PRACTICAL PR
Tell your district’s story in 60 seconds By Margaret Van Duch
Margaret Van Duch is communications director for Fremont District 79, based in Mundelein.
P
eople crave information.
Starbucks has launched a mobile
is consu m i ng ever y t h i ng t hey
We desire it instantly and
order and pay app for the customer
can access. These communica-
want it delivered in a way that is
who doesn’t want to wait five minutes
tion ambassadors are attending
useful to us. As a mobile society, we
for that foamy drink.
PTA meetings, soccer games, and
also want it delivered wherever we happen to be. In the United States,
they want.
cocktail parties ― and sharing their knowledge and opinions on the sub-
three-quarters of adults use social
For educators, it is essential
ject. For this reason, it is paramount
media sites. The global Internet pop-
that a district’s message will reach
to ensure that information about hot
ulation represents 2.4 billion people.
its audiences. Like Starbucks, school
topics is well placed and available
Every 60 seconds, email users send
districts can use Twitter, Instagram,
where people can easily access it.
204 million messages, Twitter users
Facebook, Snapchat, Pinterest,
For school districts, this is typically
tweet 277,000 times, Facebook users
LinkedIn, email, and more. Each
the website.
share 2.5 million pieces of content,
platform holds different attractions
and YouTube users upload 72 hours
for its audience.
of new video. When traveling coffee drinkers
2
Starbucks gives customers what
The key in telling stories is to use the various media seamlessly.
For example, on a district website, a finance page might provide readers with information about the district’s spending and revenue hab-
want their brew, they can easily stop
And it is vital to tell the story
its. This is where a business manager
at Starbucks, the giant of the coffee
quickly: 90 percent of readers will
will want to place information about
world with over 20,000 stores and
view online content or data for 30
tax levies, an easy-to-view Power-
resellers in over 61 countries. The
seconds. Seven percent of viewers
Point about the district’s budget, and
company listens, researches, and
will stay on task for three minutes.
other meaty documents like the state
tests the market. Starbucks has more
A mere three percent of a school dis-
budget form. When an issue arises,
than 36 million followers on Face-
trict’s audience will devote 30 min-
this is what the public sees.
book, 11 million on Twitter, and 7.2
utes to content shared with them.
million on Instagram. In Starbucks
What this means is that a district
cafes, tables are bustling with indi-
has less than 60 seconds to reach
viduals conducting business, working
the majority of its audience.
on laptops, and talking on phones
That’s not to say that the three
while enjoying a chocolate mocha,
percent of viewers researching a
cafe latte, or caramel macchiato.
topic are not crucial to any con-
Starbucks introduces new sweetened
versation. For hot topics like refer-
drinks or skinny lattes to customers
endums, building expansions, and
on a monthly basis. Most recently,
budget cuts, that small percentage
Columns are submitted by members of the Illinois Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association
THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / MARCH-APRIL 2016