Marketing Approaches Used in Independent Schools Analysis of The Perceived Effectiveness of Marketing in Hawaii Independent Schools

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Marketing Approaches Used In Independent Schools: Analysis Of

The Perceived Effectiveness Of Marketing In Hawaii Independent
Schools
Tim Spurrier
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© 2018 Tim Spurrier
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Effectiveness Of Marketing In Hawaii Independent Schools" (2019). All Theses And Dissertations. 224.
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Marketing Approaches Used in Independent Schools: Analysis of the Perceived Effectiveness of
Marketing in Hawaii Independent Schools
By
Tim Spurrier
BS Towson University 1982

MA Towson University 1987
MA Central Michigan University 2013
A DISSERTATION
Presented to the Affiliated Faculty
Of the College of Graduate and Professional Studies at the University of New England
In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements
For the degree of Doctor of Education
Portland & Biddeford, Maine
August 1, 2018
Copyright 2018 by
Tim Spurrier
ii
Tim Spurrier
August 2018
Educational Leadership
MARKETING APPROACHES USED IN INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS: ANALYSIS OF THE
PERCEIVED EFFECTIVENESS OF MARKETING IN HAWAII INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS
ABSTRACT
This qualitative study examined Hawaii independent schools’ administrator’s perceptions
of the effectiveness of marketing, intended message, and the media used to communicate to
increase brand awareness and enrollment. Economic and competitive pressures have created the
necessity for independent schools to employ marketing plans and strategies to distinguish the
schools from their competitors and influence enrollment management. Hawaii independent
schools are dominated by the reputation of four large schools in the Honolulu area, which has
produced pressure on smaller schools to create a niche in the market. This study produced data
from parents of enrolling students concerning the school’s attributes and marketing tools that
effectively influenced their decision to enroll their child. The motivation behind this study was to
produce research to assist school leaders as they face the challenges to remain viable while
enrollment trends are not encouraging.
Incorporating Fishbein's Multi-Attribute Theory to guide the framework for the research
allowed for questions to be designed to determine school administrators’ and parents’
perceptions about the message the school creates by determining desirable attributes. In addition
to determining the attributes that frame a school’s brand, this study examined the marketing
methods that were employed to create the consumer action of enrollment. Through surveys
distributed to Hawaii independent schools inquiring to administrators about their perception of
iii
marketing and one-to-one interviews with eleven small school administrators and parents, the
study produced data that can be useful when creating a strategy. The significant finding from this
study was that school leaders and parents both responded that Relationship Marketing produced
a stronger awareness of a school's attributes and had a positive influence on enrollment. The
relationship with a school was produced by positive and purposeful word of mouth, open houses,
events, personal tours, and social media. While enrollment causation is difficult to attribute to
one factor, there is substantial evidence that there is an association between incorporating a
relationship marketing strategy and enrollment. The data in this study supported the perception
by administrators that a robust marketing strategy could provide schools with tools to contend in
a competitive market.
iv
Doctor of Education
Educational Leadership
This dissertation was presented
by
Tim Spurrier
It was presented on
August 1, 2018
and approved by:
Michelle Collay, Ph.D., Lead Advisor

Brianna Parsons, Ed.D., Secondary Advisor

Margaret Friedman Ph.D., Affiliated Committee Member

Chaminade University
v
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I am so appreciative to all the people in my life who have guided me and taught me to
look at the world with love and compassion. First, I want to thank my parents who never made
me feel average. They set a great example and encouraged me to pursue my lifelong obsession
with learning. Without their foundation, I would never have completed this dissertation.
I am deeply grateful to the UNE faculty for their support and patience. I want to
acknowledge the guidance I received in my early chapters from Dr. Steve Moskowitz, Dr. Suzan
Nelson, and my affiliated committee member Dr. Margaret Friedman. I owe a debt of gratitude
to Dr. Michelle Collay and Dr. Brianna Parsons for stepping in as Lead and Secondary Advisor. I
also want to say thank you to the cohort members for sharing amazing insights and working hard
each step of the way.
To everyone from the Hawaii Independent Schools Association and the participants
involved in this study, thank you for giving your valuable time and contributing to the study. A
particular debt of gratitude goes to my friends at Holy Nativity School who have endured the
countless conversations about the dissertation process. Thank you for putting up with me. To my
family, it's time to go back to the beach! To Craig, Ben and Emily, you are the inspiration in my
life. Whether you want it or not, we now have more time to spend with each other. To my wife
Myrna, there is no way I could have accomplished this research or anything else in life without
you. I love and cherish you all. Now it is on to the next adventure.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION…………………………………….…...………………...…….1
Setting ……………………………………………………………….…………………....6
Purpose…………………………………………………….………………...….…………9
Problem…………………………………………………….…………………......……...11
Questions………………………………………………………………...……………….12
Conceptual Framework………………………………………………….…….…………12
Assumptions……………………………………………………………………………...14
Limitations……………………………………………………………………………….15
Significance of Study…………………………………………………………….………16
Definitions of Terms……………………………………………………….…………….17
Conclusion………………………………………………………………….……………20
CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE…………………………………….………………21
Unique Branding of Independent Schools…………………….…….…….……………..23
Attributes of a Small School……………………………………….………….…25
Case Studies and Anecdotal Accounts…………………………….…………….26
Student Experience Management…………………………………….………….27
Relationship Marketing………………………………………….….………………...…28
Admission and Enrollment Strategies……………………………………...……33
Campus Tours………………………………………………...…………………36
Word of Mouth………………………………….……………………………….36
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Retention Strategies……………………………………………………………...37
Transactional Marketing…………………………...……………………...……………..38
Admission and Enrollment Strategies……………………………………….…...39
Ethical Marketing………………………...……………………………………………....40
Acceptance of Marketing in Education…………………………………………..41
Deceptive Marketing……………………………………….……………...……………..43
Marketing Indicating a Lack of Prestige………………………………………………....45
Marketing of Independent K-6 Schools to Increase Enrollment using Niche Marketing..46
Social Media……………………………………………….…...…………………..........48
Competition……………………………………………………………………………...52
Conclusion……………………………………………...………………………………..53
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY………………………………………...…………..................54
Setting………………………………………………………………….….......................56
Participants……………………………………………………...………....…………….57
Data and Analysis…………………………………….………………….……………...58
Potential Limitations……………………………….………………...………………….62
Conclusion…………………………………………………………...………………….63
CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH FINDINGS…………………………………….………………….65
Participants……………………………………………………………………………...66
Marketing Plans and Strategies……………………….……………….………………..69
Beliefs about Personnel Needs for Marketing……………………….…….…................70
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School Brands and Attributes…………………………………….……..........................71
Media and Messaging of the School Brand………………….………………………….79
Marketing’s Effects on Enrollment…………....………………………………..............81
The Effective Use of Media on Enrollment………....………………………………….84
Relationship Marketing Approaches for Increasing Enrollment……………………….90
Parent Participants in the Interviews…………………………………………...............97
The Attributes That Influenced Enrollment from the Parent’s Perspective……………97
The Type of Media Parents Cited that Influenced Enrollment…...……….…………..102
Summary………………………………………………………………………………105
CHAPTER 5: INTERPRETATION OF FINDINGS…………………………………………108
Review of Research Questions…………....…………………………………………..109
Interpretation and Alignment of Findings with Literature……….…………………...114
Implications and Recommendations for Action………………………………………116
Small Schools Form Partnerships to Hire Marketing Professionals………….116
Small Schools Develop Data Collection Procedures...……………………….117
University and Professional Development Marketing Training……….……..118
Recommendations for Further Study…………………………….…………………...119
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………120
References……………………………………………………………………………122
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APPENDIX A: SURVEY……………………………….…………………………………...131
APPENDIX B: INTERVIEW GUIDE……………………………...……………...………...137
APPENDIX C: SEMI-STRUCTURED FOR EDUCATORS………………………………..138
APPENDIX D: SEMI-STRUCTURED FOR PARENTS……………….…………………...139
APPENDIX E: PARTICIPANT OUTREACH-PARENTS…………….……………………140
APPENDIX F: PARTICIPANT OUTREACH-EDUCATORS………….…………………..142
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LIST OF TABLES
1. Self-Identified Job Titles of the Survey Participants……………………………………66
2. Current School Enrollment of Participating Schools in the Survey……………….........67
3. Schools Responding from the Survey Indicating they do/don’t have a Formal
Marketing Plan………………………………………………………………………….69
4. Schools with a Designated Marketing Employee…………………………………........70
5. Administrator’s Value of Hiring a Dedicated Marketing Employee…………………...70
6. Administrators that Have or Would Consider Employing Outside Marketing
Professionals to Develop Strategy……………………………………………………...71
7. Administrators Perceptions that Their Marketing Plan is Effective in Identifying
Their Brand…………………………………………………………………………….71
8. Administrators’ Perceived Attributes for Branding Their School …………………….73
9. Administrators’ Perceptions of Their Knowledge of the School’s Target Audience….76
10. Administrators’ Perceptions of their School’s Competitive Advantage……………….77
11. Administrators’ Perceptions of the Effective Use of Various Forms of Media in
Branding Their School…………………………………………………………………79
12. Administrators’ Perceptions that Their School’s Marketing Plan has an Effect on
the Growth of Enrollment………………………………………………………….......81
13. Administrators’ Perceptions about the Effects of Television Commercials on
Enrollment……………………………………………………………………………...84
14. Administrators’ Perceptions about the Effects of Radio Commercials on Enrollment.. 85
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15. Administrators’ Perceptions of How Likely Interested Parents Look at the Website… 87
16. Administrators’ Perceptions that The Website influenced enrollment ..……………….87
17. Administrators’ Perceptions That Social Media Effects Enrollment..………………… 89
18. Administrators’ Perceptions That the School’s Marketing Effort Creates a
Relationship with the Interested Parent and Student..………………………………… 90
19. Administrators’ Perceptions that the Open House Influences the Likelihood of
Enrollment…..………………………………………………………………………… 92
20. Administrators’ Perceptions that Word of Mouth Influences a Parent to Enroll Their
Child..…………………………………………………………………………………. 94
21. Attributes Cited by Parents that Influenced Enrollment of Their Child in a Small
Hawaii Independent School..…………………………………………………………. 97
22. The form of Marketing Media that Influenced Enrollment in a Small Independent
School in Hawaii..…………………………………………………………………… 102
FIGURE
Conceptual Framework…………………………………………………………………13
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1
Chapter 1
Introduction
Independent schools have had a historical role in educating students throughout the
world. Economic pressures and school competition, at various times, have threatened the
sustainability of independent schools. This study examines the marketing approaches used by
Hawaii Independent Schools (PK-12) and what the school’s administration and consumers
perceive to be the effectiveness of their marketing techniques and its impact on enrollment.
Hawaii has a thriving and competitive independent school climate, which requires
marketing strategies to attract parents to enroll their children in a particular school. It is a
common practice that independent schools create marketing strategies which they believe will
have an impact on enrollment. The goal of marketing is to address the characteristics of a
product or organization that are desired by a consumer (Drucker, 2014; Kotler, 2009). In the
case of an independent school, the use of specific marketing strategies is intended to create brand
recognition and instill confidence that the attributes of an organization create an action (Ajzen &
Fishbein, 1977). Therefore, independent schools create marketing strategies which they believe
will influence the attitude of a stakeholder and create value which will result in enrollment
increases in their school.
The goal of this study was to produce qualitative data that examines and identifies
marketing messages and media, which effectively influence enrollment growth of independent
schools in Hawaii. A survey designed to identify the perceived effectiveness of specific
marketing and branding efforts was distributed to all executive, administrative leaders in the 92
Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS). Semi-structured interviews were conducted
with administrators from eleven small HAIS schools to enhance and add depth to the survey
2
data. In addition to the administrator’s interview, one newly enrolled student’s parent from each
of the participating schools took part in a one-on-one interview. The participating schools
selected a parent to take part in the interview. The selection of small independent schools is
based on the market pressures they face distinguishing their school from other schools of similar
size and tuition in Hawaii. Small schools of fewer than 300 students account for 81% of
independent schools in Hawaii statewide. Hawaii is a unique market as evidenced by data
provided by the National Association of Independent schools which reported in 2012 that 62% of
schools on the mainland United States have a student population over 300 students (Demirbag,
2014). Small schools are often the most vulnerable to fluctuations in enrollment and finances
(Demirbag, 2014; Lawrence, Bingler, Diamond, Hill, Hoffman, Howley, & Washor, 2002).
Therefore, the incorporation of effective marketing techniques in small Hawaii independent
schools is critical to enhancing enrollment and ultimately increasing the chance for economic
sustainability.
This study looks at three areas of marketing that influence enrollment in Hawaii
independent schools. The first area is the marketing message and media, administrators perceive
to be effective, followed by the influence of specific techniques parents identify which influences
enrollment, and finally, the action taken by the parent regarding enrollment. The first area
studied is the marketing message and media administrators at independent schools in Hawaii
perceive to be the most impactful in connection to increasing enrollment. The internal perception
by administrators of the success of specific marketing techniques influences their message and
enrollment strategies. Marketing budgets and enrollment strategies are often set on perception,
rather than data (Oplatka, 2007).

