WEBVTT NOTE This file was generated by Descript 00:00:02.679 --> 00:00:04.679 Welcome to the Catholic School Leaders Podcast. 00:00:04.709 --> 00:00:07.449 My name is John Mahalio, the president and founder of 00:00:07.449 --> 00:00:08.949 Elementary Advancement Solutions. 00:00:09.824 --> 00:00:13.604 The goal of this podcast is to connect Catholic school leaders from across 00:00:13.604 --> 00:00:15.864 the world to grow Catholic education. 00:00:16.364 --> 00:00:16.954 Visit us at elementaryadvancement. 00:00:18.444 --> 00:00:22.164 com to see how we can help you make advancement seem 00:00:22.174 --> 00:00:23.424 elementary at your school. 00:00:23.923 --> 00:00:25.023 Well, how are you doing today? 00:00:25.143 --> 00:00:27.153 Uh, how's things going at your school? 00:00:27.393 --> 00:00:30.843 It's always great to be able to check in with people and hear from people all over 00:00:30.843 --> 00:00:34.584 the world and hear, things that they're doing and things that they're taking on. 00:00:34.604 --> 00:00:39.684 Um, hearing just from different people about challenges they're facing or, you 00:00:39.684 --> 00:00:42.634 know, things that they're looking for, especially here over the summer months. 00:00:43.224 --> 00:00:47.149 And so today I want to, wanted to jump into a topic that He is so 00:00:47.149 --> 00:00:48.769 important as a Catholic school leader. 00:00:48.839 --> 00:00:52.809 I don't care what role you play, whether you're a principal, assistant principal, 00:00:53.089 --> 00:00:58.162 advancement director, recruitment director, athletic director, dean, any 00:00:58.192 --> 00:01:03.087 position that you have as a Catholic school leader, Um, the difference 00:01:03.087 --> 00:01:07.877 between talking and communicating in the role that you play is so critical. 00:01:08.317 --> 00:01:11.847 And I think communicating with your faculty, your students, your parents, 00:01:11.847 --> 00:01:16.337 your community members, your donors, your parish communities, it's so crucial, 00:01:16.347 --> 00:01:19.577 it's so critical to the success of the role that you're going to play in your 00:01:19.577 --> 00:01:21.127 school and in your school community. 00:01:22.377 --> 00:01:25.587 And you know, I think about the game of telephone that we've all seen. 00:01:26.107 --> 00:01:29.747 When the message starts out as one thing, but by the time it goes through 00:01:29.747 --> 00:01:32.912 a whole bunch of other people, it's It's a completely different thing than 00:01:32.912 --> 00:01:36.292 it started with, and that's why the information that you're conveying needs 00:01:36.292 --> 00:01:38.382 to come through, needs to come from you. 00:01:38.722 --> 00:01:42.622 It needs to be consistent, it needs to be thorough, and it needs to be accurate. 00:01:42.622 --> 00:01:44.282 So we're gonna get into some of those things today. 00:01:44.862 --> 00:01:47.502 Before we get into that, if I could just take a quick second 00:01:47.502 --> 00:01:49.642 here to ask you for a huge favor. 00:01:50.227 --> 00:01:53.587 If you're enjoying this podcast, if it's something that you're finding beneficial, 00:01:53.997 --> 00:01:58.587 if it's something that you're finding is meeting that goal of giving you some 00:01:58.597 --> 00:02:02.657 new tools as a Catholic school leader, if I could just ask you to like the 00:02:02.677 --> 00:02:07.297 podcast, subscribe to it, leave a quick review if you have the chance, give 00:02:07.297 --> 00:02:09.677 it five stars, it would be amazing. 00:02:09.825 --> 00:02:11.145 and share it with others. 00:02:11.335 --> 00:02:14.645 Share it with other leaders, and, and by doing that, it's just going to help 00:02:14.675 --> 00:02:17.975 reach other Catholic school leaders just like you, which in the end is going 00:02:17.975 --> 00:02:19.685 to help us grow Catholic education. 00:02:19.685 --> 00:02:22.520 So, appreciate seeing everything, and appreciate, uh, hearing 00:02:22.520 --> 00:02:23.450 from everybody out there. 00:02:23.840 --> 00:02:27.680 So let's get into, to talking versus communication, and because we all 00:02:27.680 --> 00:02:32.320 know that there are, people out there who talk a whole, whole lot, and they 00:02:32.320 --> 00:02:33.680 don't really actually say anything. 00:02:33.680 --> 00:02:36.425 So, And so when we're going to be talking to people and when we're going 00:02:36.425 --> 00:02:40.775 to be communicating to people, we want to make sure that what it is that we're 00:02:40.775 --> 00:02:42.785 trying to convey is coming through. 