In our last blog about stretching your school’s marketing budget, we talked about the idea of using social media for school competitions! Some of you asked for ideas, so here are five simple ones to get you started. Below, we’ve listed some fantastic ideas to get you started and to start engaging with your school’s online audience!
Here’s a list of 5 possible ideas for a school competition
Photo Fun! “Why We Love Our School” Contest
Invite students, parents, and alumni to submit photos that capture what they love most about the school. This could include favourite spots on campus, school events, or community activities. Encourage people to share their photos on their social media profiles using a specific hashtag related to the school (e.g., #LoveOurSchool). The photo with the most likes wins a prize! Such as school merchandise or a book on photography or the photo is printed out and displayed in the School.
Creative Challenge: “Design Our Open Day Poster” School Competitions
Brain Teaser: “How Well Do You Know Our School?” Quiz
Who doesn’t like a quiz? You could run a quiz event at the School for pupils and parents, or you could run one online. Quizzes can be hosted live on platforms like Instagram or Facebook, with participants answering in real time. Various formats are offered by Facebook for running a school competition, including using simple posts, creating a series of posts, utilising Facebook Stories, or leveraging third-party apps integrated with Facebook. Check out our “how to run an Instagram school quiz” on social media guide.
Treasure Hunt: “Discover Our School” Challenge
Once again, you could organise a Scavenger Hunt event at your schools and promote it on social media, or you could try something a little different by organising a virtual scavenger hunt. You hide clues in posts, videos, or pages on your school’s website and social media profiles. Participants need to find those clues. Each clue leads to the next, and the final clue leads to a form where answers can be submitted. The interactive competition could end with a physical clue or QR code hidden somewhere accessible on the day of the open event. Winners could receive a special lunch with the principal. Ideas are great, but no matter how good the competition is, if no one reads it, it can be deemed a flop. So, here are some tips for ensuring your social media competition gets the visibility it deserves.