3
The second area this study focuses on is the attitudes of prospective parents of enrolling
students and the marketing techniques they say influence their decision to either enroll their child
or select another option. This information was obtained from the data each school collects in
their admissions packet, which commonly asks, "How did you hear about us?" Specific
enrollment marketing techniques which are commonly cited by parents such as, word of mouth,
social media, print advertisement, radio and television advertisements, open house events, and
school tours, are being examined through the lens of Fishbein's Multi-Attribute Model (1977)
concerning active influence on a parent's decision to enroll their child in school (Symmonds,
2010). The knowledge function of Fishbein’s theory suggests that a consumer’s attitude helps to
inform their decisions or actions. Marketing research is designed to identify consumer’s attitudes
and what communication avenues and messages may influence their perception (Drucker, 2014;
Kotler, 2009).
The third area of focus is based on the action taken by the enrolling student’s parents.
The success of a marketing strategy requires an action by a consumer (Drucker, 2014; Kotler,
2009). The determination of attitude in relation to intentions and behaviors will influence the
perception of effective marketing techniques (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1977). Therefore, the use of
specific marketing messages and media can be identified as having some relationship to creating
the action of enrollment of a student and how strong the parents weigh the value of the school for
their child. The goal of a school marketing strategy is to increase consumer awareness resulting
in enrollment. The marketing plan aims to emphasize the attributes a school offers with a clearly
defined mission and the parents place value in the school's offerings enough to enroll their child
based on their attitude about the school.

