Smc: School Marketing And Communications

The Insight Series with Charlie Maughan – Why school marketing works differently – Applied   In the final episode of 'Why school marketing works differently', Charlie explores what it looks like to apply brand clarity to a school.   He explores how a school brand is shaped by far more than marketing outputs alone, with every touchpoint contributing to how families interpret the school and how confident they feel in their decision. Charlie then shares a practical framework for assessing brand consistency, encouraging marketers to gather staff perspectives and opinions, testing the enrolment experience through mystery shopping, and auditing your school's communications and collateral to check whether your messaging is clear and aligned.  In the next topic, Charlie will unpack how parents form confidence — and what it means for the marketing strategy. Episode Links: The B2B Buyer Experience Report – 6sense School Choice: A Research Report - Independent Schools Australia Parents often lack metacognit

The Insight Series with Charlie Maughan – Why school marketing works differently – What we see In episode four of Why school marketing works differently, Charlie is joined by imageseven Account Director Cassandra Kirkpatrick to discuss what marketers often underestimate when they enter the education sector. Drawing on her own experience, Cas explains why school marketing is rarely limited to campaigns or advertising, requiring marketers to wear many hats, translate complex educational language, and build support for marketing inside the school. Together, Charlie and Cas explore the assumptions marketers bring with them, the challenge of long enrolment cycles, and why listening to stakeholders is often the key to understanding what makes a school genuinely distinctive. Episode Links: The B2B Buyer Experience Report – 6sense School Choice: A Research Report - Independent Schools Australia Parents often lack metacognitive insight into what drives school choice decisions. - PLOS ONE The B2B Buying Journey

The Insight Series with Charlie Maughan – Why school marketing works differently – The Insight In episode three of 'Why school marketing works differently', Charlie reframes what a school brand actually is — and why clarity and consistency often matter more than creativity. For prospective parents, brand is not decoration. It's a risk-reduction mechanism in an emotional, high-stakes decision. What builds confidence isn't novelty, but familiarity, proof and alignment across every touchpoint. Charlie explores why school marketing behaves less like traditional B2C and more like B2B —where reassurance, accumulated trust and long decision cycles determine whether families move forward with confidence. Episode Links: The B2B Buyer Experience Report – 6sense School Choice: A Research Report - Independent Schools Australia Parents often lack metacognitive insight into what drives school choice decisions. - PLOS ONE The B2B Buying Journey: Key Stages and How to Optimize Them – Gartner Got more questions fo

The Insight Series with Charlie Maughan – Why school marketing works differently – The Reality In episode two of 'Why school marketing works differently', Charlie explores the reality of how school marketing can go off track when it borrows from the wrong playbook, especially a bottom-of-the-funnel mindset that overweights performance marketing and underinvests in brand-building. Charlie discusses what's often misunderstood about marketing in schools: the long decision journey, the need to build confidence and trust, and the hidden cost of campaign-only thinking.   When a brand isn't doing its job, enquiries arrive with less conviction, comparison shopping increases, and admissions teams are left to do the heavy lifting.   Episode Links: The B2B Buyer Experience Report – 6sense School Choice: A Research Report - Independent Schools Australia Parents often lack metacognitive insight into what drives school choice decisions. - PLOS ONE The B2B Buying Journey: Key Stages and How to Optimize Them –

The Insight Series with Charlie Maughan – Why school marketing works differently – Orientation Welcome to the first topic in The Insight Series. In this orientation episode, Charlie sets the context for why school marketing often feels harder than it should — and why that tension isn't accidental.   School choice is a high-stakes, identity-driven decision shaped by long timelines, multiple influencers and emotional weight. Parents are often well advanced in their thinking before they enquire, reshaping how marketing must work.   Charlie explores what this means for school marketers, often carrying responsibility without full authority, and why brand building in schools is less about promotion and more about reducing risk and building confidence.   This episode begins a five-part exploration of why school marketing works differently. Episode Links: The B2B Buyer Experience Report – 6sense School Choice: A Research Report – Independent Schools Australia Parents often lack metacognitive insight into

