At the beginning of October I had the opportunity to co-host two Social Media Marketing Workshops at Finalsite HQ in Connecticut and Woodland School in California. In preparation for the workshop, I surveyed more than 300 school professionals on how they use social media because I wanted to tailor the session content towards their biggest goals and obstacles. (If you keep up with our blog, you've most likely seen the earlier version of this report, released in March of 2017, with survey data from 150 school marketers.)

The report revealed what I expected: school professionals know how important social media is to their overall strategic initiatives, but finding the time and budget to use it properly is in some cases, impossible — with nearly 60% of respondents saying they dedicate 0-5 hours to social media per week. That isn't even one hour per day! But of course, that is what I expected to find, based on dozens of anecdotal conversations with school marketers around the globe.

Some of the report's most interesting findings include:

Instagram is On the Rise

Between February 2017 and October 2017 there was a 10% growth in Instagram use among schools, whereas all other social media network use fluctuated 1-2%. Additionally, 7% of respondents say that Instagram is the most helpful social network (of course second to Facebook), but also beating out Twitter.

Social Media Marketing is still new for schools

Feeling like a social media #rookie? You're not alone — 16% of survey respondents have been using social media for less than one year. And the majority of respondents (58%) have been on social media for 1-3 years.

Schools aren't not posting enough content: The majority of respondents (41%) post 5-10 times per week on social media — which sounds like a lot, until you break it down and you realize that 100% of those respondents are posting to three or more social media networks. A good rule of thumb to follow is posting one or two times per day on Instagram and Facebook, and five or more times per day on Twitter.

The strategy struggle is real

A lack of time to dedicate to social media results in a whole slew of other issues, such as generating leads and site traffic and planning and scheduling content. A matter-of-fact, 23% of respondents say their biggest struggle is generating website leads and traffic, while another 30% struggle with planning and scheduling content.

Despite a lack of strategy, schools aren't doing so bad

A lot of the schools I've had the opportunity to chat with are in panic mode, as they get 1-2 likes on everything they post. However, the survey data didn't reveal that all schools are in panic mode. A lot of them are actually doing OK: 32% of respondents get 25-50 likes on everything they post on Facebook. And, only 7% admitted to getting less than 10 likes per post.

For a full overview of the report's data and analysis, download your free copy today!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

As Finalsite's Content Marketing Manager, Mia plans and executes a variety of inbound marketing and digital content strategies. As a former TV and news reporter, freelance cinematographer and certified inbound marketer, Mia specialises in helping schools find new ways to share their stories online through web design, social media, copywriting, photography and videography. She is the author of numerous blogs, and Finalsite's popular eBook, The Website Redesign Playbook.