4
With declining enrollment trends since 2008 and the increased competition from the
public sector, it is vital for independent schools to demonstrate that they have value in the
marketplace. Attracting attention to a school’s attributes through effective marketing allows
prospective enrollees the opportunity to weigh their options (Symmonds, 2010). Research shows
that enrollment trends depend on the value proposition that stakeholders place in the quality and
the differentiated education independent schools can provide (Daughtrey, Hester, & Weatherill,
2016). Independent schools face the challenge of communicating their value proposition and the
characteristics that distinguish their school from the competition (Pagano, 2009). Value
proposition when choosing an independent school can be defined as the importance some place
on the quality of education in regard to the financial obligation (Pagano, 2009). The task for
small independent schools is to create a message to potential stakeholders that the school’s
attributes create value for their child over other independent, charter, or public educational
institutions. Research consistently shows that the attributes a school offers create appeal for
parents. Parents are looking for personal attention to be given to their child, low student/teacher
ratio, access to faculty, academic reputation, safety, and a nurturing environment (Symmonds,
2010). Since these attributes are cited most often as desirable to prospective parents, it is
essential that independent schools promote the value of their specific brand to the public.
The economic downturn beginning in 2008, as well as a trend in declining enrollment
since the beginning of the 21st Century, has placed pressure on Independent schools (Gilmore &
Rush, 2013). The National Center for Education Statistics reported as of 2015, 10 percent of
students in the United States attend private schools. As stated previously, parents often value the
small class sizes, personal attention, and perceived academic quality when selecting an
independent school over a public institution (Symmonds, 2010). Even with the perceived values
5
held by parents of school-age children concerning independent schools, it is anticipated that
private schools will see a drop to 9% of the total school market share by 2021 (Kena, Musu-
Gillette, Robinson, Wang, Rathbun, Zhang, & Velez, 2015). Small schools are the most
vulnerable regarding enrollment recovery due to limited marketing budgets and often smaller
cash reserves (Cheney, 2010).
While there have been other times in history where independent schools in the United
States have faced economic pressures, the recession starting in 2008 produced a trend where
school choice moved away from private education. Due to economic pressures and a greater
selection of school options, small independent schools are more likely to experience challenges
with their financial health and maintaining enrollment objectives (Daughtrey, Hester, &
Weatherill, 2016). Furthermore, independent schools that did not fare well after the economic
downturn in 2008 and experienced a trend where stakeholders viewed tuition costs to be less
affordable, found that the attributes of charter schools and home-schools provided better options
for their children (Buddin, 2012). As the economy rebounded, the research suggested that
independent schools serve consumers who perceive that the value and the quality of the
education outweigh tuition costs. Independent schools rely on creating a brand that is worth the
money a parent spends when they enroll their child (Gow, 2010).
Private schools date back to the beginning of colonization in the United States. During
the colonial times, schools for children and universities were not public schools, but were
privately governed institutions (Kennedy, 2016). Independent Schools are often referred to as
private schools, because they are run separately from the public-school system. The National
Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) was formed in 1962 and is the largest membership
organization of non-public schools in the United States. There are currently 1672 NAIS affiliated
6
schools with 730,425 enrolled students (NAIS, 2016). These numbers do not include private
schools with an exclusive affiliation with a religious organization or no relationship to the NAIS
membership group.
Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS) is a local chapter of the NAIS, and
the affiliated academic institutions were selected for participation in this study due to their
predominance in the Hawaii market. According to the National Association of Independent
Schools, 20.4 percent of school-age students attend private school in Hawaii (NAIS, 2014).
Forty-one percent of kindergarten to 12th-grade students in Honolulu, Hawaii attend an
independent school (Demirbag, 2014). HAIS is a membership organization which represents 92
private schools in Hawaii and 36,977 students in PK-12 grades (HAIS, 2015). The Western
Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) is the accrediting body for independent schools in
the western region of the United States, including Hawaii. All WASC regionally accredited
independent schools are members of the HAIS. Regional accreditation ensures that independent
schools meet operational criteria, including a marketing and admissions policy following
accepted good practices of WASC (Bennett, 2004). There are only a few independent schools in
Hawaii that are not affiliated with the HAIS. This study focuses on Hawaii independent schools
with regional accreditation.
Setting
In comparison to other regions in the United States, Honolulu, Hawaii has a relatively
diverse population and selection of independent schools. The variation in the size of schools,
academic pedagogy, religious affiliation, and cultural influences, allows for a study that creates a
representative sample in a competitive marketplace. While Honolulu has a range of independent
school offerings, the market has been dominated by large schools with national reputations.
7
Large schools are defined as over 300 enrolled students for this study. According to the HAIS
Enrollment report (2015), Punahou, a K-12 independent school has 3,762 students; Kamehameha
K-12 has 3,192 students, I’olani K-12 has 1,890 students, Mid-Pacific Institute K-12 has 1,553
students, and Maryknoll K-12 has 1,362 students. The larger Oahu schools have a 37 percent
market share of independent schools in Hawaii (Demirbag, 2014). The larger schools in
Honolulu have a profound impact on school choice for prospective students. The reputation of
the larger schools and limited enrollment opportunities makes it a necessity for smaller schools
to create their own distinct identity by marketing their unique attributes to prospective students
and their parents. The market pressures have made it difficult for small schools to maintain or
grow enrollment.
Due to pressures caused by the 2008 downturn in the economy and the growth of tuition-
free public charter schools, Hawaii independent schools produced distinct brands and created
value to remain competitive. Hawaii schools experienced a decrease in enrollment by 8% from
2007 to 2013. That trend changed in 2014/15 when Hawaii independent schools saw an overall
increase of 5% (Demirbag, 2014). The increase was the first in enrollment in seven years. These
statistics are based on an overall increase of HAIS schools but do not detail the distribution of
enrollment gains. It can be speculated that the increase was due to an improving economy, but
the overall gains still represent a 3% net loss of enrollment when compared to pre-2007
enrollments. According to the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools Enrollment Report in
2014/15, forty-two Oahu schools reported enrollment remaining the same or saw a slight
increase, while 33 schools saw a decrease in students. The most substantial increase in
enrollment occurred in the Honolulu district with a 0.7% increase. This district represents the
largest population of independent school students in Oahu with 20,288 students. It also
8
represents the island’s more competitive market with 39 of the 75 independent schools located in
this district.
As stated previously, the largest private school institutions in the state operate in the
Honolulu district. The location is significant because, despite twenty-two schools in the
Honolulu district having 300 or fewer students, the larger schools have dominated the
marketplace due to academic and social reputation, alumni legacy, and endowment. Neighbor
island schools saw an increase of 2.8% in enrollment in 2014/15. All outer islands reported gains
in enrollment in 2014/15, where there was an increase of 13.2 % in Molokai. 7.8% in Kauai,
2.7% in Hawaii, and 1.8% in Maui. Thirty-seven out of forty-three independent schools on the
outer islands have 300 or fewer students enrolled (Hawaii Association of Independent Schools,
2016).
This study is important because it presents research and analysis of the perceived
effectiveness of the marketing message and media employed by schools in Hawaii. Qualitative
data was collected and can inform school leaders on how to proceed when planning a marketing
strategy with the desired outcome resulting in increased enrollment and brand awareness. With
economic and competitive pressures placed on independent schools, in particular, small schools
in Hawaii, the findings inform school administrators how to establish a strategy to impact the
sustainability and possible growth of their school in the marketplace. The study focuses on a
variety of independent schools in Hawaii and surveys administrators and parents as to what they
perceive to be the impact on enrollment when using specific marketing tools to create a
consumer action. Relevant literature in Relationship Marketing (RM), Transactional Marketing
(TM), specific marketing techniques, consumer attitudes, and enrollment trends are the focus of
the study to determine what techniques are perceived by school administrators to have the most
9
significant impact on enrollment. A survey was conducted to determine the administrator’s
perception and actual effectiveness of the marketing techniques used by the schools about brand
awareness, enrollment, and retention. Schools selected to participate in the survey were asked if
they collect parents’ responses about what marketing techniques were the most effective in
attracting them to apply to the school (Hobsons, 2015). Since this is a common question on
independent school applications, admission directors could provide this data.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to explore the perceived effectiveness of using specific
marketing and branding strategies to increase retention and enrollment of students in independent
schools in Honolulu, Hawaii. The research was conducted by gathering qualitative data on
specific marketing messages and media used by Hawaii independent schools through a survey
disseminated to school administrators using the HAIS Head of Schools distribution list. The
study focuses on a variety of independent schools in Hawaii and surveys administrators and
parents as to what they perceive to be the impact on enrollment when using specific marketing
tools to create a consumer action. A survey designed from relevant literature in Relationship
Marketing (RM), Transactional Marketing (TM), specific marketing techniques, consumer
attitudes, and enrollment trends was conducted to determine the administrator’s perception and
actual effectiveness of the marketing techniques used by the schools concerning brand
awareness, enrollment, and retention.
Semi-structured interviews with twelve administrators and twelve parents from small
Hawaii independent schools, were performed to add depth to the survey and discussion of the
perceived effectiveness of the marketing message and media which they employ. The schools in
this study report if they have developed a marketing plan highlighting their unique brand and the
10
apparent effectiveness measured regarding enrollment. While it may seem obvious that
developing a marketing strategy would result in determining a school's specific brand and should
result in increased enrollment, this study aimed to give precise data and analysis of the methods
used and the observed results of specific marketing techniques. It may not be a given that schools
have a well-informed marketing strategy or have developed a recognizable brand.
The Hawaii Association of Independent School members that took part in this study were
asked to provide information on how and why they implemented their specific marketing
techniques. They also were asked to identify the demographic profile of their customer base and
how they reach their potential stakeholders. It is essential to identify how the schools gather
information and generate leads. In a previous study published in 2010 by the research group
Symmonds and Associates, twenty thousand independent school parents were asked about which
marketing techniques expanded their knowledge about the value of their school. In that study,
parents cited campus tours, website, print materials, open house, and personal contact, as the
most effective marketing techniques (Symmonds, 2010).
Through a marketing strategy schools create and define their unique value proposition to
potential students (Daughtrey, Hester, & Weatherill, 2016). Independent schools often struggle
with marketing resources and personnel. Small independent schools have struggled to create a
market share (Oplatka, 2007). This study analyzed marketing techniques which may prove to be
useful in creating value for individual schools. The unique offerings of a small independent
school will often go unnoticed unless a marketing strategy is in play and its messaging is tailored
to an identified audience. This research allows educational leaders the chance to see how the
implementation of specific marketing techniques may influence the attitude of potential
stakeholders. Many school staffs hypothesize that when a marketing technique is useful,
11
enrollment of a student will occur. With economic and competitive pressures placed on
independent schools, in particular, small schools in Hawaii, the data informs school
administrators how to establish a strategy to impact the sustainability and possible growth of
their school in the marketplace.
Problem
The problem guiding the study is that many independent schools’ financial revenue
comes from tuition, through developing a marketable brand and a detailed marketing strategy to
increase enrollment. Independent schools on average rely on 75 percent of their revenue coming
from tuition payments (Kena, Musu-Gillette, Robinson, Wang, Rathbun, Zhang, & Velez, 2015).
Assumptions by school administrators as to why parents enroll their children in specific schools
often occurs without marketing data. School staffs are not often equipped with the knowledge of
assessable, quality, marketing techniques when determining enrollment trends.
Often independent schools do not have the means to employ a genuinely clear marketing
strategy without professional help from outside sources, causing them to depend on their current
school staff (Daughtrey, Hester, & Weatherill, 2016; Oplatka & Hemsley-Brown, 2004). Many
small independent schools informally use Relationship Marketing as one of their strategies to
increase stakeholder awareness. The financial aspects of a Relationship Marketing campaign aim
to increase enrollment and retention, which often drives the economic success or failure of
independent schools in competitive marketplaces, such as Honolulu, Hawaii.
Identifying the effectiveness of the marketing message and media to influence consumer
attitudes toward enrollment allows a marketing plan to be constructed addressing the unique
branding of independent schools as they face internal and external economic pressures (Oplakta
& Hemsley-Brown 2004). Much of the research in the marketing of schools has focused on
12
enrollment and retention at the university level. There is a deficiency in research addressing
marketing techniques in independent schools and its relationship to influencing enrollment and
ultimately economic sustainability.
Questions
The research questions are guided through the lens of Fishbein’s Multi-Attribute Theory
(1997).
What marketing message and media, if any, is used in a school’s strategic marketing plan
that can be perceived by administrators and prospective parents as effectively influencing
consumer attitude toward a school’s brand?
What marketing message and media used by Hawaii independent schools are perceived
by the school’s administration to be the most effective for increasing enrollment?
What were the marketing messages and media cited by parents in making their decision
to select an independent school in Hawaii?
Conceptual Framework
The study is guided primarily by the theories of attitude and Fishbein’s Multi-Attribute
Model (1977). These concepts assume that attitudes are influenced by attributes presented in a
manner that creates value for a consumer. Fishbein’s theory suggested that attitude affects
intention and leads to an action or behavior. The strength that the attribute has on an attitude can
be measured by the action it produces. Behaviors may be predicted through the collection of data
on the school administrator’s perceived view of the effectiveness of specific marketing strategies
aimed at creating value for prospective parents of students. Attitudes can be identified and
consumer intentions can be determined, which should result in an action. In the case of parents
considering an independent school, the theory proposes that the parent has an attitude about the
13
school and an effective marketing technique presents the school’s attributes. The attributes create
or reaffirm an attitude which results in an action. Effective marketing filters the information
forming consumer attitude and informs the decision.
Research shows that Relationship Marketing (RM) and Transactional Marketing (TM)
theories influence strategies which influence attitudes and enrollment (Laga & Eggert, 2006;
Moliner, Sánchez, Rodríguez, & Callarisa, 2007). Consumer attitudes are formed by ego, social
acceptance, or reflect values. Through the use of the survey on the perceived effectiveness of
marketing techniques which employ TM or RM and one-to-one interviews, specific marketing
techniques can be determined as to its influence on enrollment. Value is produced by the
marketing technique that best communicates the school’s attributes and the action of enrollment
is the desired outcome (Moliner, Sánchez, Rodríguez, & Callarisa, 2007). Thus, the act of
enrolling a child in a specific school is the dependent variable.
Figure 1: Conceptual Framework (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1977; Mitchell & Olson, 2000).
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Assumptions
In this study, the assumption is that specific marketing techniques are used and that they
have an impact on enrollment. It is assumed that the practical use of marketing will result in the
economic growth of independent schools in Hawaii. A well-developed marketing plan, which
emphasizes the unique attributes of independent school education, may result in a school gaining
students. School administrators were surveyed to determine how many schools have developed a
formal marketing plan. Many schools lack a marketing plan entirely, yet still attract a number of
students. The perceived value of a school, size, or to the historical reputation of a learning
institution may have an influence (Kena, Musu-Gillette, Robinson, Wang, Rathbun, Zhang, &
Velez, 2015). The lack of a targeted marketing plan may cause a weakening of an independent
school's position in a competitive market. Without a process in place to identify the demographic
characteristics and the needs of the stakeholders that the school serves, there is little chance for
economic sustainability. Independent schools, and in particular small schools or those without
historical recognition, must establish their brand and create a niche market for their product.
The second assumption of this study is that small schools in competitive markets must
incorporate a process that establishes a purposeful relationship with the stakeholders to increase
and retain student enrollment. According to Oplakta and Hemsley-Brown (2004), relationship
marketing allows schools to have an identity and establishes a bond between the student and the
school. With a connection established, a student is more than likely going to correlate the
relationship between the satisfaction of their needs and the desire to become or remain enrolled.
Stability in retention numbers and growth of enrollment through a defined plan to create and
15
maintain relationships affords an independent school budget consistency. The ability to forecast
enrollment and retention allows a school to create long and short-term strategic planning.
The third assumption of this study is that small independent schools place the importance
in their unique role in the independent school marketplace and believe that they offer an
experience that larger schools do not have the capability of providing. While educators have
historically questioned the validity or ethical implications associated with marketing schools,
administrators see the need for a plan that accurately portrays the essence of the academic
institution (Falck & Woessmann, 2013; Kerby, 2013). It is important that a study of the specific
marketing techniques schools employ and the perceived impact the strategy have on enrollment
would serve as a guide for those independent schools wishing to persuade parents to enroll their
children.
The fourth assumption is that specific marketing actions taken by a school can affect the
attitude of a potential stakeholder and create an action. The action the school is hoping for would
be the enrollment of the student in the school. Employing Fishbein’s (1977) Multi-Attribute
Theory stakeholders' attitudes about a school or its perceived brand will influence their choice.
The consumer or, in this case, the prospective enrollee's parents, will look at the salient attributes
and evaluate their beliefs about the qualities. They will then appraise the importance of those
attributes and make a decision (Smith, Terry, Manstead, Louis, Kotterman, & Wolfs, 2008). It
would be assumed that a school's marketing effort would address the attributes most desired by
the consumer in an effort create a positive attitude and result in a student's enrollment.
Limitations
The research has been carefully prepared to overcome limitations in the methodology and
scope, although several issues may be unavoidable. The data collected from the independent
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schools purposefully selected to participate in this study are located in a competitive,
geographically isolated environment. In addition to the geographical distance from the mainland
United States, Hawaii is often viewed as unique due to the relatively high percentage of students
attending private school, as opposed to the national average of students attending independent
schools (Kena, Musu-Gillette, Robinson, Wang, Rathbun, Zhang, & Velez, 2015). The results of
this study cannot be generalized or show trends that may be used for similar schools in different
markets. The data may lack a comparison between the practices of independent schools using
specific marketing techniques successfully and ones that are less successful due to the unique
character of Hawaii schools.
As is the case in some marketing research, it is difficult to demonstrate a direct
correlation between the perceived effectiveness of a technique and a change in consumer
attitude. There are often several factors which influence a change in attitude that creates action.
There are several situational factors which influence attitude that may be difficult to demonstrate
in this study. Social factors, such as family ties to a school or pressure created by friends, cannot
be determined by looking only at the perceived effectiveness of marketing techniques. Economic
factors or the perceived value often influences enrollment. It would be difficult to determine if
those factors override the desire to enroll a child in an independent school unless the price point
was one of the school's marketable attributes. There may also be limitations surrounding the
knowledge of school administrators about marketing and they may not have an awareness of
industry theory or application techniques (Oplakta & Hemsley-Brown, 2004).
The Significance of the Study
Independent schools have experienced increased market pressures since the economic
downturn in 2008. Academic leaders are faced with administering schools using business and
17
marketing practices to remain economically viable. Schools need to create a process of
communicating and creating a programmatic uniqueness to remain relevant in the independent
school marketplace. The external perception of the brand that a school develops will have a
direct correlation between economic sustainability and enrollment (Giannakis, Harker, & Baum,
2015; Oplakta, Hemsley-Brown 2004; Willows 2008).
Larger or traditionally prosperous independent schools have the resources to hire
marketing professionals to develop their brand messaging. They may also have a status or market
position where brand messaging is carried forward by historical reputation. Small independent
schools often rely on the willingness of the school leaders to incorporate marketing as a part of
their strategic plan. The problem facing educators is that marketing has not been a focus of study
or widespread professional development relating to education, thus leaving them unprepared to
implement a successful campaign (Oplatka, 2007). An analysis of the types of marketing
techniques independent schools incorporate and the perceived effectiveness in creating a
consumer attitude that prompts enrollment will allow schools to form their marketing strategy.
A changing market requires an analysis of independent schools messaging concerning brand,
demand, program, and value.
Definition of Terms
To better understand the purpose of this study, it is first necessary to identify what
marketing is and how a marketing plan is developed. Marketing is a process of determining what
a consumer wants or needs and the development of a system of communication which results in
how a product or service fulfills a stakeholder’s demand (Perner, 2010). Marketing research and
strategy determines what the desires of the consumers are and what price they are willing to pay
to satisfy their needs. The marketing process develops the concept, value, mode of
18
communication, and the delivery that is anticipated by the consumer. The consumer’s needs
establish the function and offerings of a business or service organization. Understanding the
stakeholder allows an organization to persuade or assure a client, student, or customer that their
product or service satiates the desired outcome (Drucker, 2014, Kotler, 2009).
Marketing involves developing a method of research to determine what goods or services
a particular community desires. The research informs a provider with the demographics and the
potential for a market share of the potential stakeholders. A marketing strategy would determine
who the competitors are and what other brands have already developed (Drucker, 2014, Kotler,
2009). Examining how others perceive the competitor's brand allows for the marketing plan to
address the consumer's preferences and attitudes. In regard to an academic institution, the parent
of a child planning to enroll them in a school may already have a preconceived idea of what they
are looking for in an academic institution. The image they have in their mind has created an
attitude which may or may not be changed. Marketers try to determines if the stakeholder has an
accurate feeling of a school or conceives a strategy to change their attitude toward a more
favorable impression. The marketing plan addresses the attitude of the consumer and ideally
changes the behavior and beliefs so that favorable action occurs (Perner, 2010).
For the specific purposes of this study, the fundamental concepts are defined as such:
Market – is identified as a collection of products, consumers, and geographic locations which can
be identified and analyzed for gathering useful information (Baker, 2007).
Marketing – is a process which identifies a strategy to collect data and implement a plan which
creates an exchange between consumers and producers. This process identifies the value of the
message and the outcome of the transaction (Baker, 2014).