00:02:43.540 --> 00:02:47.544 So these are some strategies that I've found to be helpful for me, in terms of, 00:02:47.564 --> 00:02:51.054 of communicating with the, the respective audiences that we were trying to reach, 00:02:51.054 --> 00:02:52.864 and I hope they'll help you in your job. 00:02:53.454 --> 00:02:57.604 First off and foremost is let your families, let your teachers, let your 00:02:57.604 --> 00:03:01.959 faculty know, How you're going to be communicating with them, and when you're 00:03:01.959 --> 00:03:03.239 going to be communicating with them. 00:03:03.619 --> 00:03:07.669 Uh, I'm going way, way back to my days at Broadview Elementary School, 00:03:07.669 --> 00:03:09.239 which doesn't even exist anymore. 00:03:09.363 --> 00:03:13.199 and, and the newsletter would come home on a yellow piece of paper each week. 00:03:13.569 --> 00:03:17.059 Uh, you know, it's a one page document that told everybody everything. 00:03:17.069 --> 00:03:20.569 It was probably run through the Xerox machine, uh, you 00:03:20.569 --> 00:03:21.669 know, a couple hundred times. 00:03:21.959 --> 00:03:25.559 Uh, it would have everything in there from, you know, the calendar of the week, 00:03:25.569 --> 00:03:30.204 when report cards were coming out, and and even the scores of like the The PE 00:03:30.214 --> 00:03:34.244 events that had taken place that week, if it was a hockey week or things like that. 00:03:34.348 --> 00:03:36.898 it would tell everything in there and it was a really big 00:03:36.898 --> 00:03:38.858 deal for the kids to see this. 00:03:39.031 --> 00:03:41.961 the school would let the parents know when it was coming out and how they were 00:03:41.961 --> 00:03:43.281 going to get the information to them. 00:03:43.341 --> 00:03:46.511 And sure enough, every Friday this yellow newsletter went out 00:03:46.511 --> 00:03:48.551 from Broadview Elementary School. 00:03:48.661 --> 00:03:52.141 We were the roadrunners, uh, and so it went out each and every week. 00:03:52.141 --> 00:03:54.621 Now, I recognize times have changed. 00:03:54.916 --> 00:03:58.016 Schools have so many different options for what they're going to 00:03:58.016 --> 00:03:59.606 use in terms of communication now. 00:03:59.976 --> 00:04:04.532 You have, Thursday folders or things that actually go home in paper format. 00:04:04.822 --> 00:04:07.796 You have, um, online services that you can use. 00:04:07.796 --> 00:04:11.636 There's a lot of different services out there that Schools can, can use to deliver 00:04:11.636 --> 00:04:13.733 their, their information each week. 00:04:13.733 --> 00:04:16.433 And social media is also a game changer. 00:04:16.433 --> 00:04:19.583 It allows you to get something out quickly, uh, and to a 00:04:19.588 --> 00:04:21.053 lot of people all at once. 00:04:21.196 --> 00:04:24.286 you know, I guarantee you, you put out there that uh, if you wanna see the 00:04:24.291 --> 00:04:25.756 power of social media and actually. 00:04:26.151 --> 00:04:30.291 Put out there that on social media that it's, it's snowed and that you're going to 00:04:30.291 --> 00:04:35.651 close and see how many likes and reposts you get in about, I don't know, 15 minutes 00:04:35.671 --> 00:04:39.321 and then you're going to understand just how powerful, uh, social media can be. 00:04:39.970 --> 00:04:42.920 First and foremost, you've got to let families know how you're going to be 00:04:42.920 --> 00:04:45.970 communicating with them and when you're going to be communicating with them. 00:04:46.320 --> 00:04:48.200 And whatever you choose, it's up to you. 00:04:48.200 --> 00:04:50.130 Whatever fits your school community. 00:04:50.470 --> 00:04:53.540 Let them know how this is going to happen when they tour your school, 00:04:53.660 --> 00:04:55.280 when they enroll in your school. 00:04:55.470 --> 00:04:58.430 Let them know at the beginning of the school year, because this allows 00:04:58.430 --> 00:05:00.100 you to get their contact information. 00:05:00.100 --> 00:05:03.800 Maybe somebody's email address has changed, or they've added a different 00:05:03.800 --> 00:05:08.140 email address, or they want Add their work email to the, to their home email, 00:05:08.140 --> 00:05:11.874 whatever the case might be, you know, even if the family is in the stages 00:05:11.874 --> 00:05:15.214 of, of thinking about enrolling in your school, you want to capture that 00:05:15.214 --> 00:05:19.004 information so that you can add them to your communication list, because 00:05:19.004 --> 00:05:22.024 this is really a way for you to continue marketing yourself to these 00:05:22.024 --> 00:05:25.674 new families, um, showing them what's happening at their school to let them 00:05:25.864 --> 00:05:30.124 get excited about what's happening so that it makes them want to be a 00:05:30.124 --> 00:05:33.614 bigger part of your school and make that decision to enroll in your school. 00:05:33.624 --> 00:05:33.944 So. 00:05:34.414 --> 00:05:37.144 First and foremost, you've got to let people know how you're going to 00:05:37.144 --> 00:05:39.854 be communicating with them, and then you've got to let them know when 00:05:39.864 --> 00:05:41.214 that's actually going to be happening. 