SCHOOL SPOTLIGHT
Notre Dame Academy | Los Angeles
For Notre Dame Academy, an all-girls Catholic school in southern California, the extra time and effort needed to manage separate systems for its website, admissions, and parent communications was becoming just too much.
Its digital presence was scattered, its website wasn’t functional enough for either of its two schools, and there was no real way to streamline admissions.
At a Glance
Notre Dame Academy is an all-girl, private Catholic middle and high school in Los Angeles, California, focused on empowering young women to rise to their purpose.
"Like most independent schools," explained Siobhan O'Neill, director of marketing and communications at NDA, "the demands for marketing and admissions just continue to increase exponentially each year." There’s always a need to improve efficiency and simplify workflows, but when the resources just aren’t available, projects and processes can quickly become disorganized. NDA needed a solution to bring some order to the chaos, streamline their operations, and empower them to tell their story effectively.
NDA soon discovered the efficiency of bringing key functions together under the Finalsite platform, transforming its digital presence and creating a seamless experience for families from the moment they first learn about the school.
“We've been able to stand out for who we are, and that's really the goal we want: mission-fit students. We're able to customize our suite to that, and it's only helped us more and more each year.”
SIOBHAN O'NEILL
DIRECTOR OF MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
The "Full-Funnel" Approach
From initial awareness to enrollment and participation in the community, NDA leverages Finalsite's full platform of products to engage families at every stage of their journey.
It starts with building awareness through online ads and NDA’s website, and as families consider their options, targeted marketing emails and more web content help prospects explore NDA’s programs and activities in detail. Finally, the school streamlines the application and enrollment process, making it easier for families to choose NDA and maximizing the impact of the school's success.
The "full-funnel" approach brought a consistent user experience for families and staff alike, something that NDA had been missing before its website redesign.
Attracting New Families
The School Website (CMS)
NDA’s old website wasn't "exciting, functional, or innovative," as O’Neill recalled, but thanks to a redesign in 2021, upgrading to Finalsite's content management system, Composer, allowed them to create a modern, engaging website that showcased NDA’s values and served as a crucial first impression for prospective families. Since the new site went live, organic traffic to the homepage has increased by an impressive 82%.
“At first, when I got to Notre Dame Academy, I was a little nervous because many of our competitors used Finasite, and I was worried that we would all look the exact same,” admitted O'Neill.
”It's proven me wrong. We've been able to stand out for who we are, and that's really the goal we want: mission-fit students. We're able to customize our suite to that, and it's only helped us more and more each year.”
Digital Marketing Services
An amazing website is only impactful if it reaches the right audience, so Notre Dame Academy partnered with Finalsite's digital marketing services to reach prospective families through targeted social media and Google ads, creating “top of the funnel” awareness with new audiences.
With Finalsite’s team, NDA reworked its landing pages and launched SEO, PPC, and social ad campaigns, honing in on its messaging and keywords with some impressive results. The PPC and ads drove traffic back to the school's website and highlighted key information about programs and events.
Total Overall Average Growth = 41.43%
SEO, PPC & Paid Social Growth
- Sessions: 56.85% increase year-over-year
- New Users: 72.17% increase year-over-year
- Total Users: 70.62% increase year-over-year
- Bounce Rate: 14.75% improvement year-over-year
”It's just incredible that people are literally coming to us from these social and paid ads,” O’Neill shared. “It's so hard to give all this money away to Facebook and Google when I'd love to offer even more tuition assistance to students, but this is also a really important investment.”
Streamlining the Admissions Process
Finalsite's Enrollment played a large role in streamlining the inquiry and admissions process for NDA. Automated emails, online calendar scheduling, portals, and embedded forms have reduced staff manual work while providing a more convenient experience for families to inquire, visit, and apply.
“When people click on a link and RSVP for an event, submit an inquiry form, begin the formal process of engaging with us, and then start the application process, it’s all pretty seamless,” said O’Neill, noting that the streamlined approach has led to fewer errors and a more independent and positive experience for parents.
“With automated emails, Finalsite Enrollment really helped the process when there was just one admissions director,” shared O’Neill. “It's continued to help us be more timely and professional, and it helps us streamline our priorities and make sure we are clear on our messaging all around.”
“We get excited because we get notifications when someone fills out an application,” she laughed. “It feels like Christmas every time an email comes, and you're like, ‘Yes, we got another TK student!’ or ‘Yes! We got another incoming freshman!’”
“It helps us to understand that these things integrate with each other,” O’Neill said, adding that the team uses the enrollment software to send follow-ups to inquiries with automated emails and responses. “The platform helps everyone understand what it really takes to coordinate just one admissions event and communication.”
“Now, we're so consistent on all of these avenues, and we’re careful to pay attention to that and not go off-brand when sharing our amazing programs and student awards each year. It’s crucial to make sure that all the messaging is strong and the brand is consistent.”
Ongoing Engagement | Building Relationships and Community
A Strategic Partner in Finalsite
Working with Finalsite’s strategic school marketing support provided O’Neill with dedicated guidance in implementing and getting the most out of their messaging and the platform's features, whether it was designing page layouts in Composer or creating a custom email template in Finalsite’s email marketing tool, Messages. This helped ensure that all of NDA’s communications and marketing efforts were working together and aligned with its brand and mission.
“The whole process of learning the Composer side of things with a dedicated Finalsite consultant has really been incredible,” said O’Neill, “And not only knowing the platform but also implementing all these marketing messaging recommendations.”
Email Communications (Messages)
O’Neill also uses Finalsite Messages to create and send mobile-friendly email newsletters and share important updates, news, and events with parents.
The platform's ease of use and customizable templates help ensure that these communications are both informative and visually appealing. A regular parent newsletter is also shared with current NDA families, helping its retention efforts and keeping families informed about the latest events and announcements.
“The key to marketing and admissions is building relationships, and these Finalsite tools—the website, the ads, the mobile app, the Messages—just help get us in the door.”
Mobile App
Recognizing the importance of sharing highlights of student life and the sports programs, NDA launched its mobile app, another valuable tool for keeping families connected and informed with on-the-go access to calendars, news updates, and athletic scores, which are synced through the student information system so it’s constantly updated and looking fresh.
“It's a public forum, much like a website in that there's no paywall or log-in,” O’Neill explained. “We’re promoting our story through our website, social media, emails, our parent newsletter, and our mobile app. We're just trying to get our word out and share all the good news.”
The Results
NDA’s "full-funnel" approach to attracting, engaging, and retaining families has ultimately contributed to the school's ongoing success, and despite a demographic decline in Southern California, there’s been a rebound in freshman enrollment and overall healthy enrollment numbers. “That’s been really encouraging and really amazing,” O’Neill said.
“We’re building these relationships, and families see that we are consistent in everything that we offer. They're coming to each event, and they're enjoying themselves. They want to come back for more, and that’s really great to see and feel.”
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