19
Branding - the brand is the message an institution portrays about its value and striking image
through a credible communication (Jones & Bonevac, 2013).
Relationship Marketing – is a theory which holds that developing a strong personal bond
between a product and an institution will create loyalty. The bond between the two parties in the
relationship creates value for all parties involved in the transaction (Peck, Christopher. Clark &
Payne, 2013).
Transactional Marketing – is the practice of making a one-time transaction without concern for
long-term or renewable relationship (Oplatka & Hemsley-Brown 2004).
Independent Schools – are schools which are governed and financed through non-government
agencies and are driven by a specific mission
Perceived Value – is a term used by independent schools and other industries which measures
the meaning an individual receives from experience or environment and the cost of the goods or
services (Prebensen, Chen, & Uysal, 2012).
Student Retention – a strategic plan to manage currently enrolled students in a school until
completion of the program (Hoerle, 2016).
Social Media – is a platform for web-based inbound and outbound communication which
encourages real-time interactions (Leonardi, Huysman, & Steinfield, 2013).
Niche Schools – are schools which focus on one particular section of the market that has a high
potential to connect with a unique pedagogy or mission (Fox & Buchanan, 2014).
Elite Schools – are schools which are perceived as historically, geographically, demographically,
and scholastically well-established learning institutions (Gaztambide-Fernández, 2009).
Consumer – is a person who identifies, trusts, and commits to a brand or service (Brodie, Ilic,
Juric, & Hollebeek, 2013).