00:05:42.274 --> 00:05:45.444 I guess the next thing to do with that is, then you've actually got to do it. 00:05:45.594 --> 00:05:46.714 You've got to do what you say. 00:05:46.840 --> 00:05:49.470 if you say that you're going to do something, if you say, Hey. 00:05:49.855 --> 00:05:53.025 We're going to put out our newsletter at Thursday at three o'clock every 00:05:53.025 --> 00:05:54.855 day or whatever the case might be. 00:05:54.855 --> 00:05:59.845 Whenever your school has decided that's the best time for you to send 00:05:59.845 --> 00:06:03.985 out a communication to your families, that's what you've got to hold to, and 00:06:03.985 --> 00:06:05.325 that's what you've got to adhere to. 00:06:05.675 --> 00:06:08.835 If you tell everybody that your newsletter is coming out Friday at 00:06:08.835 --> 00:06:13.525 noon, and instead of Friday at noon, it gets there on Sunday morning at 00:06:13.525 --> 00:06:16.337 nine o'clock in the morning, families are gonna get frustrated with that. 00:06:16.481 --> 00:06:17.531 it's inconsistent. 00:06:17.531 --> 00:06:18.281 They're gonna get frustrated. 00:06:18.281 --> 00:06:19.121 They're gonna stop reading it. 00:06:19.121 --> 00:06:20.321 They're gonna stop looking for it. 00:06:20.701 --> 00:06:22.591 If you say the newsletter's gonna be there at a certain 00:06:22.591 --> 00:06:24.061 time, publish it at that time. 00:06:24.211 --> 00:06:27.271 It just speaks to your integrity as a leader speaks 00:06:27.271 --> 00:06:28.831 to your integrity as a school. 00:06:28.981 --> 00:06:32.161 Uh, when it says that it's gonna release something that, that it actually happens. 00:06:32.401 --> 00:06:33.591 Now I get it. 00:06:34.371 --> 00:06:39.090 We've all been there where you're trying to log on to whatever, format you 00:06:39.090 --> 00:06:40.910 use with constant contact, MailChimp. 00:06:40.930 --> 00:06:43.876 There's, hundreds of them out there that you can use in terms of communication. 00:06:44.226 --> 00:06:45.866 And the system is down. 00:06:46.306 --> 00:06:47.966 Uh, and you can't get on. 00:06:47.966 --> 00:06:48.746 It's crashed. 00:06:48.746 --> 00:06:50.136 It's not letting you log in. 00:06:50.146 --> 00:06:51.426 There's a problem with something. 00:06:51.446 --> 00:06:52.146 There's a glitch. 00:06:52.564 --> 00:06:53.884 that happens sometimes. 00:06:53.914 --> 00:06:54.634 I get it. 00:06:54.644 --> 00:06:58.004 You want to make sure that's the exception and not the norm. 00:06:58.454 --> 00:07:00.784 And when that happens, I tend to just put something on 00:07:00.784 --> 00:07:02.144 social media just to say, hey. 00:07:02.364 --> 00:07:03.734 We're having problems with our system. 00:07:03.734 --> 00:07:05.604 Our newsletter is going to be a little delayed today. 00:07:05.733 --> 00:07:06.613 we apologize. 00:07:06.683 --> 00:07:07.763 And people understand that. 00:07:07.903 --> 00:07:10.093 People will give you the benefit of the doubt once. 00:07:10.593 --> 00:07:16.558 But if it's happening every single week, then it kind of says that, hey, The 00:07:16.558 --> 00:07:18.538 problem might not be the problem here. 00:07:18.678 --> 00:07:21.078 So, do what you say you're going to do. 00:07:21.138 --> 00:07:24.478 Publish whatever communication you're going to put out in a timely manner. 00:07:24.478 --> 00:07:25.888 Make it a consistent manner. 00:07:26.031 --> 00:07:28.751 so that's something that your parents and your community members 00:07:28.771 --> 00:07:32.381 are going to be looking forward to and know when they can expect that. 00:07:32.891 --> 00:07:36.311 When you do put out that communication, whatever method you choose, whether 00:07:36.311 --> 00:07:40.011 it's a paper method, whether it's a digital method, whatever the case might 00:07:40.011 --> 00:07:43.451 be, we need to be clear in what it is that we're trying to communicate. 00:07:43.702 --> 00:07:46.922 you know, I talk a lot about rambling on and on and on and on, and who knows, 00:07:46.942 --> 00:07:48.812 maybe I'm rambling on and on right now. 00:07:48.872 --> 00:07:54.302 But, the same can be said when we're talking in our newsletters, that we 00:07:54.302 --> 00:07:59.662 try to make them way too long, and communicate way too much information. 00:08:00.237 --> 00:08:03.467 And we're never really getting to the point of what it is that we're 00:08:03.467 --> 00:08:05.037 trying to say to the audience. 00:08:05.273 --> 00:08:08.333 I see a lot of schools that face challenges with this, especially 00:08:08.333 --> 00:08:11.413 when they have to convey something that might not be popular news. 00:08:11.562 --> 00:08:12.782 maybe it's a tuition matter. 00:08:12.782 --> 00:08:16.552 Hey, we've got to increase our tuition and, uh, it's, it's, it's a little 00:08:16.552 --> 00:08:18.102 higher than we had hoped it to be. 00:08:18.196 --> 00:08:20.576 when you're going to create things, when you're going to convey things 00:08:20.576 --> 00:08:22.766 like that, Uh, I get tuition increase. 