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This issue focuses on how to successfully appeal to today’s educators in an increasingly competitive environment.

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Appealing To Educators

By Bob Stimolo

Creating successful promotions for any market is not an easy task. Identifying a market’s unique characteristics can be a key factor. When addressing educators, it is important to remember what makes them unique as well as what they have in common with other groups.

Teachers Are Important

Teachers are important to school marketers because they represent access to three large ydet distinct markets. They influence institutional spending; they influence parents spending in support of their youngsters’ education; and they spend their own personal funds in support of their professional activities.

Teachers are, perhaps, more important now than ever before. The days when all one had to do was to demonstrate the educational validity of a product to succeed are long past. Today’s educational market is fiercely competitive by comparison. Whatever the product or service, if teachers are involved in its purchase or use, it is critical to understand how to appeal to them.

Key Elements of Appeal

There are three key elements that appeal to teachers. They like products and services that are attractive, practical, and cost justifiable.

Appearance

Products that are “attractive” have several effects on teachers. They make them feel competent or “with it”; they make them feel “young” (professionally speaking of course); and, perhaps more important, they impress others including students, colleagues, and administrators. Products that are new, interesting, or flashy have the best appeal.

To maximize product appeal, employ good product management. If a product is suspected to be suffering from old age, drag it out of the closet for the “new and improved” treatment. This may include changing the name or adding a subtitle as well as adding new features. If the product isn’t inherently attractive, modify it to improve its appearance. As an example, even the most drab product can be “dressed up” with a colorful classroom poster.

In addition to making items attractive through product management, make them appealing through advertising. Show products being used by attractive, eager, contemporary people. A classroom scene that’s truly exciting can create as much if not more interest in a product than a headline or letter.

Practicality

In addition to being attractive, a product or service must also be practical. The most important thing to remember is that a product must help teach what must be taught, not what should be taught.

It would be wonderful if empathy and generosity toward one another could be taught to our young people. Certainly it’s something that should be instilled in children. But it’s not a subject mandated by most states’ department of education. And many teachers, while they may think it’s a wonderful idea, will be hard pressed to draw a relationship between their jobs and programs of this type.

Consider another example. Educators don’t want products that yield perfect math scores. That claim is unrealistic and most likely impossible to achieve. As a practical goal, teachers look to improve math scores.

Most teachers submit teaching plans that show the curriculum they will present for a semester. For the most part, these plans are consistent with state department of education requirements and guidelines. The more a product or service helps teachers to meet their teaching plans, the more it is perceived to be practical. Products that don’t address curriculum needs are often considered frivolous and impractical.

There are other important measures of “practicality.” For example, a product or service must be relatively easy to use. Problems can also arise when a product is actually practical and easy to use, but very difficult to explain. For example, a company developed a unique manipulative device that makes it much easier for youngsters to learn their math tables. This company conducted a variety of studies that resulted in a very compelling case for the merits of the product. However, it was extremely difficult to explain exactly how to use this product in a direct mail promotion.

To encourage educators to “see for themselves” the effectiveness of the product, product samples were included in the promotion package. Although the mailing was more expensive, it yielded more successful results than other promotions that did not include samples.

To be practical, a product must also exhibit some demonstrable results. Educators must somehow be able to see a tangible benefit to a product or service. It doesn’t have to be earth shattering. However, it does have to be enough of a benefit for the teacher to conclude that the time and money invested in its purchase and use was worthwhile.

Scientifically-based research, or SBR, is a popular topic in the education market. That’s because schools are under increasing pressure to use federal dollars for products and programs whose effectiveness have been proven through this method.

In fact, SBR was mentioned on over 100 separate occasions in the No Child Behind Act (NCLB). This legislation mandated that SBR must be incorporated into strategies for school improvement, professional development, and English language instruction for Title III grantees.

What, exactly, is scientifically-based research? Simply put, it is a method based on scientific evaluation to determine the effectiveness of a product, program, or service in the real world of education. SBR includes four basic steps: Observe, hypothesize, collect data/evidence, and draw conclusions.

For example, as a result of nationwide standardized tests given in grade 4, it is found that students are generally below acceptable levels in math. Company XYZ has a program called Alpha that they believe improves math scores in grades K-6. Groups of students in grades K-6 are randomly selected from schools across the country. Each group is tested before being introduced to the Alpha math program.

The groups in each school are then divided in half. One half is taught math for a semester using the Alpha program while the other uses the existing curriculum. At the end of the semester, the students are tested and the scores are analyzed to reveal any difference between students taught math through the Alpha program and those that were not. Conclusions are then formulated based on the evidence.