20
Value Proposition – is an attribute of an independent school created through the services
provided, the mission, or the vision which gives value to a consumer (Major, 2015; Pagano,
2017).
Conclusion
Chapter 1 introduces the topic, purpose, assumptions, research questions, significance,
conceptual framework and consumers involved in this study. Background information is given
about the independent school organizations participating in the study. The rationale that specific
marketing techniques may be linked to an attitude change held by potential enrollees in
independent schools is discussed. Fishbein’s Multi-Attribute Theory (1977) is described as the
lens used to explore the quality of the techniques used by the independent schools with
enrollment being the dependent variable.
Chapter 2 will review the current literature regarding marketing and academic institutions
and the use of the various practices and theories. Chapter 3 will detail the methodology of the
data collection and how the results will be analyzed. Chapter 4 will report the results of the
study. Chapter 5 will explore future study, recommendations and conclusions.

21
Chapter 2
Literature Review
This literature review examines the marketing and branding impact on enrollment in
independent schools in the United States and international schools. The objective is to look at the
current research and apply it to a study on marketing and branding efforts and its perceived effect
on attitude change, with enrollment at independent schools as the outcome. The objective of the
literature review is to identify research to determine the marketing and branding techniques used
by independent schools which have impacted enrollment trends. The problem for many
independent schools and in particular, small schools with less than 300 students, is that they
survive by being economically sustainable through enrollment and retention of current students.
Developing a marketable brand and a detailed marketing plan is essential for sustainability. The
economic goals of a marketing campaign aimed to increase enrollment, is that it often drives the
financial success or failure of independent schools in competitive marketplaces, such as
Honolulu, Hawaii.
The literature review includes studies that examined marketing techniques which use the
internet and specifically social media to increase communication with potential stakeholders.
Research has consistently pointed to enrollment as being a significant factor in the economic
success or failure for small independent schools. A school's reputation or brand creates a niche in
the school market, which appears to drive enrollment. Small schools in competitive markets face
budgetary stress, due to internal and external fiscal pressures. Marketing and branding of
educational institutions have become a major focus in regard to increasing enrollment and telling
the story of a school.

22
Previous research on school marketing and increasing a focused approach to branding are
discussed in the literature review. The review also looks at the specific marketing techniques
schools incorporate in their branding and delivery of curriculum. The fundamental questions that
have been addressed in the literature define the purpose of marketing and the positive and
negative outcome of enrollment and school quality (Giannakis, Harker, & Baum, 2015). There is
currently a lack of research on independent kindergarten to 6th-grade schools in the United States
concerning marketing and its impact on enrollment. Many of the studies have been conducted at
the university level and, while there are similarities, there are also differences. The history of
marketing and the branding of schools will be analyzed to pinpoint trends and acceptance of
those practices in the educational setting. The objective of the literature review is to articulate the
findings in the literature as a basis for this study and for future research.
The literature review looks at research about the different channels used in marketing
models such as Relationship Marketing (RM) and to a lesser extent, Transactional Marketing
(TM). Fishbein’s Multi-Attribute Theory (1977) will be discussed, as it guides this study.
Fishbein’s model demonstrates the influence of marketing techniques on attitude changes. The
review of the research aims to give analyses and synthesizes marketing theory, as well as the
impact a school’s brand has on enrollment and retention efforts. Studies have been conducted
that demonstrate tendencies in the use of social media and text messaging, to increase interaction
with potential students or their families (Major, 2015; Stewart, 2015).
The primary audience for this research is independent schools who are in the process of
creating a branding or marketing plan. Examining the findings may provide independent schools
with trends and practices which will influence enrollment. The literature review provides a
review of some of the marketing research in regard to academic institutions from 2000 to 2017.
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Unique Branding of Independent Schools
According to Baker (2014), marketing is a process by which organizations obtain
information and create a strategy to determine the value of what stakeholders or customers want.
In education, marketing seems to be a concept that while not new, has risen in importance since
the early 1990s. Baker (2014) believed that marketing is an older activity, but has recently been
deemed as valuable. As a business discipline marketing is considered as new and evolving with
the introduction of social media and the expansion of the internet.
Baker (2014) stated that a philosophy for any business must include a concern for
customers’ wants and needs. The goal of marketing would be to build a relationship with the
stakeholders of an organization. The branding of a school would be the image that is produced in
the minds of the consumer about the organization. Read and Bick (2014) argued that educational
marketing is based on organized objectives and involves a plan, a system of analysis, designed
programs, and an exchange of values. Baker (2014) described marketing as an interactive service
which delivers a message to a consumer. The organization determines what the consumer wants
and then puts procedures together to deliver the service to the stakeholder. Understanding the
desires and expectations of the consumer prepares the organization to deliver on a promise of
service. Marketing efforts must then identify the means of delivery of the message, whether it is
through media, technology, or personal contact that they deliver the communication. The
response of the consumer determines the quality of the marketing. An organization must develop
a process and channel for communication, where people contribute and receive messages. The
goal is for consumers to convert the message into an action (Stone & Woodcock, 2014). The
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consumer would place value on the attributes of an organization and select the product or enroll
in the institution (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1977).
Baker’s (2014) recommendation would be to establish a marketing plan that would focus
on people and their wants and needs. In business, as well as other organizations the fundamental
concept is to position the services or goods provided as something unique. In education, schools
position themselves by the market and the delivery of services that they provide. Read and Bick
(2014) suggested that education not be a concrete product that can be tested by the senses, but
rather a feeling of quality and perceived results. The methods and quality of the delivery of the
curriculum, size of the school, the ratio of students to teachers, and athletics, are just a few
characteristics schools portray to position themselves in the market.
A person’s attitude toward an organization or product is the focal point for a marketing
effort. In education, according to Trivitt and Wolf (2011) teachers and customer service quality
is the most excellent marketing tool a school has to attract students. Trivitt and Wolf’s (2011)
study categorized the marketability of a school to prospective parents as being dependent on the
academic reputation, the location, and the price. The positive or negative impression made
through media, word of mouth, or personal visits and the distinct qualities of a school, influences
potential stakeholders. The external perception and the recognized significance of a school often
determine enrollment (Giannakis, Harker, & Baum, 2015).
Baker (2014) also contended that the valuation assigned to the organization is a function
of marketing. The economic value of the organization, such as the tuition, creates perceived
value. The reliability of the message and the benefits a school offers a student increases brand
awareness, motivating the enrollment numbers (Giannakis, Harker, & Baum, 2015). The
marketing of a school, for example, focuses on the parents/students’ needs and ability to pay. If
25
the school has proprietary value and the cost is affordable for the market, then the story of the
institution is told to the specific stakeholders they desire to attract. The consumer, in this case is
the parents of a student, agrees that the benefit of paying for a private education is worth the
price. Baker (2014) would agree that marketing any business is dependent on the value the
consumer places on the product. The theory endorses the idea that people place value on
something that is proprietary and has reproducible methods so that it is ensured to have a sale or
a transaction. In education, this would translate into new enrollments and retention of current
students.
Attributes of a Small School
Incorporating the attributes of a small school allows a prospective parent to weigh the
options and the benefits compared to a larger school. Cain, a researcher from the National
Education Association released their findings after 30 years of research which concluded that,
“small schools are safer, offer better teaching, which resulted in higher academic performance”
(2005, p. 1) The report also found that students from small schools significantly outperformed
counterparts at large schools on standardized achievement tests. The attributes of a small school
appeal to parents who are looking for a school environment which focuses on student
achievement, has smaller class sizes, happy students, personal attention, curriculum adaptability
which meets different learning styles, and an environment where children feel safe (Cain, 2005).
Small schools have proven to connect to students and their families, which allows for a
community environment (Supovitz, & Christman, 2005).
Cain (2005) concluded that small schools recorded increased attendance, high teacher
satisfaction, happier students, improved student-teacher relationships, higher achievement in
college, and provided students with greater leadership opportunities more than larger schools
26
could provide. Smaller schools have proven to embrace innovation, learning can be enhanced,
and students can participate in more activities (Cain, 2005; EF Academy, 2015; Kinnaman, 2007,
Supovitz, & Christman, 2005). Incorporating the attributes of a small school allows prospective
parents to weigh the options and the benefits against a larger school.
Case Studies and Anecdotal Accounts
According to Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown (2004) the school’s management teams
generally take responsibility for marketing a school. They found that administrators saw the need
to promote their schools in competitive markets. While their findings indicated that school
administrators felt that it was imperative to conduct marketing, there was not a consistent
agreement that schools need a coherent marketing plan. The lack of a marketing strategy is in
contrast to Baker’s (2014) contention that marketing needs to have a systematic design to collect
data and report how a plan is designed to answer the stakeholders’ needs. Oplatka and Hemsley-
Brown (2004) argued that schools often do not set up a system to record parent’s desires or
feedback in a manner that lends to comprehensive data analysis. Without systematic research,
Baker (2014) argued that an actual marketing plan fails to be relevant in branding an
organization.
Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown (2004) suggested school administrators often use informal
information gathered through conversation to position their school in the education market.
Therefore, the feedback that principals gathered allowed for unconfirmed information, which led
to an unsystematic approach while comparing themselves with other schools in competitive
markets. Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown’s (2004) study concluded that schools often used
undependable practices of marketing research and division of findings, failing to put together a
coherent and systematized marketing plan.

