Whether instruction is in person or remote, video has become an integral and effective way of communicating with your district’s stakeholders—and it isn’t going anywhere. It’s easy to think of video as a broad medium, a way to reach hundreds of people at once. As Kristen Bryant, former head of Strategic Partnerships for video-software company, Wistia, says, “targeted messaging is a pillar of marketing in a lot of ways”—and a medium as personal as video can help you focus your message on one person at a time.

“Our inboxes now are so cluttered. People reach out with all these automated messages all the time,” says Bryant. “Personalizing a video is really an awesome way to break through the noise.” And like any other use of video, personalization is a way to build a deeper relationship—and therefore cultivate brand affinity. “I think that in the context of schools, it’s another entry point. What is this community? What do people care about? How do they carry themselves? It’s just another insight that they have, and as a recipient of that video, I then feel like I know a little more about you and therefore can really build a stronger connection.”

Imagine sending a short, personalized video to welcome a family who’s just enrolled in your district, or to encourage a star teacher to apply for a job opening in your district. Actually, that’s “one of the latest best practices” in hiring, says Tom Darrow, founder of recruiting agency, Talent Connections. “Even just with your phone, make a little video and tell them about the opportunity at your school.” If you send a job posting in an email, your candidate might disregard it as spam, but with a custom video, “they can see you. They can hear you. They don’t think it’s a scam. They don’t think it’s just a volume game. They really feel like you’re pinpointing and targeting them,” Darrow says. And it works. “Studies have shown that when you send an email with a video, the response rate is three times what a normal response rate can be.”

So the next time you want to make a big impact or a lasting connection—whether it’s with a teacher candidate, a student’s parents, or maybe even a local business leader—create and send a personalized video. The more personal connections you can make, the better off your schools will be. And now, more than ever, staying authentically connected means using video the cut through the chaos.

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