Marketing Committees, Interns, and Retreats

When you have a one-person or small team, take the time to find helpers. Marketing committees and interns can be a game changer.

1. List three steps it would take to form a marketing committee. 

A marketing committee is a great way to expand your promotion efforts. Make it something that staff could add to their professional resume and get recognized.

The tasks your committee could take on include:

• Brainstorming promotions or campaigns
• Identify community events to attend 
• Present to chambers of commerce about your ISD
• Post on social media for your campuses
• Gather stories from your campuses
• Contribute to or write newsletters

• Volunteer at convocations

• Develop employee morale efforts
• Support you in taking photos, videos, and writing copy

Some ways to recognize your committee could be:

• Provide t-shirts with the committee name
• Recognize them on social media
• Ask your superintendent to be a part of your kick-off and a year-end recognition breakfast or lunch.  

2. Create a list of your tasks that an intern could do.

It can feel overwhelming to begin handing off tasks to someone else when you’re used to doing everything yourself. However, delegating is an important aspect of any successful department or business! Think about the aspects of your job that might be more task-oriented or repetitive. These could make good projects for an intern to take over. For example, update your contact list, fill event bags, count inventory, volunteer at a community event, take photos, post on social media.  

Recruit high school interns or utilize platforms like Handshake. In today's remote worker world, create a list of tasks interns could do online. Meet with them weekly on Zoom to manage the process.

3. Block off your calendar to allow time to clear your mind. Even 15 minutes a week will do the trick!

Multi-tasking or jumping from one task to another can hinder our ability to think creatively and see the big picture. Scheduling time to clear your mind and brainstorm will allow you to open your mind up to those big ideas. 

4. Designate one full day for a one-person or staff brainstorming retreat.

Taking time each week to clear your mind (like we talked about in tip #3) is a good practice. However, sometimes it can be useful to have a whole day to really work through ideas and brainstorm. A retreat can be a powerful way to reset and recharge. An added bonus is that a retreat can often be a way to connect with staff members and collectively think about strategy.

Extend yourself by bringing together a committee and interns can be a winning strategy for all of your efforts.