

“We naturally support and encourage the entrepreneurial spirit of our students,” said Sasaki. “But when they’re in school, we want them to always be focused on learning and not trying to make money.”

While it might seem like a great idea to sell products with college or university logos, and they might sell like hot cakes, without licenses from the schools you’re trying to promote, it would probably be illegal.

The Value of a College Logo

If you close your eyes now, you can probably picture the logo of the college you attended or your favorite collegiate sports team. That’s because colleges and universities do an excellent job of marketing their brands. They want you to see their logo and know exactly what school it is.

At the same time, they don’t want their logos to be overused or used without their permission. This is where trademark and copyright issues come into play.

When school logos are intellectual property

School logos, mascots, slogans and other trademarks are often intellectual property and are protected by trademarks and copyrights that protect the school’s brand.

Trademark infringement occurs when a company or individual uses a trademark, e.g. B. A logo that has been trademarked by a company or is so similar as to cause confusion among the public.

Copyright is similar to trademarks, but applies to creative intellectual property. Therefore, copyright infringement could occur if copyrighted artwork is used to create a logo or mascot without permission from the copyright owner.

How trademark law might apply

Schools have various reasons for wanting to protect their brands and the most common are:

To prevent others from monetizing their brand without the school getting a cut. A company that has obtained a license from the school shares the profits with the school.

To prevent people from being confused about the origin of the goods sold. Schools don’t want people to think that the products are sold by the school.

To prevent the “dilution” of the logo. For example, if the logo is used for many different purposes, it can become generic and the trademark owner could lose the ability to protect it.

To prevent “smearing” of the logo. For example, a school does not want its brand to be associated with products that are low quality or controversial.

How copyright might apply

Colleges and universities are often successful with copyright infringement lawsuits when companies or individuals have reproduced the artwork used to create a logo or mascot without a proper license. Typically, the school only needs to show that the company or individual had access to the original copyrighted work and sold or distributed products “substantially similar” to the original.

How to legally sell college logo products

Oftentimes, colleges and universities are willing to sell licenses to companies and individuals who wish to sell items containing the school’s logo, slogan, or mascot. Work with an intellectual property attorney in your area to see if you can legally make and sell the products you have in mind.

Last year my friends Christy and Garth opened a bubble tea shop just a few steps from the dorms. Every day college students go there to get their boba fix. But they’re not the only bubble tea shop in town, and the kids living in the campus dorms or at home might not even know it exists.

They quickly realized that traditional advertising methods weren’t reaching the right demographics. They had to learn how to market specifically to college students so they could use modern marketing methods to grow their new business.

Today’s college students are part of Generation Z, known for being digital natives with a cynical view of traditional marketing. That means they conveniently interact with brands online and expect authenticity and shared values. They demand comfort in a day packed not only with study but also socializing and probably work.

The first step to understanding how best to market to college students is to understand them beyond the normal stats. What are you interested in? How do they decide what to buy with their disposable income?

For example, Christy and Garth understood that the young adults near their store wanted plastic-free straws and compostable packaging. If you are unsure about the values ​​and interests of those you wish to market to, consider conducting an online survey of your current customers to ask them.

Here are other things to keep in mind as you reach this age group:

Go mobile.

Reach out to social media.

Be creative with your content.

Find student ambassadors.

Host contests and giveaways.

To stand for something.

Participate in events on campus.

Let’s take a closer look at each of these marketing best practices.

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Go mobile

If you want college students to think you’re a total dinosaur, skip the mobile-responsive site. Generation Z is on the move, connecting with brands and businesses of all sizes the same way they connect with their friends: online. Making sure your website works just as well on a desktop computer as it does on a smartphone is a priority.

Have a fun, well-designed website that is interactive. If you own a restaurant, add your menu to your website. If you own a retail store, integrate an in-store online shopping experience. Use clear call-to-action buttons so every visitor to your website knows exactly how to get in touch with you.

Reach out to social media

You already know that college students spend hours every day on social media, so use this to your business advantage. Choose a platform for your business and devote time to developing your brand there.

The most popular platforms of Generation Z are Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat. Go with the one that makes the most sense for your business. Develop ways for college students to buy your products or services directly through social media, as well as through your website or in person at your store. This is called omnichannel marketing and it works.

