Social media is a critical piece of every marketing strategy, especially for schools looking to improve their audience’s engagement with their website. It’s not all about the likes and comments, though: nearly 90 percent of marketers found social media helps increase exposure, and 72% increase traffic and subscriptions as a result of using social media.
One of the purposes of social media is to direct traffic back to your website, whether it’s to register for an event, sign up to volunteer, make a donation, or continue reading more content. But you can’t just slap together a social media account, throw some posts together, and expect to see a wave of traffic headed to your school’s website.
Considering that the average click-through rate for Facebook is 0.9%, and for education, it can be as low as .73%, the odds of followers leaving social media to visit your site aren’t that great. Instagram, Facebook, and X — they all want users to stay on their platforms for as long as possible, so why wouldn’t they want to show your posts to a larger audience and “risk” the chances of users leaving?
It’s not time to log off just yet—let's review five ways you can use social media to entice users back to your school’s site and increase traffic, but first:
Tracking Traffic from Social to Your Website
“Referral traffic” describes the visitors who come to your domain from other sites without searching for you on Google. When someone clicks a link to your site on a social platform (or any other website), tracking systems from Google recognize the visitor as a referral. In Google Analytics 4 (GA4), you'll find this under Reports> Acquisition> User Acquisition.
Social traffic to your site gets put under this umbrella, and in Google Analytics 4 (GA4), you'll also see "organic social" showing traffic from non-ad links from social sites. Google's algorithm considers these links as positive ranking factors because they indicate users' trust in the information's authority and relevance and, therefore, boost your site’s SEO.
OK, now on to the tips!
1. Optimize Your Bios
When people want to learn more about your school or district on social media, oftentimes they click on your profile and read your bio, so it’s critical that your bio captures your school's values and mission.
Make sure to keep it brief—just a couple of lines is all that’s needed. Think of it as a super-short elevator pitch with a link to your school's website.
St. David’s School does a great job giving a quick overview of who they are and what the school’s values are in their Instagram bio!
Here’s a quick overview of character limits for each social platform bio:
- TikTok – 80
- Facebook Page Intro – 255
- Instagram – 150
- X – 160
- LinkedIn Tagline - 120
- LinkedIn Description – 2,600
- YouTube - 1500
Another important tool to use in your social media bios is links. Make sure that each of your social media platforms has a link to your school’s homepage. You can add up to five links in your Instagram bio, so make sure to link to any other relevant pages, such as admission events, inquiry pages, blogs, or landing pages.
If you use a Linktree or another “link in bio” tool, put the link to your homepage at the very top so your audience can find it easily. Link in bio tools are a popular way to organize links, but I encourage you to keep these updated and limit the number of links to 10. It can get extremely overwhelming to open a Linktree with a million options to click on!
2. Create REALLY Engaging Content
It might be obvious, but elevating your content to make it even MORE engaging can significantly boost its chances of being liked, shared, and commented on, thereby increasing its visibility. Social media algorithms often favor content that generates high interaction and shares, meaning your posts are more likely to appear in the feeds of a broader audience.
As mentioned previously, Facebook's average click-through rate is 0.9%. This means if you can get an extra 100 people to see your content, you will most likely gain an extra click to your site. If 1,000 more people view your content, it's roughly 10 more clicks to your site...you get the idea.
So, how can you make your content more engaging? While trends in social media are always evolving, here are the basics:
Share Updates and News:
Keep your audience informed with regular updates about school events, achievements, and news. This is information that your audience wants and often needs to know. Give the synopsis or “spark notes” version in your social media post and inform your followers to head to your website for more information.
Highlight Student Achievements:
Celebrate your students' successes, whether in academics, sports, the arts, or other areas. These posts not only boost student morale but also demonstrate your school's commitment to excellence. Plus, parents LOVE to see their students being celebrated! There is so much negativity online, so make your accounts shine.
Post Visual Content:
Visuals are key to grabbing attention on social media. Think about how often you have stopped when you saw something visually appealing... We often look at images before even going to read the caption, so share high-quality images and videos to attract your followers' attention.
Videos are 12 times more successful than other types of content on social media. I promise this doesn’t mean you have to embarrass yourself doing a TikTok dance or doing other random trends. Try creating a “day in the life” video of a principal like Lee’s Summit School District did, or record clips during a community event!
Pro Tip: 85% of Facebook videos are watched without sound. So make sure your videos have captions!
3. Add a Mobile-Friendly Link
Including mobile-friendly links in your social media posts is crucial for enhancing user experience and driving engagement. A vanity link like "school.org/give" is visually cleaner, easier to remember, and clearly communicates its destination, compared to a lengthy, complex URL like "school.org/development/supportourschool/give/givenow." This simplicity encourages users to click, especially on mobile devices where screen space is limited.
If you have a long link that you want to be shorter, you can use URL shorteners like Bitly to create clean, concise links.
The Hun School of Princeton adds a short link to its Facebook post that clearly shows where its followers will be directed when they click the link.
Where possible, use direct links rather than relying on "link in bio" strategies. For example, Instagram Stories, Facebook, LinkedIn, and X posts allow for direct linking, making it easier for users to access your content with a single tap.
This can be tougher for Instagram posts because there's no way to directly link in captions. Instagram generates only a small fraction of traffic to external websites, while in contrast, X (Twitter), despite having just one-third of Instagram's active user base, drives five times more web traffic.
It's clear Instagram wants you to stay in their app as long as possible, but you can combat this by adding links to your Instagram stories!
4. Engage With Your Audience’s Comments
Always reply to comments on your social media posts. This demonstrates to your audience that their input is valued and gives you a chance to direct them to your website for more information on the topic.
For example, you could respond to a comment on your social post, “Glad you like the story, Jane — here's even more information about how to get involved," and add a link to your site. Doesn't that feel more personal?
5. Don't Give Everything Away
A highly effective social media strategy is to avoid giving everything away in your posts. Instead, focus on teasing content to entice followers to visit your website for the full story. This leverages users' curiosity and the desire for more information, which can significantly drive traffic to your site.
For example, when sharing a blog post, provide a compelling introduction that sparks interest, followed by a call to action like "keep reading for the best part." Similarly, for success stories, highlight a remarkable achievement or a snippet of a student testimonial and then encourage followers to "click to read the full story."
Ravenscroft School supported its web traffic by creating a social post with a short preview of a news story on its website. The post included high-quality images, a clear call to action, and a shortened link.
By not giving everything away, you create a purposeful pathway for your audience to follow, leading them to engage more deeply with your website.
Key Takeaway
Driving traffic to your school's website through social media requires strategic planning and execution. By optimizing your social media profiles, creating even more engaging content, and interacting with your audience, you can encourage your followers to stop mindlessly scrolling and head over to your website—exactly where they should be!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
As the Social Media and Content Specialist, Hailey oversees Finalsite's social media accounts and helps grow its online community. Following her time at the University of Kansas, where she took up rowing, Hailey is a fitness enthusiast who enjoys playing soccer and running.