00:08:23.066 --> 00:08:27.826 You want to talk about why it is that the, the tuition needs to be increased. 00:08:28.316 --> 00:08:33.173 I think if you share with people the reason behind, matters like a tuition 00:08:33.173 --> 00:08:38.063 increase or, or things like that, the more information you can provide, the 00:08:38.063 --> 00:08:42.173 more straightforward you can be, and the more that you can give people in 00:08:42.173 --> 00:08:46.543 terms of understanding your reason for the information that you're conveying, 00:08:46.543 --> 00:08:48.503 the It's easier for them to swallow. 00:08:48.923 --> 00:08:52.383 I think one of the things, I did a podcast a few weeks ago about communicating 00:08:52.383 --> 00:08:54.323 and conveying how funds were used. 00:08:54.506 --> 00:08:58.633 if you're communicating things like how your funds were used, for a particular 00:08:58.633 --> 00:09:03.156 fundraising event or for an annual fund or things like that, the more information 00:09:03.156 --> 00:09:07.436 you can provide, the more straightforward that you can be with people in terms of 00:09:07.436 --> 00:09:08.996 what it is that you're trying to convey. 00:09:09.336 --> 00:09:14.016 It's gonna lead to making sure there's no questions and confusion in the information 00:09:14.016 --> 00:09:15.156 that you're trying to present to them. 00:09:15.236 --> 00:09:19.866 Now, last thing I'm gonna say about this is when you're putting out 00:09:19.876 --> 00:09:23.870 information, you gotta make sure you, you, we all have those one 00:09:23.870 --> 00:09:25.660 or two people on our, on our team. 00:09:26.200 --> 00:09:28.960 who are just, you can call them the grammar police, you can 00:09:28.960 --> 00:09:30.940 call them, but they see things. 00:09:31.580 --> 00:09:35.140 They see things that we, we can look at them a hundred times 00:09:35.140 --> 00:09:36.250 and we would never see it. 00:09:36.640 --> 00:09:39.330 And they read it one time and they go, hey, there's a spelling error there. 00:09:39.330 --> 00:09:41.150 Hey, there's a punctuation error there. 00:09:41.150 --> 00:09:41.770 Hey, there's whatever. 00:09:42.420 --> 00:09:46.280 As you're communicating things, and you're communicating a newsletter, for 00:09:46.280 --> 00:09:49.254 example, out to your community, you need to make sure that your grammar's 00:09:49.264 --> 00:09:53.526 on point, your spelling's on point, just the, the, the presentation of whatever it 00:09:53.526 --> 00:09:55.876 is that you're putting out is on point. 00:09:56.146 --> 00:10:00.226 we're educators, and so if we're putting out things that are spelling 00:10:00.226 --> 00:10:03.996 errors, or look sloppy, or things like that, it's just not good. 00:10:04.057 --> 00:10:04.797 not good at all. 00:10:04.887 --> 00:10:10.307 And so, the principle for the principal is to make sure that things are 00:10:10.487 --> 00:10:14.427 looking good and that they are free of any grammar errors or anything 00:10:14.427 --> 00:10:17.141 like that, to make sure that you're putting out a great product when 00:10:17.141 --> 00:10:18.591 you're communicating things to people. 00:10:19.311 --> 00:10:23.691 Now, families are going to look forward to your communication when the information in 00:10:23.691 --> 00:10:26.191 these communications is relevant to them. 00:10:26.516 --> 00:10:30.098 And so if you're just putting a lot of fluff and stuff in there, that people 00:10:30.118 --> 00:10:35.878 are, have no interest in whatsoever, it's really going to make it so that your 00:10:35.938 --> 00:10:38.618 reader rate goes down a whole, whole lot. 00:10:38.807 --> 00:10:41.247 it's a great way for people to skim over something. 00:10:41.393 --> 00:10:44.757 even worse, it's a great way for them not to even open what 00:10:44.757 --> 00:10:45.793 it is that you're sending. 00:10:46.133 --> 00:10:49.583 So you want to make sure that whatever you're communicating, whatever method that 00:10:49.583 --> 00:10:53.983 you're putting out there for people, make sure your content in there is relevant. 00:10:54.388 --> 00:10:57.768 I recognize that there's some maintenance things that you have to include in 00:10:57.768 --> 00:11:02.278 communications, but the more you can spend your time on mission over 00:11:02.278 --> 00:11:06.658 maintenance, uh, it's a powerful thing, and people will start to get excited 00:11:06.658 --> 00:11:07.808 about things that are happening. 00:11:08.363 --> 00:11:11.723 A lot of the programs used out there now can track things like what 00:11:11.723 --> 00:11:15.233 people clicked on, how many people opened them, what links they were 00:11:15.233 --> 00:11:16.989 interested in, things like that. 00:11:17.059 --> 00:11:20.509 If you pay attention to that, that's going to give you a lot of information, 00:11:20.699 --> 00:11:24.949 a lot of information about what types of things interest your community, 00:11:25.189 --> 00:11:28.694 and what kind of things that maybe say, hey, We put this out there. 