Be creative with your content

Once you’ve set up your website and social media platforms, you’ll quickly find that posting something every few days to keep it up to date is exhausting. Because of this, it’s important that you sit down with your most valuable team members to brainstorm ideas for the upcoming semester or school year.

Think of popular events you can market, such as B. a big football game or finals. Create a marketing calendar ahead of time with deadlines and specific people responsible for specific tasks. Have fun creating your marketing strategy. Try producing short videos to get extra attention from Gen Zers.

Find student ambassadors

Word of mouth advertising has evolved from people chatting around the water dispensers. Today, young adults are listening to their peers and influencers to encourage purchases. You can create a student ambassador program by reaching out to people who have a significant following on your social media channel.

Do your research to make sure the people you want to target are working with your brand. For example, offer brand ambassadors a discount or free items in exchange for a certain number of sponsored ads on their Instagram Stories or YouTube vlog. Make your agreement clear with a contract and track the engagement they have with their friends and fans.

Host contests and giveaways

College students love free stuff, so appeal to them through contests with prizes or freebies. For example, if the university near your business has a successful photography club, reach out to members to enter a photography contest that is in some way related to your service or products. Or maybe a holiday-themed giveaway would be a better fit for your brand.

For example, Christy and Garth could host a free bubble tea and snack giveaway, with the winner being chosen from people who take a selfie with the hashtag #ItsBobaTime and tag the company’s Instagram account. A new winner was chosen at random every month.

To stand for something

You know the phrase, “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything”? This wisdom is at the heart of most Gen Zers, who expect the brands they do business with to care about their values ​​as much as they do.

However, use your business as an opportunity to advocate for what is right. Just remember, whether it’s supporting a local charity or a global movement, “what’s right” has to be what’s right for you and your business.

Use hashtags and feature members of the community you care about on your social media platforms. Post supportive signs in your facility. Be authentic when deciding what you want to stand for. When you understand and connect with your audience, they will appreciate your efforts — and likely tell their friends about it.

Participate in events on campus

It’s clear that marketing can be challenging for college students, but the simplest thing is knowing you’ll find them on campus. Are there ways to integrate and market your business with on-campus events? Visit the student center or go online to follow college marketing to stay up to date on opportunities.

Many colleges have online course schedules. The more you talk to college students, the faster you’ll learn about marketing opportunities on campus.

There may be fairs for students where you can have a table and give away free samples or coupons. You may be able to undertake activities in exchange for hanging a banner. You can even use your social media to connect with everything that’s happening to stay relevant.

Need more ideas?

Marketing to college students requires you to be flexible, nimble and always listening to your current customers in order to connect with their peers both online and offline. For more ideas, you can take a page from a college playbook by checking out Constant Contact’s The Download. It’s a free guide to help educational marketers reach their target audience.

As you grow your business with college students, remember to plan for the summer. When school is out, you want to change your marketing strategy while also planning for the start of the next semester.

Whether it’s attracting students or motivating current ones, universities place a heavy emphasis on marketing. After all, education doesn’t come cheap, and higher education institutions need to let the community know how their college experience is worth the price.

Many of our university clients in Penji know how competitive college marketing can be. So they ask us to create the best and most creative visuals that appeal to the younger audience.

If you’re looking for ways to boost your educational branding, here are some of the best marketing strategies for your university.

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But before we dive into those proven marketing strategies, here are a few things to keep in mind when promoting your university.

What are the 4 types of marketing strategies?

There are more than four types of marketing strategies universities can use. As you will see below, more than 10 marketing strategies can help universities to promote their institution.

What marketing strategies are universities pursuing?

Universities don’t limit themselves to one or two marketing strategies. There is an extensive discussion below, but here are the most commonly executed strategies:

social media

User Generated Posts

branding

Student Oriented Marketing

video marketing

Data-Based Marketing

Class Enrollment Actions

SEO

diversity marketing

Visual Data Marketing

paid traffic

webinars

Downloadable Instructions

email marketing

How do you market a university?

Well, that depends on what resources you have to promote your institution. And if you’re still not sure which one will work for you, here are some case studies to look at to inspire your marketing campaigns.