Any school marketer claiming that a product, program, or service causes or contributes to certain outcomes, such as improved student performance, should support these claims with scientifically obtained evidence. Educators may ask for this evidence when evaluating the quality of their purchase options.

Cost Justifiable

Whether paid for by institutional funds or out of a teacher’s pocket, a successful product or service should be cost justifiable. But don’t leave the justification argument to potential purchasers for they may fail to make as strong a case as you, the marketer, can present.

As the cost of the product or service rises, the need for a strong cost justification argument increases. Along with the increase in price comes an increase in the number of individuals who must agree on and approve the expenditure. In some cases, cost justification is the sole reason for deciding whether or not to purchase.

Some products and services lend themselves to cost justification better than others. It’s relatively easy to cost justify an educational consultant who promises to deliver more state and federal funding through a change in a school’s organization. It’s a little more challenging to cost justify a general promise of improved curriculum scores.

Converting price into cost per end user such as dollars per teacher or pennies per student can help the cost justification argument. But sometimes cost justification takes more emotion than math. For example, “If just one child is spared the trauma of child abuse, this program will have been well worth over 100 times its cost!” Finding the best way to cost justify a particular product or service is a unique creative challenge.

There are many different types of educators. Administrators differ from teachers, elementary teachers differ from secondary teachers, specialists differ from classroom teachers, and so forth. No one creative approach works for all. In fact, it’s best to use several different approaches and create a media mix to maximize appeal. Remember, it’s a cold and competitive world. The fact that a product or service exists is simply not enough to motivate a purchase in today’s market.

Educators Are People Too

One of the most common misconceptions regarding teachers is that they are somehow superior to average people. Their academic backgrounds serve to make them immune to those marketing techniques that turn the rest of us mere mortals to jelly. Not true!

Despite what educators may lead marketers to believe at trade shows or focus sessions, they respond to the same types of buying incentives that motivate the rest of the world. Free gifts and substantial discounts are as attractive to an educator as to anyone. In fact, some educators have come to expect such motivators as free freight, educational and quantity discounts, money-back guarantees, and free gifts with every order and they won’t respond to promotions that lack these elements.

Keep Your Copy Clear

Just because copy is directed at educators doesn’t mean it must contain complex words or sentences. Educators are deluged with an overabundance of direct mail and, like all of us, are pressed for time. Their decision whether or not to investigate a promotion takes virtually seconds. As with any other group of recipients, the promotion message must be quickly and easily understood.

Use short sentences and simple language. Heads, subheads, bullet statements, and/or graphics can enhance copy by making it easy to scan. These elements enable readers to choose the items in which they are most interested and easily identify them for closer inspection. Even when promoting unique and complex products or equipment, it’s best to stay away from technical terms only an expert is able to understand. Focus instead on the product’s benefits.

Product Benefits May Surprise You

Stating product benefits in almost any promotion is highly recommended. However, many educational marketers believe that benefits should be described in terms of what a product can do to help students. In fact, educators are usually more interested in benefits that apply more directly to them.

A math program that can make students learn multiplication faster is a benefit. However, that benefit should be stated in a way that is most appealing to the educator. For example, state that the math program leaves more time for the teacher to devote to other important matters. The teacher is much more able to personally identify with the benefit stated in those terms. There are other benefits educators can appreciate. Here are a few examples:

Teachers’ guides make teachers’ jobs easier by reducing lesson planning, by including test questions and answers, and/or containing everything a teacher needs to present the material easily and effectively.

Discounts are always motivational. While they may be stated either in terms of a percentage or dollars saved, always express a discount in the most appealing manner. If the absolute dollar amount of the discount is small, mention percentages, or vice versa.

Workbooks and/or drill sheets can reinforce lessons easily, provide a measure of student progress, and eliminate the need to prepare test materials.

Make Ordering Easy

Remember, the education market is a massive bureaucracy. Purchases must sometimes be approved by several layers of management. Purchasing procedures vary with every district and sometimes among buildings within districts.

Offering various methods of payment such as check with order, “bill me,” and purchase order options is recommended. Accept credit cards if possible. Ask for a “Bill To” address in case it is different from the “Ship To” address. To reduce the risk of fraudulent orders, state that the product can only be shipped to a school address or ask for a phone number to confirm orders. Toll free telephone and fax numbers are expected. This gives the educator the option of ordering quickly and easily without personal expense or additional cost to the school.