00:11:28.694 --> 00:11:31.724 We did not have a very big click rate on this particular 00:11:31.724 --> 00:11:32.854 item, and this is important. 00:11:33.294 --> 00:11:35.234 So let's make sure we revisit that again. 00:11:35.530 --> 00:11:39.340 Putting that out there together, exploring those options to see what type of 00:11:39.340 --> 00:11:43.690 information is relevant and what type of information that you want to put together 00:11:44.080 --> 00:11:45.610 is so important for your newsletters. 00:11:46.090 --> 00:11:49.810 Pull a group, a great way to do it is pull a group of parents and teachers together. 00:11:50.285 --> 00:11:52.315 And do a communications audit over the summer. 00:11:52.585 --> 00:11:55.925 Uh, maybe I'll do a podcast on that just alone, but if you review the 00:11:55.925 --> 00:11:59.365 communication methods and what you're hoping to obtain for them and you're 00:11:59.365 --> 00:12:03.995 not meeting what those expectations are, then you gotta ask yourself, why are 00:12:03.995 --> 00:12:10.135 we doing this, or are we really working harder instead of smarter as it pertains 00:12:10.135 --> 00:12:11.855 to this particular communication method. 00:12:11.865 --> 00:12:14.745 So, Think about the feedback that you get. 00:12:14.815 --> 00:12:16.455 Look at the data that you're getting. 00:12:16.586 --> 00:12:20.406 Um, so many things anymore can provide you with so much instant feedback, 00:12:20.566 --> 00:12:22.756 in terms of, of what an open rate is. 00:12:22.786 --> 00:12:25.721 I send a newsletter out each, Tuesday and Thursday. 00:12:25.721 --> 00:12:29.425 If you're not on that, newsletter list, you can, you can get on that, by visiting 00:12:29.435 --> 00:12:31.255 the website elementaryadvancement. 00:12:31.295 --> 00:12:31.595 com. 00:12:31.595 --> 00:12:33.265 I'll be happy to add you to the newsletter. 00:12:33.925 --> 00:12:38.275 Send it a lot of helpful information and, you know, I can see, uh, 00:12:38.285 --> 00:12:39.315 how many people opened it. 00:12:39.315 --> 00:12:41.915 If this is something that people want to know more about, then okay, let's 00:12:41.925 --> 00:12:43.175 put something else out about that. 00:12:43.675 --> 00:12:46.935 It's just about telling people what it is that, that you're 00:12:46.935 --> 00:12:48.075 wanting to convey to them. 00:12:48.125 --> 00:12:50.185 And so it's a powerful tool. 00:12:50.255 --> 00:12:52.885 You have a lot of data that's, that's at your fingertips. 00:12:52.885 --> 00:12:53.605 Make sure you use it. 00:12:53.735 --> 00:12:55.625 Work smarter and not harder. 00:12:56.094 --> 00:12:58.724 One thing that I'm going to recommend to you in terms of 00:12:58.744 --> 00:13:01.194 communication is thinking ahead. 00:13:01.744 --> 00:13:06.754 Thinking ahead and sometimes there's slower weeks for information that, that 00:13:07.264 --> 00:13:10.784 You know, we're just having those weeks, especially sometimes in the summer 00:13:10.784 --> 00:13:15.594 months where slower weeks for information that has to be conveyed or taken place. 00:13:15.704 --> 00:13:17.774 Okay, and I know it doesn't happen often during your school 00:13:17.774 --> 00:13:18.634 year, but it does happen. 00:13:19.104 --> 00:13:22.714 So this is where thinking ahead can be tremendous for you. 00:13:22.826 --> 00:13:26.586 one of the things I had is a, is a, is a leadership team and a leadership role 00:13:26.776 --> 00:13:30.766 that would come together every week, once a week for 30 minutes to just discuss 00:13:30.776 --> 00:13:32.556 what's coming up over the next four weeks. 00:13:32.556 --> 00:13:32.611 Okay. 00:13:32.971 --> 00:13:36.491 What type of information are we going to be conveying to this week 00:13:36.491 --> 00:13:39.971 as week one, next week as week two, next week as week three and four? 00:13:40.241 --> 00:13:41.501 Let's look four weeks out. 00:13:41.541 --> 00:13:46.051 What information are we looking to convey to people on social media? 00:13:46.061 --> 00:13:47.631 What are we looking to put in newsletters? 00:13:47.631 --> 00:13:49.441 What are we looking to put in teacher communications? 00:13:49.821 --> 00:13:51.741 What are we looking to put in our church bulletins? 00:13:51.751 --> 00:13:56.111 Whatever the case might be, what information is necessary to go out in 00:13:56.111 --> 00:14:00.121 that particular form of communication and that avenue of communication? 00:14:00.531 --> 00:14:03.991 If there was something that we felt carried extra importance, it might 00:14:03.991 --> 00:14:07.896 be something that I would highlight in my own section of the newsletter. 