The changing of the seasons is always a great time to market yourself to your farm area, and back to school  time is no different. Here are some tried-and-true methods to make you memorable to the parents and families in your farm area. 

Back to School season has long been a time that marks the biggest change as we transition from the carefree days of summer to kickstarting the school routine of autumn. This shift is also the perfect time to start a marketing plan aimed to parents and families, providing countless opportunities to get involved in that sphere of influence. 

What are the best ways to market to this part of the community? 

Highlight Schools and Their Family- Friendly Communities 

If you were to ask any parent what one of the first things they look for when shopping for a new home is it’s proximity to good schools. In fact, as parents are beginning to gear up for a new school year, this is the very first thing on their mind! 

Neighborhoods with at least one good elementary or middle school also have greater home values, and that value will appreciate better over the long-term than their school-less neighborhood counterparts.  

Armed with that information, you can also market to those neighborhoods with bad schools, targeting them with promotions and new listings in areas that have better schools. The better the school in the neighborhood, the better the housing market will be. According to Realtor.com, 60% of buyers say that the need for a good school affects their decision, and 50% will go over budget so they can live in the school district of their choice. 

From The Big City To A Small Town 

According to the Financial Post, the latest trend is the shift of families from larger cities to smaller towns, which you can use to draw families to a smaller community with a friendlier school. “New residents are breathing life and diversity into places where — before the pandemic — schools were closing and many businesses struggled through the winter.” (Financial Post, Mary 14, 2021). This revitalization of smaller towns can act as a draw of its own for families looking for schools with smaller class sizes.  

Host a “Stuff the Bus” Parking Lot Party 

The Stuff-The-Bus fundraiser has grown in popularity over the last few years, becoming a fun way to gather donations of school supplies while issuing a fun challenge to the community! 

Here are some some ideas of supplies that can be donated: 

• Pens/pencils 
• Erasers 
• Markers/pencil crayons/crayons 
• Lined paper/Graph paper 
• Photocopy paper 
• Binders 
• Presentation folders 
• A backpack or insulated lunchbox for students in Grades K-5 
• A pair of headphones for online learning 
• A personal hygiene items (deodorant, toothbrush, toothpaste, etc.) 
• Backpacks  
• Scientific calculators 
• Disinfectant 
• Dry erase markers 
• Photocopy papers 
• 64g flash drives 

Imagine filling an entire bus with these useful things so the school can spend their dollars on other things that will benefit the kids? 

For more ideas on running a “Stuff-The-Bus” campaign, check out this article by First Coast News. 

Power Agents®, you’ll find an entire eguide with instructions, flyers, ideas and more for parking lot party ideas here in the Farming tab of your classroom!

Goody Bags with your Branding 

Door-knocking has always been a popular choice when marketing to your farm area and showing up with a goody bag is even better! Keeping with the Back-to-School theme, cute erasers or fun pencils along with your card or a flyer of value will be sure to have members of the community remember you and what you do. Even notebooks branded with your company name and logo isn’t costly and can be a great gift. 

These little goody bags can also be left at the front office to be handed out at the start of school, or you could team up with the PTA and work directly with the parents there.  

For some fantastic tips on building your brand, check out this article: “Have Fun With Your Brand.” 

Sponsor a PTA Meeting 

It isn’t hard to find out when the PTA meeting is, and providing dinner for them, or a selection of appetizers to enjoy during their meeting, and when you serve them to the PTA members yourself, you can engage in conversation and talk about how important it is that their kids and the school succeed. 

You can also donate money to support their events as a sponsor, which puts your name and logo in front of other parents and staff at the school.  

Host a Back-to-School Celebration Event 

Hosting a picnic or a cookout to kick off the new year will have everyone in a festive mood, and will get you face to face with parents, teachers, other staff, as well as various other members of the community. Consider inviting local restaurants to partner with you to offer their best dishes, appetizers, desserts, or beverages. 

While it’s a celebration and you don’t want to talk real estate the whole time, introducing yourself as an agent, and answering any questions that come up is a great way to connect with others, and if possible, collect phone numbers and email addresses to keep in touch.  

For more ideas on what types of events you could plan for this celebration, check out “Plan a Fun Back-to-School Event.” 

Host (or Sponsor) a Charity Bake Sale or Food Drive 

Bake sales have been one of the top traditional forms of fundraising for schools since the invention of the cupcake, and it’s still as true today as it was then. Whether you host your own, or sponsor a school-run bake sale, this is a great way to get in front of the kids, parents, and teachers.  

If this isn’t a fundraiser for the school itself, then donate the proceeds to the charity of the school’s choice.  

Sponsor a Sports Team 

You can sponsor one of the school’s sports teams. Connect with the principal and offer to buy the team’s jerseys in exchange for having advertising on them. This is something low on the school’s priority list as they are typically already lacking funds, so with the cost for new jerseys running between $200-$300, it’s a reasonable price to pay to have your name in front of parents and schools (not to mention the parents at the away games!) for a whole season (potentially for several years to come). 

Write a School-Related Blog, or Plan Back to School Social Media Posts 

If you are an agent that enjoys writing and blogging, create a blog article focused on the Back-to-School season, or even a series of articles that share valuable information about this time of year, from buying, selling, market information, and how this change of seasons affects Back-to-School. 

Not a writer? No problem! These valuable tidbits can also be shared using social media posts!  

Here are some related articles on how to use Social Media to your best advantage: “How to Leverage Social Media as A Real Estate Agent” and “5 Important Tips for Posting on Your Real Estate Social Media Accounts.”  

There is no need to do ALL of these marketing strategies that we included, as that can become time-consuming and exhausting! Whether you pick just one thing and do it really well, or 2 or 3 things throughout the year, these are sure you get you connecting to the school and the community in amazing ways! 

What’s Next? 

Are you ready to start taking things to the Next Level®? We have everything you need to develop new skills and master the ones you already have!  

Power Agents®, check out the Parking Lot Party eGuide for ideas and the flyers for creating a memorable and successful Back-to-School parking lot party in the Farming and Self-Promotion tab in the Classroom.  Whether you need a boost of confidence or empowering dialogues, Darryl will help you get the skills you need to be the go-to agent for the buyers and sellers in your farm area.

 

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