27
Student Experience Management
The quality of the student experience in the early stages of the admissions and enrollment
process is dependent on the presentation of the school. Read and Bick (2014) argued that the
focus of education marketing is in the relationship that is built between the services a school
offers and the prospective student and their family. Since education is not tangible, the branding
and marketing of a school must focus on proven results. A student will present a specific
demand, and a school must be able to supply the outlet to meet the need. Stakeholders will view
a school by the product (student) that it turns out and the attention that was given to the services
a pupil required. Read and Bick (2014) suggested that schools are known for their social life,
academics, or sports, for example. Marketing to their audience allows a school to ethically
recruit students who will have their demands met and will continue to produce positive feedback
to future prospective students.
The service a school offers is a factor in school choice. Stakeholders will explore the
perceived benefits of a school. Aspects of the institution such as student/teacher ratio, class sizes,
facilities, school environment, quality of the teaching staff, athletics, technology, and
administration, are factors in a student electing to attend a school (Oplakta & Hemsley-Brown
2004; Willows 2008). The quality of the experience a student and their family affects the
admissions process. Willows (2008) suggested that the quality of the communication and
consistency in the brand messaging have a direct influence on the decision to attend and
retention of a student.
Brown and Mazzarol (2009) suggested that there is a lack of research that focuses on
student satisfaction. The assumption in marketing is that, to create a strategy to attract and retain
students, a satisfaction indicator must be established to connect services with consumer approval.
28
In the case of a school, a system needs to be established to determine if satisfaction will create
loyalty. Students who are loyal or profoundly identify with the school will likely stay enrolled
until completion (Brown & Mazzarol, 2009). The student’s level of satisfaction is dependent on
the level of agreement that the brand message or promise has been, or is being, fulfilled
(Giannakis, Harker, & Baum, 2015).
According to Read and Bick (2014) a school’s use of social media, website, and emails,
reflects a school’s brand and attracts students. In addition, word of mouth, both positive and
negative, has a tremendous impact on the perception of a school (Oplatka & Hemsley-Brown
2004). The reputation of a school can be enhanced or damaged by word of mouth, and strategies
to address the occurrence and to control it need to be included in a marketing plan. The perceived
value of a school takes into account the tuition, the socio-economic status of students, and
location when families make their decision to enroll (Oplatka & Hemsley-Brown, 2004;
Willows, 2008). The brand a school establishes has an impact on the student’s experience.
Relationship Marketing in Education
A prominent theory in marketing is called Relationship Marketing (RM). The basic idea
of RM is to establish a sense of familiarity with an organization or product so that stakeholders
or customers establish a relationship. This method of marketing is gaining traction in the
educational institution marketing arena. Despite the vast increase in marketing research that has
been published in the past decade, few contemporary analysts review or synthesize content
within the domain. Peck, Christopher, Clark and Payne’s (2013) research on RM outlined several
methods for increasing brand awareness in all types of organizations. The authors describe a six-
step strategy on how to build successful stakeholder relationships. The first two steps speak
about creating value for the customer and the organization. The next two steps discuss managing
29
the relationship with the stakeholder and networking. The final steps are aimed at enabling
relationships to be maintained and to grow through strategic planning and integrating quality
services. The authors of this study are highly respected in the field of marketing and show
valuable data that help nonprofits as well as commercial industry. Their work outlined the four
Ps of marketing, that is: Product, Price, Promotion, and Place. Applying their methods to
educational institutions may give a better understanding of the market and the methods of
communication needed to convey a school's message.
Relationship Marketing Theory (RM) holds that every marketing encounter involves
communication that creates a relationship between the stakeholder and organization (Baker,
2014). RM has been tested and reaches a higher level of scrutiny as opposed to an informal
unsystematic approach used by many educational institutions (Oplakta & Hemsley-Brown 2004;
Willows, 2008). Schools have typically used anecdotal information to guide their marketing
strategy. RM is widely held as the predominant theory that guides small organizations when
developing marketing plans. RM grew from the Social Exchange Theory (SET) which according
to Baker (2014) is applied when a stakeholder places a value on a new behavior based on their
interactions and needs.
The Social Exchange Theory holds that the benefits of a behavior outweigh the costs.
Applying SET to an enrollment opportunity at a school would be dependent on the relationship
established with the potential student or family. SET established that a prospective stakeholder
would value the cost, the product, the location, the potential for advancement, and the
recognition a student receives from enrollment at a particular school, which would outweigh the
benefits of attending another competing school. The correspondence of value and the processes
30
that influence it, weigh heavily on the progression of enrollment. A potential stakeholder will
assess the value of a particular offering and determine if it will create a behavior change.
The exchange of money and enrollment at a school would imply a behavior modification.
SET suggested that reciprocity occurs when there is mutual acceptance (Pervan & Johnson,
2002). In the case of a school, the social and educational services are offered, and the student
accepts what is being tendered by the academic institution. Relationship marketing research
suggests that connections are maintained as long as the values are advantageous to the
participants in the exchange. Trust, commitment, and time are essential elements in RM and are
essential to continuing the exchange process (Pervan & Johnson, 2002).
The theory of relationship marketing refers to a business strategy to make stakeholders
aware of the services an organization provides and gives them the feeling that there is one secure
choice. The established relationship encourages future growth for both parties. The relational
aspect of this type of marketing establishes a theory that familiarity produces the desired
outcome. When this is applied with an educational institution, the desired outcome is higher
enrollment and increased retention of current students.
There has been an increase in the number of studies on marketing and branding since the
1990s about how they impact enrollment. Powell and Rey (2015) questioned the “marketing
practices such as research, appropriate targeting, and segmentation should be integrated for
greater understanding of current and prospective students, and how lifelong relationships with
these segments can be established and nurtured” (p. 10). The authors also concluded that
developing a personal relationship with the students would enhance their academic experience
and retention rates. Serving the students’ needs can be better accomplished if the academic
31
institution knows what challenges students face. Through marketing, the college can address
those needs and build lasting relations which should enhance admissions and retention.
Marketing and branding are means to identify student needs and answer the question of
how the message of a school creates a reaction from the stakeholders. Vander Schee (2010)
contended that students and parents expect the promotional materials about a school to reflect the
true nature of the institution. There is a perception that a college education will be individualized
and each student will obtain their own experience at the school that they select. Vander Schee
(2010) suggested that college admission departments often employ relationship marketing (RM)
as their admissions overarching strategy. The RM model instructs admissions counselors on the
benefits of using personal communication and frequent interactions with potential students
during and after enrollment.
Relationship marketing has been used in sales of products and organizations for years.
Powell and Rey (2015) explored the effects on student recruitment when employing relationship
marketing in minority-serving institutions (MSIs) in the United States, such as Historically Black
Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The authors contended that HBCUs had employed a
personal and nurturing approach to attracting and retaining students for years, but still face
declining enrollment and retention. Their study looked at marketing efforts and asked if the
endeavors reflected the changing profile of non-traditional students who attend HBCUs. The
ability to establish a student experience management program allows schools to study the market
and create a response to desired outcomes.
Powell and Rey (2015) questioned “marketing practices such as research, appropriate
targeting, and segmentation and whether they should be integrated for greater understanding of
current and prospective students and how lifelong relationships with these segments can be
32
established and nurtured” (p. 10). The researchers also concluded that developing a personal
relationship with the student would enhance the academic experience and retention of students. It
can be concluded that serving the students’ needs can be better accomplished if the college
leadership knows what challenges are encountered by students. Through RM the college faculty
and staff can address those needs and build lasting relations, which should enhance admissions
and retention. The literature supports the theory that RM develops a level of trust and a desire for
a long-term commitment from the organization and the stakeholders. In turn, stakeholders return
their loyalty and increase word of mouth about their satisfaction. The question that needs to be
answered is if the RM theory will apply to lower school’s enrollment strategies.
The RM model allows small colleges to compete against larger universities, because the
theory holds that students want a personal relationship when selecting a college. Vander Schee’s
(2010) study puts forward the idea that the RM approach increases the creation of student value
and that the college should match the perceived needs of its students. RM is intended to be
carried out for the years the student is at the college. The process is ongoing over the lifetime of
the relationship and is aimed at retaining the student. Vander Schee (2010) studied the RM
model implementation at two small colleges and saw an increase in admissions and retention.
The study also demonstrated improvement in admission counselors’ job satisfaction when
developing and continuing a relationship with the students.
After reviewing the literature presented here, there appears to be a gap in research
that revolves around the relationship marketing model regarding independent K-12 schools.
Vander Schee (2010) described some of the basic practices of RM in colleges only. The goal
of RM is to get feedback from the consumers through surveys as a way to create databases
and improve services. The data can be used to test market pressures to determine appropriate
33
responses and create better practices. Building the relationship also establishes active profiles
for social media. A system can be put in place to listen to and monitor satisfaction and the
desires of the stakeholders. The literature seems to support the theory at the university level
that RM generates live or warm leads for future students. Leads are often generated by
current students who have an emotional attachment to and relationships within the school.
The application of the RM model is tested further in this research involving the
application of marketing techniques in independent K-12 schools in Hawaii. The research aims
to examine what the effects of establishing a high touch relationship with students and parents
have on the satisfaction rate of these stakeholders concerning new applications and re-
enrollment. RM aims to provide an environment where a school establishes an atmosphere of
caring and trust. If the school leaders value the stakeholder’s attitude toward their brand, will this
translate into higher enrollment and retention? The literature is consistent that RM has an impact
on admissions and retention at the university and college level, now the question that needs to be
answered is, is RM being used in independent K-12 schools and what is the perceived
effectiveness of this technique?
Admissions and Enrollment Strategies
Cheney (2010) argued that the school’s brand is developed by how people relate to and
remember the mission and core values. A memorable experience can be accomplished when an
admission and enrollment strategy is developed that communicates through personal, digital, or
print means, an expression of the school's identity. The positive experience a prospective student
and their family receives will attract and retain stakeholders. Gow (2010) contended that
independent schools have a reputation for academic and supportive experiences, but also conjure
up images of elitism and exclusivity. Cheney (2010) suggested that a school’s brand needs to be
34
an accurate portrayal of how the institution is seen from the outside. The strategy would include
choosing the best resources to communicate the vision and mission of the school.
According to Read and Bick (2014), Relationship Marketing includes creating an external
and internal process before a student and their parents spend time on campus. RM starts with
developing a process to establish the needs of the student. Price, quality of academics, social life,
location, facility, and best means of communication, need to be established to develop a
relationship with the prospective student. Managing the relationship includes knowing what
attracts the student and how the school will deliver on the promise of quality education.
Willows (2008) stated that a school’s strategic plan needs to address word of mouth and
formulate techniques that tell the story of the students, parents, staff, and teachers. The goal of
the plan would be to attract and respond to the needs of prospective students. With the expansion
of social media, word of mouth extends to the written word in texts, tweets, and blogs. A strategy
that includes a vast array of communications and listens to feedback needs to be actively pursued
to enhance the experience. A school’s brand needs to be relevant and accurately portray the
organization’s reality (Oplatka & Hemsley-Brown 2004).
Willows (2008) argued that an enrollment and retention plan looks at the relationship a
student establishes with the school and the comfort or discomfort they feel going through the
process. The collection and analysis of data should allow for an ethical relationship to be
established. Through the relationship between the school and the prospective student, an alliance
is established, and a better fit is created. Baker (2014) described this occurrence as having the
product meet the needs of the demand. Willows (2008) suggested that critics claim that
marketing and branding do not have an impact on the economics of a school; however, numerous
35
studies have shown noticeable progress in admissions, philanthropic donations, teacher
recruitment and retention.
The Secondary School Admissions Test Board (2014) stated that 70 percent of
prospective applicant families attend at least one open house before applying to an independent
school. There are many different strategies that inform the open house concept. Some schools
conduct monthly, quarterly, and yearly open house events (Neiberger, 2010). The open house is
often a significant budget item and requires time, promotion, and the identification of the
potential prospect’s needs (Oplatka, 2007). Depending on the market demands and culture of a
community and school, the most commonly used open houses can take place in the day when
students are present, in the evenings with teachers and administrators, or on weekends for special
events. The goal of the open house is to generate interest for prospective parents and ultimately
result in an application for enrollment. The parent’s objective is to get a feel for campus life,
academics, and the people at the school (Neiberger, 2010; Newberry, 2012).
The objective of the open house is to influence the attitude of a prospective student or
parent. Choosing a school is an emotional, as well as a logical, decision. The open house should
be designed to create a positive image and be informative (Oplatka, 2007). Research conducted
on potential applicant families found that eight out of ten parents found an open house effective
in their decision process and wanted an event to be designed to include the academic program,
student expectations, and the school’s unique culture (SSATB, 2014). Teachers also felt that
open houses were a valuable tool in giving information about their school to prospective
applicants. The creation of an atmosphere that is friendly, inviting, and personal allows for the
prospective stakeholders to acquire an image of a school and determine if it fulfills their needs
(Oplatka 2007; SSATB, 2014).