Introducing The Insight Series with Charlie Maughan  In the first episode of 2026, Charlie introduces a new format for SMC – The Insight Series. These short, focused mini chapters are designed to make big school marketing topics easier to tackle, with clearer priorities and practical next steps. Each topic follows a structured flow: Orientation sets the context, Reality names what gets in the way, Insights shares useful frameworks, What We See brings in what's happening in schools, and Applied turns it into next steps for you.    Got questions or feedback for Charlie and the team? You can send them via the following: Email: smc@imageseven.com.au Have you heard about imaginate? The bespoke video solution for schools. If you're ready to take your school's video to the next level, head to www.imageseven.com.au/imaginate

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, James Tindall and José Caceres In the final episode of SMC for 2025, Charlie is joined again by Senior Account Manager James Tindall and imageseven's Director of Design — José Caceres — to discuss a new video content solution created to help schools produce consistent, high-quality content – imaginate. The team explores how imaginate supports schools by connecting overarching strategy with the demands of day-to-day content creation. In the Deep Dive, the team assess what makes a design feel truly balanced and 'just right', focusing on the importance of visual principles such as grids and structure to typography and colour schemes. In Rants and Raves, the trio dissect this year's Christmas ads and discuss those that created a compelling story and who missed out.   Episode links: imageseven.com.au/imaginate Good Visual Design, Explained – Neilsen Norman Group – Kelley Gordon The Worst and Best Christmas Ads in 2025 - Encodify Got more questions

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and James Tindall In this episode of SMC, Charlie and Rita are joined by Senior Account Manager James Tindall to chat about why it's time for school marketers to stop chasing clicks and start building brands that last. In Making News, the team first discuss fresh data showing CMOs shifting their focus from performance marketing to brand awareness and what schools marketers can take from this. In the Deep Dive, they explore why authentic, experience-led content cuts through digital fatigue, and how live events can spark a real connection with your community. In Rants & Raves, they celebrate Nike's Chicago Marathon campaign — a masterclass in smart, human, context-driven storytelling. Episode links: Brand awareness, media investment, B2B customer journeys: 5 interesting stats to start your week – Marketing Week Brand experiences create social content algorithms can't ignore – The Drum – Joe Panepinto Nike hits stride with Chicago M

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Harrison Shearn In this episode, Charlie is joined by Rita and Digital Marketing Specialist, Harrison, to explore some eye-opening stats from the marketing world. From job-switching in the industry, to the surprisingly low awareness of brand purpose, and even why ads perform better when the weather changes. In the Deep Dive, the trio discuss imageseven’s latest analysis of school website traffic and how AI is reshaping SEO for schools of all sizes. And, in Rants and Raves, the team rave about Wesley College’s Centenary Project and its creative community engagement. Episode Links: Switching roles, brand purpose, strategy disconnect: 5 interesting stats to start your week – Marketing – Niamh Carroll Wesley College Centenary Project Fly Through - Wesley College YouTube Is it a bird? Is it a plane? NO, it's a groundbreaking! - Wesley College The Smoking Ceremony - Wesley College YouTube Got more questions for Charlie and the team? Yo

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Harrison Shearn In this episode of SMC, Charlie is again joined in the studio by Rita and Harrison. The team explores Meta’s latest addition of Threads as a placement option and whether schools should consider advertising on Threads. In the Deep Dive, the trio dissect comments from Carlsberg’s new CMO regarding their renewed commitment to brand purpose and the importance of clarity and value proposition, and discuss the similarities with school marketing and branding. Finally, in Rants and Raves, the team swoon over Edith Cowan University’s latest project update video of its new city campus, and how schools can take inspiration when launching major projects to engage with their community. Episode links: Trends Ads Expand to All Meta Advertisers - Andrew Hutchinson - SocialMediaToday 'Impossible to move away from': Why Carlsberg's CMO is doubling down on 'Probably the best' - Niamh Carroll - Marketing Week ECU City Campus Flythrou