00:14:08.186 --> 00:14:10.586 I would always tend at the beginning of the newsletter to write a quick 00:14:10.586 --> 00:14:15.206 blurb that was maybe a paragraph or two just for our community to know about. 00:14:15.406 --> 00:14:17.446 Might be something that I highlight in that section. 00:14:17.446 --> 00:14:19.726 It might be something that we highlight multiple times. 00:14:20.376 --> 00:14:23.086 This was really a great opportunity for us to come together. 00:14:23.646 --> 00:14:26.486 We focused on this, nailed it out in 30 40 minutes. 00:14:26.996 --> 00:14:31.636 But it also kept us always looking ahead of what was coming down the road. 00:14:31.886 --> 00:14:33.726 Because the last thing in the world you want to do is to go, Oh 00:14:33.726 --> 00:14:37.046 my goodness, we forgot all about this, or we didn't communicate this 00:14:37.046 --> 00:14:38.626 out, or whatever the case might be. 00:14:39.246 --> 00:14:41.116 And then you're playing on defense and not offense. 00:14:41.126 --> 00:14:43.336 So it's a great investment of time. 00:14:43.386 --> 00:14:45.206 I know all of our time is valuable. 00:14:45.526 --> 00:14:51.101 But investing that 30 minutes of time each week And honestly, when you get 00:14:51.101 --> 00:14:55.051 to week two, the things from week two move to week one, the things from 00:14:55.051 --> 00:14:59.131 week three move to week two things, half of it is already done for you. 00:14:59.131 --> 00:15:00.961 So it's just, okay, what, what do we need to add? 00:15:00.961 --> 00:15:02.642 What are some other things that are coming up to this? 00:15:03.101 --> 00:15:06.471 Whatever the case might be, you've already got it there and it's all 00:15:06.471 --> 00:15:10.511 front and center in terms of what's being communicated, by whom is it being 00:15:10.511 --> 00:15:15.091 communicated to, and what methods are you going to use to communicate those things. 00:15:15.701 --> 00:15:21.365 Now, two mistakes I see schools make all the time is they try to be too many places 00:15:21.605 --> 00:15:24.555 and they try to be not enough places. 00:15:24.695 --> 00:15:27.615 So the thing I always advise to people is you can't be everywhere. 00:15:27.965 --> 00:15:29.745 But you gotta be somewhere, okay? 00:15:30.005 --> 00:15:32.535 Uh, social media is part of our lives now. 00:15:32.535 --> 00:15:37.955 And whether you decide to be on Facebook or LinkedIn or X or Instagram 00:15:37.955 --> 00:15:42.279 or whatever, insert whatever site you wanna be at, you gotta pick where you're 00:15:42.279 --> 00:15:43.339 gonna be and you gotta go with it. 00:15:43.964 --> 00:15:48.744 If you try to be everywhere on social media, number one, it's 00:15:48.744 --> 00:15:49.904 hard to keep up with all of it. 00:15:50.080 --> 00:15:52.690 but number two, it can lead to inconsistencies in your 00:15:52.690 --> 00:15:54.050 messaging and information. 00:15:54.080 --> 00:15:58.832 If your Facebook page says X, but your Instagram page says Y, that's 00:15:58.832 --> 00:16:02.721 a problem and that's going to lead to inconsistencies and people having 00:16:02.721 --> 00:16:04.881 problems or leading to more questions. 00:16:04.891 --> 00:16:09.341 So it's, it's a way to look at what is it that we're going to do? 00:16:09.531 --> 00:16:11.311 I know there's a high school in our area. 00:16:11.311 --> 00:16:13.841 They say, listen, everything we're doing is going to be on X. 00:16:13.841 --> 00:16:14.771 It's going to be on Twitter. 00:16:14.879 --> 00:16:17.769 every club, every organization has a Twitter account. 00:16:17.799 --> 00:16:20.059 And if you want to know what's happening in our school, you 00:16:20.059 --> 00:16:21.229 better have a Twitter account too. 00:16:21.659 --> 00:16:23.049 And that's what they go with. 00:16:23.209 --> 00:16:27.479 And it works for them because everybody understands what they're using. 00:16:27.489 --> 00:16:29.049 They're not trying to be everywhere. 00:16:29.404 --> 00:16:32.084 But they've told everybody exactly what it is that they're gonna be. 00:16:32.404 --> 00:16:35.684 You gotta pick and choose what your spots are, and focus on those. 00:16:36.014 --> 00:16:38.794 Uh, Andrew Carnegie once said, Put all your eggs in one basket, 00:16:38.824 --> 00:16:39.974 and then watch the basket. 00:16:40.004 --> 00:16:44.732 And as it comes to social media, trying to be everywhere just doesn't work. 00:16:44.812 --> 00:16:47.372 Now, here's the flip side of that. 00:16:47.772 --> 00:16:49.612 You gotta be somewhere. 00:16:50.122 --> 00:16:53.052 Uh, if the only social media platform that you're using right 00:16:53.052 --> 00:16:56.432 now is Myspace, with the utmost of respect to Justin Timberlake, 00:16:56.611 --> 00:16:57.981 We need to have a conversation. 00:16:57.981 --> 00:17:00.171 You should reach out to me at elementaryadvancement. 