As a private school administrator or marketer, you know that online visibility is critical for student recruitment and retaining families. An experienced SEO agency can optimize your school's website and improve search engine rankings. Before hiring an agency, keep these five things in mind:
Top 5 Tips for Hiring an SEO Agency for Your Private School
1. Research Their Expertise in the Private School Industry
When researching potential SEO agencies, go beyond looking for general experience optimizing websites. You want to see proven success within the private K-12 school niche. Ask agencies to provide testimonials and case studies of projects with schools similar to yours. This niche experience optimizing Admissions funnels demonstrates an agency's ability to help your private school boost recruitment and meet enrollment goals.
2. Clarify Your Enrollment Goals
Take time early on to clarify and communicate your specific enrollment goals to potential SEO agencies. Be as detailed as possible. For example:
- Do you need to fill open seats in next fall's Kindergarten class? How many?
- Is driving applications for financial aid a key focus?
- Do you want to retain more existing students to minimize attrition?
Outlining precise targets allows an agency to tailor strategies and benchmarks accordingly. They can structure campaigns to optimize pages focused on inquiry forms, tuition assistance, returning family registration, and more.
3. Ensure Ongoing Optimization and Support
A quality SEO agency will provide ongoing optimization and support long after launch, not just an initial website audit. Ask specific questions about post-campaign management:
- Is website content updated monthly to capitalize on new keywords?
- Are links actively built throughout the year?
- Will campaign strategies shift to meet evolving enrollment goals?
Continuous, hands-on support ensures your school maintains search visibility over time. Prioritize agencies that want to be long-term partners in meeting recruitment needs.
4. Review Reporting Capabilities
Robust analytics should inform campaign optimization. During the vetting process, ask agencies about the reporting they can provide:
- Can they showcase ROI by comparing organic traffic or ranking improvements to enrollment increases?
- How frequently are reports provided? Monthly or quarterly?
- What specific metrics will be shared? Form completions? Bounce rates?
- How can reports be customized to track metrics important to your school?
Quality reporting allows for data-driven decisions about future efforts.
5. Compare Pricing Models
SEO costs vary greatly between agencies, so outline your budget and needs, then compare options:
- Monthly retainer agreements provide ongoing optimization
- Some charge by project with additional fees for add-ons
- Packages may include things like technical website audits, content creation, off-page backlinking, and analytics integration
Evaluate what pricing structure and included services provide the best value to meet your school's individual recruitment needs.
Choose an SEO Agency That Understands Your Admissions Funnel
With the right SEO strategy tailored to your recruitment goals, you can increase inquiries, applications, and enrollment. Reach out to discuss how I and everyone here at Cube Creaitve Design can optimize your school's website to attract more families.