Indiana University – They wanted to increase leads for online educational programs through Facebook. There they placed image ads and placements. Results: 35% less CPC for paid media and 6% less RFIs from leads.

– They wanted to increase leads for online educational programs through Facebook. There they placed image ads and placements. Results: Reduced CPC for paid media and lead information requests. Northcentral University – The university wanted to increase application rates. With the help of Level Agency, they ran ads and landing pages. They saw a 25% growth in applications and a 351% application volume.

– The university wanted to increase application rates. With the help of Level Agency, they ran ads and landing pages. They thus recorded growth in applications and the volume of applications. University of Kent – The university wanted to increase application rates during a clearing period. By partnering with agency Arke, they have enhanced their branding through social and search campaigns. Results: 40% more clicks and 165% more impressions.

Now that we’ve covered that, learn more about university marketing strategies below.

1. Social Media

Before social media, teens relied on direct mail to learn about opportunities after high school. With the advent of social media and the internet, high schoolers have moved away from needing direct mail to know their options. When it feels like every college in the country is mailing a letter, it feels impersonal to prospective students. The solution is progressing and reaching them via social media. Students have gone online and it is important that your college follows suit.

Here are a few pointers to keep in mind:

The most popular social media platform varies by generation, and knowing where to place your marketing is crucial.

. What was popular ten years ago no longer has the same user traffic. Make sure your research is up to date.

. Once you’ve identified the best social platform, gather a following from your current, potential, and alumni. These people will help you find out how your school may already be performing on social media. From there, judge whether you want to appear that way and act accordingly.

Enhance your social media marketing by posting engaging and shareable graphics from Penji. Discover how the Penji platform works and what you can request.

2. User Generated Posts

User-generated posts are a similar strategy to social media focus, but executed differently in the long run. Once you find out which platform hosts most of your current and potential students, find content created by them. What do they say about your university? This can determine how your school is viewed from the outside. You know what you want the picture to look like, but does the student body agree? If it’s unclear to online users, engage and guide them.

Engaging the community is the best strategy for creating user-generated content. Create a hashtag that is generic but flexible for variation. This reminds users that it’s still your school, but when it’s updated to something that’s widely used at university, users know it’s a special occasion to get involved.

3. Define your brand image

Every school has a brand. This is how the university is perceived by outsiders. Everyone has a different approach to their brand and you should strive to differentiate yourself. Determine how you want to be seen to define your brand image. Your university should have a “voice”. That “voice” makes it a person, something that people can use to simplify their thoughts about your school.

Consider these tips when defining your brand image:

Using consistent branding across different mediums defines what your brand is about.

However, when there is a clear distinction between a billboard ad and the voice of a Facebook ad, it creates confusion. It’s like your college getting away with a split personality.

It’s difficult to market your school in multiple voices, and defining it helps attract exactly the kind of students you want.

This could mean re-evaluating your current branding guidelines and updating marketing materials to ensure they are consistent. This move doesn’t initially market directly to your audience, but over the years the brand will become recognizable in the local area. Graphic design plays a huge role in marketing and should not be taken lightly. It helps cement your image as a place of learning for your audience.

4. Focus on the students

Students are the life of your university. Without them there would be no school. It’s important to remember their importance and show appreciation for your populace. A marketing strategy that focuses solely on them is aimed at both current and prospective students.

Consider these tips when focusing your marketing strategy:

Incoming students are the most difficult to approach as all universities compete for their attention. However, it still helps to let these prospective freshmen know what to expect.

People go to higher education to improve themselves, but they also want to feel welcome.

A strategy for how welcoming and engaging a school is to its community gives prospective students insight. It also reminds current students that the professors and staff are there for them. It helps with engagement and participation on campus.

Promoting events or supporting them across multiple channels and platforms is one way to remind them that the university cares about them.

5. Video Marketing on All Platforms

In the digital age, it’s effortless to watch a video instead of reading the synopsis. All websites and social platforms have options for embedding videos. Videos provide quick information for those who want to learn more about your university. It also offers a glimpse into the school’s personality that doesn’t come easily on still posts and pages.

Major video platforms like YouTube are easily accessible for universities and students. Content that might be considered “too busy” for standard use can thrive in a video if done right. Many schools are already using it to show everyday life, lessons and activities. The platform is also used to live stream important events such as graduation ceremonies or homecomings. Unlike other platforms that might limit the number of words or the size of a file, the use of videos is almost unlimited.