00:17:00.171 --> 00:17:03.121 com so that we can talk about a communications audit for your school. 00:17:03.131 --> 00:17:07.981 Hopefully that's not the case, but, uh, if you're using a MySpace or 00:17:07.981 --> 00:17:10.787 that's the only social media you've got, let's press pause for a minute. 00:17:11.267 --> 00:17:13.437 You have to be somewhere online. 00:17:13.807 --> 00:17:16.657 One of the best ways to do this is, is look at what audience 00:17:16.657 --> 00:17:19.067 you're trying to reach through each avenue of communication. 00:17:19.238 --> 00:17:22.528 if you use your website as your only means of communication, you're probably going 00:17:22.528 --> 00:17:26.418 to be missing a large portion of your community from getting that information. 00:17:26.418 --> 00:17:29.878 Your websites tend to be something that New families are going to look 00:17:29.878 --> 00:17:31.648 at to learn more about your school. 00:17:31.988 --> 00:17:35.318 Your current families may only go there if they need a calendar or if they need 00:17:35.318 --> 00:17:40.341 to, do a payment or if they need to, get a physical form or something like that. 00:17:40.831 --> 00:17:43.751 Know what the purpose of each communication is. 00:17:43.872 --> 00:17:45.432 method that you're using is. 00:17:45.562 --> 00:17:48.970 Now, something to look at when it comes time for your website, 00:17:48.990 --> 00:17:52.480 and this is something that I see way too much, especially 00:17:52.480 --> 00:17:54.310 with our Catholic schools, okay? 00:17:54.840 --> 00:17:59.230 If you're going to have your website, and that's going to be the first thing that 00:17:59.230 --> 00:18:03.870 people who are considering your school look at, please make sure it's up to date. 00:18:04.103 --> 00:18:08.203 if you're talking about something on your front page in your banner section 00:18:08.203 --> 00:18:12.637 that is from 2020 21 school year, you need to take a look at that right away, 00:18:13.037 --> 00:18:17.537 because that's the first thing and maybe in some instances the only thing people 00:18:17.537 --> 00:18:18.757 are going to see about your school. 00:18:18.927 --> 00:18:22.027 It says that this is not something that's a care for you. 00:18:22.747 --> 00:18:25.947 It also says that you're not real keen on paying attention to details, 00:18:25.977 --> 00:18:30.393 and so there are things that are very useful to be on your, your webpage 00:18:30.393 --> 00:18:31.893 and your, your landing site for that. 00:18:32.263 --> 00:18:35.073 But I think the things that people really are going to look for that are 00:18:35.073 --> 00:18:38.083 your current families are things like I said about the school calendar, your 00:18:38.083 --> 00:18:42.573 handbooks is another great one to have on there, physical forms, things like that. 00:18:43.033 --> 00:18:47.003 If you're relying on parents to just visit your school website to see a 00:18:47.003 --> 00:18:50.863 newsletter, I think you're probably going to be missing out on a lot of 00:18:50.863 --> 00:18:52.413 your audience that you're intending to. 00:18:52.413 --> 00:18:52.713 So. 00:18:53.208 --> 00:18:53.928 Pick what it is. 00:18:53.938 --> 00:18:57.928 It may cost you a couple of dollars, uh, but it's well worth it at the end of 00:18:57.938 --> 00:19:02.058 the day to, to communicate and, and also it looks a whole lot better from your 00:19:02.058 --> 00:19:04.018 school, presents very professionally. 00:19:04.838 --> 00:19:10.245 Now, something I say often, work smarter and not harder, we could spend probably 00:19:10.265 --> 00:19:15.145 20 hours of our week trying to keep up with newsletters and social media accounts 00:19:15.145 --> 00:19:17.625 and websites and just go on and so forth. 00:19:18.080 --> 00:19:20.860 Uh, you would chase your tail all the way and, and it's in, 00:19:20.940 --> 00:19:22.630 it's just not possible to do. 00:19:23.010 --> 00:19:26.860 So when we talk about working smarter, not harder, there's ways you can do this. 00:19:27.370 --> 00:19:29.680 I mentioned to you about the communications team that we brought 00:19:29.680 --> 00:19:32.640 together each week, and, and that was so helpful for us to know 00:19:32.960 --> 00:19:35.570 what our main focus was that we were going to be communicating. 00:19:36.040 --> 00:19:39.460 But maybe pick a time, if you're the person at your school who 00:19:39.460 --> 00:19:44.105 is responsible for a particular communications outlet, Pick a time 00:19:44.105 --> 00:19:48.005 each week where you're going to put out things on your social media outlets. 00:19:48.505 --> 00:19:52.835 Maybe it's 10 o'clock to 11 o'clock on Monday, and you're going to schedule 00:19:52.835 --> 00:19:54.555 things out for the whole week ahead. 00:19:55.445 --> 00:19:58.745 Things that you already know are coming, because you've had that communications 00:19:58.775 --> 00:20:00.355 meeting, you can put out there. 