36
Campus Tours
Campus tours have proven to be a useful marketing tool for promoting personalized
attention and sharing information about the school's environment. Ninety-four percent of parents
took at least one school tour before applying their child to a private school (SSATB, 2014).
According to Newberry (2011), the best method of giving one-to-one attention is the campus
tour. The act of presenting a warm welcome with an admissions representative, current parent, or
a student guide, allows the prospective applicant the chance to view the school in a natural
setting and get a feel for the people.
Seventy-seven percent of the prospective parents of applicants applying to private
schools in the US identified that they were given a tour by a student representative (SSATB,
2014). The goal of the tour is to portray the care a parent expects from private school education
and the attributes the school can share with them to help in the decision process (Newberry,
2011). The most successful tours feature meeting the Head of School, teachers, and critical
school stakeholders. Since sixty-six percent of parents will tour at least three private schools
before making a decision, the presentation needs to create an accurate picture of what the student
experience will be like and match the parent's needs (SSATB, 2014).
Word of Mouth
The goal of a marketing campaign is to get their consumer to sell the organizations
product, because they are satisfied and want to share their pleasure with others. The most
effective marketing technique is word of mouth (Neiberger, 2010; Newberry, 2011).
Stakeholders who are happy will often spread a positive message about an organization or
product and act as an advertisement to attract others. Referrals from current families and alumni
are the most commonly cited source of the first contact on applications for admissions
37
(Newberry, 2011). Parents and students act as representatives of a school and often have a
significant influence on the enrollment process. Schools utilize parents to act as ambassadors and
spread a positive message (Sernovitz, Godin, & Kawasaki, 2006).
Word of Mouth marketing for a school is the act of sharing a current student's
experiences with other potential enrollees. Stakeholders are attracted to an organization that
shares their values and beliefs about academic performance (Neiberger, 2010; Newberry, 2011).
They trust others who share their values and have similar expectations (Sernovitz, Godin, &
Kawasaki, 2006). Actual academic performance of a school has proven to be secondary to the
positive impressions of the school’s reputation from a someone's peer group (Jessen &
DiMartino, 2016). Communities form around a brand or identify with a logo, symbol, or social
group. These brand communities have a powerful influence on word of mouth. People identify
with a school brand and share their impressions with others. The desire to belong to the
community often becomes stronger than the actual academic data during the decision-making
process (Beal & Beal, 2016). Both the physical location and the perceived status of a school
influences interpersonal communication and influences enrollment (Oplatka, 2007).
Retention Strategies
Relationship Marketing encourages the establishment of a personal association between
the student and the faculty and staff (Powell & Rey, 2015). The use of RM as a strategic plan for
retention has established that schools retain students, increase enrollment, and create donor
connections in higher education (Oplatka & Hemsley-Brown 2004; Powell & Rey, 2015).
According to Fontaine (2014), a study of students in Punjab revealed that when educators treat
students with kindness and empathy, students identified with the school and tended to stay loyal.
The study discovered that retention increased when there was a responsive system in place for
38
administrators and teachers with their students. With this approach, educators can determine how
best to respond to the needs of the students. The relationship between a school brand and its
student creates a definite economic impact. Student retention caused by the identification of a
brand creates a competitive advantage for a school (Bowden, 2011).
Transactional Marketing in Education
Well established independent schools with historically strong brand recognition have
often looked at marketing as an afterthought, instead of an important section of their master plan
(Oplatka & Hemsley-Brown, 2004). The most common method used in the past, by historically
economically stable schools, has been the Transactional Marketing Theory (TM). With TM the
goal is to sell a product and increase numbers. The theory does not focus on retention or repeat
business. The assumption is that if a school has a strong following and has a high demand for
admissions, there is little effort made to recruit. A prospective student knows the brand and
desires to attend. Once the student is enrolled, retention is up to the student. Schools with
waitlists know that there is another student available to replace the current attendee. The goal of
the transaction is to sell the service or product as if new each time. According to Peck,
Christopher, Clark, and Payne (2013) this method has been considered to be a traditional
marketing strategy. It requires the organization to fulfill a need, but is not concerned with the
relationship that exists with the customer.
In education, this approach has been used by schools that were not concerned about
massive market pressures. An example would be a well-established school that runs at capacity
each year. The stakeholders need to be aware of what is offered, but the school is not that
concerned with altering the program to fit a need. A top independent school with a waitlist may
not see the need to market to or accept students with learning differences or financial need,
39
because they a can fill spots with traditional, full tuition paying students. The transaction only
has to occur once. If the student is accepted into kindergarten in an established K-12 school,
unless there are problems, they may not have to ever go through the application process again.
The TM model is what these types of schools may employ, because the demand is higher than
the available seats in a class.
According to Palmer, Lindgreen, and Vanhamme (2005), TM is considered traditional
mass marketing and is seen in developed markets. In the school setting, a transactional exchange
would occur when an institution has established their market share, and there is minimal
fluctuation in the ratio of applications to acceptance rate. The TM approach would remain in
effect while there is little change in the competitive environment. Palmer, Lindgreen, and
Vanhamme (2005) suggested that schools would maintain a seller-buyer mentality while their
market share is considered dense. In this setting, the brand would have to sustain interest without
changing marketing strategies.
Admissions and Enrollment Strategies
Schools employing TM are often associated with being “elite” and tend to have the
external perception of accepting only top students (Cook & Frank, 1993; Drew, 2013). A school
that operates knowing that application for acceptance is based on reputation tends to produce
promotional material that perpetuates their elite status. Cook and Frank (1993) argued that top
candidates like to associate with other top students. An admissions policy which allows only
high-ranking students creates a competitive imbalance for schools deemed to be non-elite.
Established elite institutions often will not look at other schools as competition, but instead, as
being in a second tier. Schools with a transactional mentality maintain admissions policies based
on space availability and only accept accomplished applicants. The transaction of admissions at
40
the elite schools takes place in the student’s first year. While the student is responsible for tuition
annually, retention from the school's perspective would be secondary, as there will often be a
new applicant on the waitlist to fill an open spot. In this case, the customer will come to the
organization with little prompting other than the schools continued promotion of their superior
status (Drew, 2013).
Ethical Marketing
Gow (2010) suggested that the marketing of schools is based on the stakeholder's
subjective view of what is right. Oplatka (2007) found that school administrators, as well as
teachers, had doubts that marketing and education are compatible. The lack of compatibility is in
contrast to their feeling that marketing and branding were necessary, as long as the truth was
presented and the market did not alter the curriculum. Oplatka (2007) found that educators were
not clear if marketing portrayed the moral characteristics of schools. Educators believed that
schools needed to be engaged in some form of marketing to be competitive, as long as their lead
school administrator controlled the message. The question that appeared most often in Oplatka’s
(2007) study came from educators who questioned the validity of what was marketed and what
takes place in the school. Educators often questioned if marketing efforts presented an accurate
impression of the school.
According to Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown (2004), a school creates a strong case for their
brand during times of adversity. When an institution is threatened, either internally or externally,
a school that is committed to its brand will be mission-driven and true to its foundation.
Educators become aware when standards are compromised and will step in to make sure the
mission of the school is not lost to market demands. Educators control the message and do not
give into pressure.