6. Statistics

Show the numbers that prove your university is worth visiting. There are parents and students who will not consider a school unless it has a proven track record of helping their community.

Here are points to keep in mind when using numbers in your marketing strategy:

A marketing strategy that specifically targets this audience is the best way to get their attention.

When a university actively promotes its high graduation rates, it actively promotes its other departments; It speaks well for the advisors and professors.

Excellent statistics show that the staff is committed to ensuring that students graduate successfully. It’s a strategy that can be reused every year with updated statistics.

7. Encourage sitting in class prior to registration

For many students, sitting in a lecture is one of the first experiences they have at university. They will spend a few years learning more about their majors and all that goes with them. This can be a big shift for high school teens to move from smaller class sizes to a lecture with potentially over 100 people. It can be beneficial for prospective students to attend a class and understand a college-style lecture before attending.

Some universities offer this opportunity, but few fully encourage it. This is a great selling point for high school teens worried about their future classes and campus life. It also doesn’t require any elaborate promotion and can be added to ongoing campaigns. Almost all colleges encourage tours when they attract students, and adding the opportunity to sit in a class in their major is beneficial.

8. SEO and similar programs

Students will look up your schools when some previous strategies have been correctly performed. It’s all irrelevant if your university isn’t at the top of the search when you look it up. It’s a great strategy for long-term use, making sure certain pages on your site match words you know people are using. This may mean updating some page titles to a generic name followed by your college name, or adding specific keywords throughout the site.

Fortunately, there are programs that can help with this. Programs like Google Ad Words and Facebook help ensure that your university’s ads appear higher than others. This does not replace SEO and should be used together to get the best result.

9. Present the success

Knowing what alumni do after graduation is important for some. Just like statistics, this can easily deter or motivate others to apply to your university. It shows a side of the college that isn’t usually addressed.

Consider these as you market your university’s success:

What do your alumni do after they stop attending your school? If too many fail to take full advantage of their degrees, it can negatively impact your professors and advisors.

Not every student becomes a celebrity in their industry, but they can hold an important position in a respected organization.

Find out where your alumni are now and highlight their accomplishments. Your university played a role in your success, be aware.

10. Embrace diversity

The college stereotype attends four years straight out of high school. For many this is not the case. Some may switch from adult education centers or start for the first time ten years after high school. Each individual student has unique backgrounds and experiences that shape how they receive messages. The traditional student’s presentation will not appeal to all audiences. Why not inspire others by marketing to specific audiences?

It is possible to create different campaigns around the idea of ​​diversity. There may be many adult learners at your university. Fostering your specific demographic can be encouraging to other adults who want to return to school. To them, it shows that you value adult learners and strive to treat the entire population equally. Assess what diverse population exists at your college and embrace the diversity.

11. Use infographics

According to MIT neuroscientists, the human brain processes images in just 13 milliseconds. Since young people have less patience and a short attention span, presenting information in easy-to-understand infographics is a great idea.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when using infographics for your marketing campaign:

Use infographics to present complex data that would otherwise be too difficult to absorb or boring to read if presented in a traditional way.

otherwise it might be too heavy to take in or too tedious to read when presented in the traditional way. Keep the copy as little as possible and let images do most of the “talking”.

and let images do most of the “talking”. It is always best to leave this task to a professional. It might look simple, but creating an infographic without proper training could result in a visual hodgepodge that outperforms its intended purpose.

12. Paid Traffic

While organic social media posts are great tools for reaching younger audiences, don’t underestimate the power of paid traffic.

Take ads on Instagram stories for example. Most users watch IG stories continuously, and placing ads in this feature allows your brand to grab a few minutes of their attention.

When using IG stories as part of your marketing campaign, keep these three factors in mind:

Value . The target audience should feel like they’re getting something out of your ad.

. The target audience should feel like they’re getting something out of your ad. urgency . Viewers must feel the need to react immediately to the information given.

. Viewers must feel the need to react immediately to the information given. Uniqueness. The ad was designed to show viewers how the brand is different from any other university they’ve seen before.