00:20:00.365 --> 00:20:02.935 You probably already know what your hot lunch menu is, if that's 00:20:02.935 --> 00:20:04.035 something you want to convey. 00:20:04.485 --> 00:20:07.355 If there's a faculty member that you're going to recognize for that week. 00:20:07.355 --> 00:20:08.395 Well, you probably already know it. 00:20:08.395 --> 00:20:11.375 You probably have their picture and their bio or whatever information it 00:20:11.375 --> 00:20:12.405 is that you're going to recognize. 00:20:12.687 --> 00:20:18.377 I understand that when the basketball team plays on Tuesday night, that on Monday, 00:20:18.377 --> 00:20:22.477 unless you're in the movie Back to the Future, you probably don't know what the 00:20:22.477 --> 00:20:24.167 score is going to be the following night. 00:20:24.527 --> 00:20:27.967 So when those things happen, yeah, then you have to go on and do a quick addition. 00:20:27.967 --> 00:20:31.427 Hey, the basketball team won by this score over such and such team. 00:20:31.887 --> 00:20:32.977 Great job to our team. 00:20:33.527 --> 00:20:34.397 And maybe put a picture. 00:20:34.407 --> 00:20:34.847 Absolutely. 00:20:34.967 --> 00:20:36.857 But that should be the exception. 00:20:38.397 --> 00:20:40.587 A lot of the information that you want to put out there and you're 00:20:40.587 --> 00:20:43.887 going to communicate to people is can probably be done in advance. 00:20:44.197 --> 00:20:47.127 You can schedule when a post goes live in advance. 00:20:47.347 --> 00:20:50.117 I'm using, for example, Facebook Twitter. 00:20:50.117 --> 00:20:55.429 You can set up when that thing is, when the particular, uh, post is gonna go live. 00:20:55.543 --> 00:20:58.433 there's tools out there that you, that are free or you can 00:20:58.443 --> 00:21:00.303 purchase for a very low cost. 00:21:00.753 --> 00:21:03.753 And you have to just ask yourself, if I spend ten to twenty dollars a 00:21:03.753 --> 00:21:07.793 month and it saves you five to ten hours a month, is that worth it? 00:21:07.793 --> 00:21:09.623 That's a phenomenal investment. 00:21:09.713 --> 00:21:12.193 Uh, your time is worth more than that. 00:21:12.463 --> 00:21:15.043 So think about ways that you can work smart. 00:21:15.063 --> 00:21:20.093 Don't be afraid to invest a couple of dollars To make your life easier, but 00:21:20.093 --> 00:21:24.523 also to make your school communication look sharper and more effective. 00:21:25.303 --> 00:21:27.623 So, as I talked to you about, communication, it's a 00:21:27.633 --> 00:21:29.143 great asset to your school. 00:21:29.193 --> 00:21:35.302 And unfortunately, you know, when we see it, and it's done well, it 00:21:35.302 --> 00:21:37.492 stands out more than the opposite. 00:21:37.492 --> 00:21:42.582 So, if you're there, and you're doing it well, it's a great asset to you. 00:21:42.732 --> 00:21:47.067 If you're not doing it well, It's really a big liability for your school. 00:21:47.317 --> 00:21:51.637 So, be consistent, be clear, and if you do this, you're going to keep 00:21:51.637 --> 00:21:55.317 your community not only informed but engaged, which is only going to help 00:21:55.327 --> 00:21:57.157 you move forward for years to come. 00:21:57.207 --> 00:22:01.387 So, if we can help you at Elementary Advancement Solutions with your 00:22:01.387 --> 00:22:04.167 school's communication plan or other strategic goals that you might 00:22:04.177 --> 00:22:06.477 have, let's set up a time to talk. 00:22:06.477 --> 00:22:09.547 Let's set up a virtual cup of coffee to discuss your goals. 00:22:09.907 --> 00:22:12.967 There's no contract, no fee, no obligation, anything like that. 00:22:13.080 --> 00:22:15.410 pick a time on the website, elementaryadvancement. 00:22:15.440 --> 00:22:19.270 com, uh, let's set up a time to talk and see how we can help your school 00:22:19.270 --> 00:22:22.070 grow and how we can move Catholic education forward at your school. 00:22:22.510 --> 00:22:25.940 And as I said before, if you enjoyed this podcast, if you think you know 00:22:25.940 --> 00:22:29.865 somebody who could benefit from this podcast, Please feel free to share it 00:22:29.865 --> 00:22:34.537 with them, like this podcast, uh, give it a rating, give it a, a, a good review. 00:22:34.847 --> 00:22:38.267 It just helps us reach more Catholic school leaders, not only in the 00:22:38.267 --> 00:22:39.647 United States, but across the world. 00:22:39.867 --> 00:22:41.627 And that helps us grow Catholic education. 00:22:41.627 --> 00:22:43.181 So, hope this is helpful to you. 00:22:43.211 --> 00:22:47.641 I hope you find this helpful in terms of your communication at your school. 00:22:47.771 --> 00:22:50.851 Maybe introduces some new ways that you can be more effective and 00:22:50.851 --> 00:22:54.941 efficient in your communication with your community in this coming year.