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Andrew Sculthorpe and Harrison Shearn  In this episode, Charlie is joined by imageseven Managing Partner Andrew ‘Scully’ Sculthorpe and Digital Marketing Specialist Harrison Shearn. The trio explore how AI-generated summaries are affecting website traffic and SEO, and how school marketers should adapt. In the Deep Dive, they explore key findings from the 6sense B2B Buyer Experience Report, highlighting strong parallels between the B2B buyer purchasing process and the prospective parent journey in education marketing. Finally, in the Rants and Raves, the team spotlight a school pushing the AI envelope with a conversationally aware virtual principal. Episode links: Study: Fewer clicks on links with an AI summary – AdNews The B2B Buyer Experience Report – 6sense Westbourne Grammar – Home Page Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: Email: smc@imageseven.com.au Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imag

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Harrison Shearn   Charlie and Rita are again joined by imageseven Digital Marketing Specialist Harrison Shearn to assess Google’s new ‘AI Mode’ and its implications for school marketers and digital marketing more broadly. In the Deep Dive, they explore how to brief your marketing agency or creative team effectively by discussing why a solid brief matters, and how to avoid miscommunication and misalignment to get the best results. Finally, they answer a listener’s question about the fine line between inspiration and imitation, before raving about Canva’s cheeky and out of the box outdoor campaign in London. Episode Links: Google Is Now Rolling Out AI Mode In the US – Search Engine Roundtable – Barry Schwartz With 9 questions to the perfect briefing for agencies - awork Canva OOH Campaign - James Herring Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: Email: smc@imageseven.com.au Survey: ima

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Harrison Shearn In this episode, Charlie and Rita are joined by imageseven Digital Marketing Specialist — Harrison Shearn — to discuss how school marketers can navigate Meta’s increasingly AI-automated platform. In the Deep Dive, the team focus on solo school marketer and strategies to help keep all the plates spinning. Finally, the team get swept up in Adelaide University’s recent ‘Launch You’ campaign and how the visuals got slightly carried away from the intended message. Episode Links: Adelaide University creates LAUNCH YOU via Richards Rose - AdNews Adelaide University - We're here to help launch new futures - YouTube Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: Email: smc@imageseven.com.au Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imageseven, we are always on the lookout for great people to join the team and we have a few opportunities open. To view our available positions or enquir

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Steph Wicks In this episode, Charlie and Rita are joined by imageseven Marketing Manager — Steph Wicks — to discuss the announcement that Google is removing reviews from school associated Business Profiles. The team talks about how these changes can affect schools and their position in the market. In our Deep Dive, the team breaks down the essential strategies every new school marketer needs to know when stepping into the education industry. Finally, Charlie, Rita and Steph tackle QR codes and where they are appropriate in the context of the education industry and how poor execution can disrupt the entire customer journey.   Episode links: Google to Drop Reviews On School Business Profiles Deciphering the dilemma: The surprising impact of QR code menus on diminishing customer loyalty Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: Email: smc@imageseven.com.au Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan and James Tindall   In this episode, Charlie is joined by imageseven Account Manager James Tindall to discuss all things school marketing. In Making News, the pair discuss what caught their attention from the recent release of InspirEd School Marketers’ annual MarCom Survey Report. In the Deep Dive, they discuss whether you should include emojis in your social media posts and how to create a strong tone of voice for your school. Finally, the team raves about Ferrari’s new Formula 1 ad campaign and what your school can learn from their use of heritage, history and storytelling.           Sempre Forza Ferrari – Ferrari’s new campaign         How to develop a strong tone of voice for your school         InspirED School Marketers U.S Private School MarCom Survey Report   Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: ·       Email: smc@imageseven.com.au ·       Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imageseven,