13. Interactive Webinars

Hosting interactive webinars is a great way to attract students from far and wide before they even step onto campus. With webinars, you offer potential students valuable information while giving them a taste of what it’s like to study at your institution.

Here are some tips to keep in mind when running webinars:

Make sure the topic is relevant to potential students. It should provide information that they could not get elsewhere.

Select speakers or panelists related to the target market. You can also choose a presenter within the same age group as the audience.

Make the webinar interactive by having an open forum or hosting online games.

14. Downloadable Instructions

Going to college is new territory. In most cases, prospective students want all the help they can get to prepare for their college experience. Take the opportunity to help them prepare for college by offering downloadable guides they can read even when they’re offline.

15. Email Marketing

With the downloadable guide, make prospective students feel like you’re guiding them through their college preparation with email marketing. Create an automated email series consistent with the current application process.

When sending emails, the content is just as important as the template. You don’t want to send emails that look so boring that recipients would only see them as blocks of text. At Penji, we create email templates that entice the reader to click the call-to-action button.

Check out our online portfolio to see the email designs we’ve created for our clients. For quick reference, here are some of the email templates created by our designers:

How to request marketing graphics from Penji

You don’t have to worry about complicated processes or forms when requesting a design from Penji. You don’t have long waits or delayed spending. Penji makes sure you get the designs you need for a successful campaign within 24 to 48 hours.

Step 1: Create a project

All brands that have used Penji know this process well. To request a marketing graphic, you must sign up for a Penji plan. This gives you access to the dashboard and all design types for your marketing campaign.

Click Create Project. Then click on the type of design. If you can’t find it, you can create a custom project instead.

After that, you should state your design brief in the description. You can also add other information such as colors, reference links, and royalty-free images.

Once you submit the design, a designer will contact you and start working on your project.

Step 2: Verification

Unlike freelancers and most graphic design service providers, you will receive the first draft within 24 to 48 hours. We know you value urgency and quality. That’s why Penji only hires the most experienced graphic designers in the industry. Rest assured that Penji designers submit their designs on time without compromising on quality.

Even so, the design you receive may still need some improvement. That is normal. This is why you have unlimited revisions at no cost in every Penji plan.

Also, using the Penji platform makes it easier to create revision notes. You no longer need external software or have it printed out and scanned. You can use the point and click feature. This will make your revisions clearer and your designer will understand what needs improvement.

Step 3: Download

If you are 100% satisfied with the designs you received, download all source files in two easy steps.

In the active project, click the Down button. Another window will open where you can review the design. If everything is ok, click the green download button and all files are yours!

See how easy and quick the steps to request a design are? No more setup, no more software to download. All you need is a Penji account to get started.

Sign up for a subscription

Become a student’s first choice for university. With a Penji subscription, you can also request social media graphics, logos, merchandise and more! Make your university stand out and instill school spirit and pride.

Current examples on the web

Armstrong wrote that posting the petition publicly was unethical and not an effective way to bring about change at the company. — Marco Quiroz-gutierrez, Fortune, June 10, 2022

In the mid-2010s, increasing data breaches that exposed sensitive consumer data and the unethical data mining practices of companies and social media platforms led to a strong movement for advocating digital consumer privacy. — Jodi Daniels, Forbes, June 16, 2022

Everyone in Alice Springs, home to dozens of art galleries, has a story about unethical practices in the Aboriginal art world. — Anthony Ham, Smithsonian Magazine, May 13, 2022

Very popular ideas can be totally unethical – and totally ethical ideas can be deeply unpopular. – Eric Pliner, Fortune, April 8, 2022

This may not be surprising, but according to one study, 76% of consumers would not do business with a company that opposes their views, and 25% of consumers have a zero-tolerance policy for unethical behavior. — Yec, Forbes, May 2, 2022

Our work has revealed that unethical behavior in collaboration is common, but there are limits to the amount of lies that occur – a finding that can help teams avoid engaging in problematic behavior in the future. — Margarita Leib, Scientific American, April 29, 2022

The website accused the city officials of bad science and unethical behavior — basically using citizens like rats in a giant lab experiment without their consent. – Washington Post, February 9, 2022

Disclosure was intended to prevent unethical behavior by disclosing the timing of trades. – Michael Taylor, San Antonio Express-News, January 19, 2022

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