24-7 On The Web

In today’s school market a user friendly web site is a necessity for success. Educator use of the Internet for shopping and purchasing continues on a steady rise. And, educators appreciate the convenience of being able to shop online after school or at home.

Keep Risk To Buyer Low

Educators may be held responsible for their purchases by their superiors. If a product does not fit their expectations or needs, they want to be able to return it easily for a credit or refund. They may wish to preview or accept product for a trial period at no obligation. Good customer service and quick replacement of damaged merchandise are also desirable features.

Librarians Offer Unique Opportunities

There is no such thing as a typical librarian. The matronly, quiet, and reserved stereotypical librarian that may have existed decades ago certainly doesn’t exist anymore. To succeed in the school and public library markets, one has to understand the modern library.

Librarians range from professionals educated in this field to part-timers and volunteers. Some manage vast empires of public, main, and branch libraries. Others service so small a school or community as to rely on other libraries as a source of new materials.

Large public or college libraries are likely to contain a healthy dose of educated professionals schooled in the latest cataloging technologies and cognizant of the importance of fiscal responsibility and circulation management. A high concentration of specialists such as juvenile and reference specialists, as well as many others will also be found.

Large elementary, junior, or senior high school libraries will also contain professionals, though they may be forced to be less specifically involved than their public and college library counterparts. Only very large or very wealthy el-hi schools can afford to staff numerous specialists. Smaller public libraries, whether branch or main, and smaller school libraries are more likely to employ para-professionals. Although this may be a function of low budgets, it is often a function of a lack of available professional staff from which to draw.

However, librarians with and without formal degrees in library science have available today more education programs and information sources and services than at any other time in history. Partly as a result, librarians are more business-oriented and act more professionally than ever before.

A librarian’s responsibilities include managing a budget, selecting new materials, securing existing materials, keeping track of circulation, and promoting and improving circulation and other library services. A school librarian may also be involved in some sort of instruction such as using the card catalog to select reference materials.

An attractive product or service is one that accomplishes any one of these tasks and can be cost justified. When it comes to identifying products or services that are meaningful to librarians, marketers who understand their audience and who focus on those areas that help librarians accomplish their jobs are more likely to be effective.

Choosing Media

Educators are as responsive as any business-to-business market relative to media choices. The best approach to selecting media is to begin with what seems suitable for the proper explanation of the product or service and offer. Then, as one gains experience with different media choices, evaluate the cost per order and settle on those media that yield an acceptable range of results.

Over the years, educators have often been denied the more creative aspects of direct mail and other media efforts because of the strong perception among marketers that such promotion would be offensive or ineffective in this market. Experience shows that this premise is not true. Educators are as interested in an unusual piece of mail as anyone. It may have even more impact in the education market simply because there is a large amount of mail and so much of it is so conservative.

Unusual mail includes the full gambit from four-color unique art, large show-through windows and poly bags to die-cuts, tokens, and enclosed samples. The possibilities are limited only by one’s imagination. In and of themselves, these devices do not guarantee a successful mailing. But combined with a good product or service and a good offer, they can more than pay for their expense and effort.

Educators can also be receptive to both space advertising and telemarketing. Throughout most of the school year telemarketing can be effective. When telemarketing is employed, the same rules for good telemarketing apply to educators as to any other group of individuals.

Making An Offer

Having had the opportunity to explore a host of offers (i.e., free 30-day trial examinations, special discounts, and premiums) experience shows that all variations can succeed. It isn’t that one type of offer is better than another so much as one type suits a particular product or service better and gives the whole presentation clarity and impact. When it comes to creating a good offer, the question is, “How can educators be encouraged to invest their time to evaluate a product or service, and can a compelling case be made for a product or service in a short time?”

One of the great mistakes of which many marketers are guilty is presuming readership. Because educational materials are being sold, it is presumed that most educators will make the time to wade through promotion literature. The fact is that most educators will not take the time. A compelling offer can make the difference between a teacher reading a promotion or discarding it.

Developing A Creative Approach

It’s the responsibility of copywriters and designers to seduce readership. This job can be made easier through a compelling offer such as an impressive discount, free gift, or 30-day free trial examination. But with or without these tools, copy and design must still be inviting, interesting, and intriguing.

To better understand how to appeal to the education market, it helps to know something about the day-to-day existence of an educator. For example, consider a sympathetic approach to invite readership by using empathy in headlines and key phrases. Or take a straight-forward cost justification approach. Whether employing empathy or cost justification, a good design that integrates the verbal as well as visual message is as important in the education market as it is in any other market.