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PROLOGUE
Help Them Say Yes to a Place
Main yield season is mostly behind us. Deposits are in. Classes are filling.
But enrollment doesn't actually stop. It just gets quieter.
Between now and Labor Day, families will keep accepting offers, putting down deposits, and quietly deciding. And there's a window in that process almost nobody talks about.
It's the time between when a family is accepted and when they actually send in the deposit.
Most schools treat this like a victory lap. The acceptance letter goes out. Maybe a phone call. A welcome packet in the mail. Then everyone holds their breath and waits.
Here's what I learned the hard way. That family is not done deciding. They're sitting at their kitchen table comparing your school to two others. Asking each other questions you'll never hear. "Did we make the right call?"
And most schools go silent during the most important two to four weeks of their decision.
This is the most under-leveraged email window in school admissions, and it matters even more in spring and summer when families have time to second-guess.
Here's what I would send.
A note from a current parent whose kid is the same age. Not a polished testimonial. A real, slightly messy email about one specific moment from this year that mattered.
A thirty-second video from a teacher. Phone camera is fine. Just hello and one thing they're excited about for next year.
A direct message from the head of school. Not a form letter. A few sentences about why this family in particular feels like a great fit.
A picture from inside the school. Not the marketing photo on your website. The actual hallway on a regular Tuesday.
None of these is hard to make. They take an afternoon. And they cost almost nothing.
But they keep your school top of mind during the days when families are quietly making the final call. They remind the family that real people are excited about them.
If you have late acceptances coming in between now and August, take fifteen minutes this week and build out what you'll send between acceptance and deposit.
The families you accept are saying yes to a possibility. Help them say yes to a place.
Thanks,
Brendan
Between meetings, speak your follow-ups. Done before the next one starts.
You have seven minutes between calls. That's enough time to type one email or dictate five.
Wispr Flow turns your voice into clean, professional text inside any app. Walk out of a meeting, speak your action items, follow-ups, and notes — Flow formats everything and you paste it where it needs to go. Email, Slack, Notion, your CRM.
Works on Mac, Windows, and iPhone. 89% of messages sent with zero edits. Used by teams at OpenAI, Vercel, and Clay.
SPONSOR
Did you know that I wrote a book about school marketing?
It’s the book that I wish had existed when I started marketing my school. I hope you’ll give it a read.
UPCOMING EVENT
For MarCom Society Members Only
Authentic School Marketing: Ideas You Can Use Tomorrow
What you’ll get from this webinar:
A clearer understanding of what authenticity really means in school marketing
Why authenticity matters more than ever to today’s parents
Where schools accidentally lose authenticity
Practical, easy-to-implement ideas you can use immediately
Bio: Simon Jones is the founder of The Bonjour Agency, helping schools create authentic marketing content that builds trust with prospective families. A former school marketing manager, he has worked with schools worldwide since 2012 on podcasts, video testimonials, and storytelling strategies that showcase the real voice of a school.
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