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Harrison Shearn In this episode, Charlie and Rita are once again joined by imageseven Digital Marketing Specialist Harrison Shearn, who provides an update on the latest changes in Meta, Google and AI. The team then deep dives into the challenge of rising online advertising costs in 2025, as well as sharing how to capture audience attention while reducing dependency on expensive ad campaigns. Finally, inspired by some famous viral campaigns, the team is posed the question: “Can schools ever drop their logo?”  The challenge of rising online advertising costs in 2025 Heinz UK drops logo – zoning in on perfect food pairings  Tesco drops logo from bags  ·     Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: ·       Email: smc@imageseven.com.au ·       Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imageseven, we are always on the lookout for great people to join the team and we have a few opportunities open. To

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Imogen Smith   In this episode of SMC, Charlie and Rita are joined by imageseven Senior Designer Imogen Smith. In the Making News section, the team discuss the future of TikTok as the world watches on to see what the American Government’s next move will mean for the app. Imogen takes us through a Deep Dive into the psychology behind fonts and how they make you feel. Finally, the team raves about the viral marketing phenomenon that is Charlie XCX’s brand BRAT, and how to create a marketing brief like Charlie XCX.           What does Trump’s executive order mean for TikTok and who might buy it?         The psychology of fonts: how fonts make you feel         Charlie XCX’s brief for BRAT vs how a marketer would write it   Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: ·       Email: smc@imageseven.com.au ·       Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imageseven, we are always on the lookout for

  School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Harrison Shearn   In this episode of SMC, Charlie and Rita are joined by imageseven Account Manager James Tindall, to discuss the impact of reviews on consumers’ purchasing decisions. In an extended Rants and Raves, Jaguar’s controversial new rebrand is put under the microscope as the team share their thoughts. Finally, the team rave about ‘Daisy’, an AI ‘Granbot’ designed to combat scammers by mimicking the conversational style of a grandmother, wasting their time and resources.          The impact of online reviews on consumers’ purchasing decisions: evidence from an eye-tracking study         The Jaguar rebrand is already the most divisive of 2024         Jaguar ad – Copy Nothing         Meet Daisy, the granbot designed to combat scams Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following:         Email: smc@imageseven.com.au         Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imageseven, we are

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Harrison Shearn In this episode of SMC, Charlie and Rita are joined by returning guest, imageseven Digital Specialist Harrison Shearn, to discuss the latest advancements in AI and LinkedIn’s new AI models. In the Deep Dive, we look at the surprising surprising company appointed as the UK’s most consistent brand, and explore how they have established their brand consistency over time. Finally, we share our thoughts on Instagram’s announcement of their changes to the privacy of teenage users’ accounts.         You’ll be rail-ly surprised by who is the UK’s most consistent brand         GWR Adventures with the Famous Five – The Start of the Adventure         Instagram makes teen’s accounts private as pressure mounts on the app to protect children Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: ·       Email: smc@imageseven.com.au ·       Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imageseven, we are al

School marketing and communications with Charlie Maughan, Rita Kilroy and Pauline Shuttleworth   In this episode of SMC, Charlie is joined by Rita and special guest, imageseven Advancement Specialist, Pauline Shuttleworth, to discuss how data-driven personalisation can co-exist with creativity. In the Deep Dive, we explore how to build a seamless relationship between marketing and enrolments and how they can work in tandem to achieve their shared goals. Finally, we share our thoughts on Tim Riches’ article Does brand build culture, or is it the other way around?            The price and payoff of precise personalisation       Does brand build culture, or is it the other way around? Got more questions for Charlie and the team? You can ask them via the following: ·       Email: smc@imageseven.com.au ·       Survey: imageseven.typeform.com Here at imageseven, we are always on the lookout for great people to join the team and we have a few opportunities open. To view our available positions or enquire fu