We are often asked, “Once I set up social media channels for my nutrition program, how do I grow the audience?” Great question, and it’s something that comes with many possibilities and opportunities.
Some people say, ”I want it to grow organically.” But as any farmer will tell you, growing organically comes with its own set of work and processes - it’s not just planting a seed and letting it happen. It has to be cultivated.
Keep in mind that it takes time and consistency to grow and engage your audience. But by maintaining consistency in your posting you’ll show potential followers that you’ll be a regular source of relevant content that impacts their families. With that, here are some tips and context:
Put your socials on everything. Make sure that your menus, your cafeteria signage, your email signature, has links, and even say something like, “Follow us on social media for the latest info on menus and more!
Signage. Whether it’s a banner in front of the school or a poster in the cafeteria, use that real estate to communicate your socials. A banner with a screenshot of one of your posts to showcase what you’re doing can help grab attention and build familiarity for your channels.
Send a social media-specific email 2x/year. A quick message that invites people to follow you on social media, sent directly to parents and students, is a great way to alert and/or remind people that your channels are active. Be sure to give reasons to follow. “Find out about our latest menu items, nutrition information, and special events on our social media channels. Follow us today!”
Get your district office to send a similar message, and include information about your socials in their regular messages. Many school districts send regular email newsletters and I guarantee you that they are always looking for content. Make it easy by providing them with easy content that can be copied and pasted. Send a featured menu item image once a month with an invitation to follow your social channels.
Principals/Office Managers: If you’re creating a message for your district office, be sure to share the same content with your school site leaders. Principals (and often office managers) communicate with their schools regularly. Be a content hero by providing easy, copy-and-paste-ready materials that make someone else’s job easier.
A NOTE ABOUT DISTRICT OFFICES & PRINCIPALS
We mentioned this above, but don’t underestimate the opportunity you have to be a content hero to people who are almost always looking for relevant stories to tell and information to share. When you deliver ready-made content you may well have saved someone 20-30 minutes of work. That can position you as a vital resource for your colleagues.
Take Control of Your Story
If marketing your school meal program keeps slipping away from you, now is the time to take control of your story, and we can help!
Put our 10+ years of school meal marketing to work for your program and build participation, engagement, and awareness for the amazing things you’re doing.
PTAs: If you want parents to know about the great things you’re doing, ask them to help you. PTA groups are a great resource to share news about what you’re doing. In our experience, once parents are on board they become some of your biggest advocates.
Community Groups: We’ve seen groups that range from community health organizations to chambers of commerce share information about great school food. From organizations that encourage food security and wellness initiatives to business groups who like schools buying locally, these groups can expand your reach and impact.
Ask your followers to share: Don't hesitate to ask your existing followers to share and invite their friends to follow you. We all like being invited to things, and if someone is passionate about supporting your mission they’ll be more likely to share. Sometimes all it takes is to ask.
Boost your posts. This one can, admittedly, get tricky for school districts, as it is technically advertising and has some administrative hoops to jump through. But investing as little as $5-$10 to boost a post to a select audience over the course of a few days can put your content in front of many more people in the exact geographic area you’re working to reach.
Send a department email newsletter. This one is for those of you who are already communicating your messages. A regular (monthly? quarterly?) email newsletter that spotlights your work is a great way to increase awareness and engagement. Make your social feeds a consistent part of what you mention in your newsletters.
These are just the beginning. Take 15 minutes and think about your community and how people access information and connect with one another. Then see if your story is something those people and organizations would benefit from sharing.
As with so many things, try something, assess it, and then build. And as with your broader messaging, inviting people to follow you requires clarity and repetition. Have fun growing your audience!
If you’re ready to take your school meal marketing to the next level, we want to help. Contact us today for a free, no-obligation consultation.