41
Gow (2010) contended that educators are fearful that marketing can cheapen education
and take the focus away from the mission. Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown (2004) found that
educators question the ethical standards of marketing and demand safeguards against schools
being untruthful in their presentation of themselves and competing schools. The researchers pose
several questions about the degree of criticism one school can portray about another while
marketing themselves. Educators look internally, according to Brown and Mazzarol (2009), for a
clear brand position in the market, the institution's strengths and competitive advantages, and
distinct objectives that satisfy an observed demand.
Oplatka (2007) suggested that school principals need to uphold moral and ethical values.
There is fear that the market will dictate the future of a school and adjustments will be made to
pander to particular audiences. Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown (2004) found that educators in
England were concerned that schools would target particular markets. Gidney and Gidney (2008)
proposed that historically, schools engaged in sexist advertisements to attract a female audience
while ignoring gender bias in schools. Educators fear that marketing would alter the mission to
attract or discourage particular gender, ethnic, or special needs students, to increase school
revenues.
Acceptance of Marketing in Education
Marketing and branding of schools have received some resistance from educators at all
levels according to Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown (2004). Educational institutions do not always
view stakeholders as customers (Natale and Doran, 2012). Neiberger (2011) suggested that
marketing education to recruit students cannot be treated as if the school was conducting a
business venture. The researchers highlight the ethical dilemma that is associated with looking at
students as a means of revenue. In higher education, they point to the economic impact students
42
feel and their desire to get a degree without the goal of getting an education. Natale and Doran
(2012) contended that the pressures of budget cuts and a decline in enrollment forced colleges to
market to under-qualified students to attract enrollment. The position they take in their study is
that the students are not always qualified to attend higher education, but are granted admission
because the schools are catering to market pressures.
The idea that students become a commodity, as Natale and Doran (2012) contend, is not
new or confined to universities. Kerby (2013) concurred that educators have traditionally viewed
marketing as an attempt to lower standards to attract students to popular forms of study that may
not have deep academic roots. Natale and Doran (2012) pointed to the percentage of students
graduating with business degrees and tailored academic studies, instead of from traditional
liberal arts programs. The authors argue that by creating market demand majors, schools do not
provide students with higher level thinking skills. The contention is that not only do students
receive an inferior education, but teachers are also left unfulfilled. Their research focuses on the
benefits that universities receive from an economic standpoint, but do not acknowledge the
adverse effects on academics. Future research needs to be conducted to see if the same feelings
exist in K-6 schools. With trends in independent schools moving to 21st Century Learning, will
educators see this as a byproduct of marketing or will they see it as a tool to better educate their
students?
Kerby (2013) suggested that an educator often has an unfavorable view of the marketing
of an educational institution. In his study on St. Joseph’s Nudgee College, Kerby discussed the
impact marketing had on educators at the boys’ boarding school, founded in 1897. The concern
facing the school was to maintain or see growth in their market share in the education
community. Their research explored the contrary responses educators have toward adopting or
43
selling education as a consumer product. Educators raised concerns about changing the culture of
a school to meet market demands. The study was conducted using a qualitative narrative
approach. The research was done by interviewing and collecting narratives which gave
information about the emotional impact of marketing the school, on teachers and administrators
at the St. Joseph’s Nudgee College. The resistance of educators to change curriculum or to alter
the focus of the school mission to meet changing demographics caused school admissions and
marketing directors to have philosophical differences with teachers. Marketing tactics prompted
an internal and external question to find common ground in doing what is best for students, while
still providing a service that is attractive.
There is a belief that marketing education as a product cheapens the institution. Natale
and Doran (2012) believed that higher education had reduced the individual accountability of
receiving an education and now focuses on the needs of society. If it is true that the effects of
marketing have decreased the quality of education at the university level, what would be the
impact or the ripple down effect on lower school education? Their study questions the marketing
of universities as a place for job preparation, instead of academic achievement. If this is true, will
market pressures change the focus of lower schools to job-related skills? The question would
need to be raised to K-6 teachers if they see a change in the academic focus as schools begin to
develop programs to address market requirements. While the two previously mentioned studies
examined universities and boarding schools, there appears to be a shortage of studies done in the
lower grades on teachers’ perceptions about being a part of the marketing process.
Deceptive Marketing
Natale and Doran (2012) also pointed to the promotion of for-profit universities and
charter schools as an example of how marketing lessens the reputation of an educational

44
institution. Deming, Goldin, and Katz (2013) suggested that the rise of for-profit universities in
the United States backs up the theory that marketing does have a negative impact on the quality
of education. Their study details the marketing effort of the universities to tailor their programs
to match consumer needs. The schools use a franchise type process of duplicating the curriculum
and available times that courses are offered. For-profit universities often compete with
community colleges for similar students. These schools market to non-traditional students who
may not qualify for a state or private university. The marketing strategy targets female and
minority applicants. The authors point out that there is an emphasis on programs in healthcare
and technology coinciding with an expanding job market. The programs are often brief and
tailored to the student's needs. The schools use federal financial assistance as a promotional tool
to attract students. Research has found that some of the tactics used by the school while
recruiting students encourage fraudulent behavior (Deming, Goldin, & Katz, 2013). The intense
focus on financial assistance overlooks the fact that the courses often are more expensive than
community colleges and the graduation rates are often lower.
While for-profit schools have not become the norm with K-6 schools, preschools are
often part of a more extensive business or franchise model. There are also charter and public
schools that have contracted with for-profit educational management companies. It will require
further research to see if the impact of these types of schools has affected the marketing of
traditional lower schools. Deming, Goldin, and Katz (2013) suggested that the harmful effects of
for-profit education could play a role in cheapening the academic outcomes for students. Would
the perceived value of the education decrease if the school focused on the profits rather than
education?
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Marketing Indicating a Lack of Prestige
Falck and Woessmann (2013) disagreed that there is an educational quality cost to
marketing. They explored how using entrepreneurial methods affect Catholic private schools.
The use of traditional business methods and marketing techniques affect a school’s strategic
plan. Schools which stress business management techniques, rather than traditional student
recruitment methods, have shown that competition to recruit students has increased. The side
effect of this entrepreneurial focus on schools has been an increased awareness by students of
business practices and increased their desire to pursue careers in management. The researchers
conducted a cross-sectional study and found similar results in all locations. The authors
concluded that private school competition and the awareness of school differences increases
cognitive awareness of the school’s intended brand by their stakeholders (Falck & Woessmann,
2013). While this study does not address direct marketing, it does stress the importance of the
differences a school’s environment has on enrollment choice.
School choice has created unique marketing and branding efforts to attract students.
Lubienski’s (2006) article discussed how competition between schools to attract students in the
private and the public sector had shifted from marketing to stakeholders in failing markets, to an
approach that aggressively targeted students who came from other high achieving schools. The
author suggested that after studying private, public, and charter schools, marketing efforts that
were done to promote diversity and innovations distinguished individual schools. School
administrators seem to understand that providing students with services which meet their needs
increases revenue. Lubienski (2006) contended that there are some who view promoting school
choice as nothing more than a means to equate students to dollars.

46
Marketing of Independent K-6 Schools to Increase Enrollment using Niche Marketing
Niche marketing of schools argues that programmatic choice comes from an attempt to
meet specific market pressures to attract students. Educational reformers had proposed that
promoting the school's strengths and unique academic offerings would attract students from
failing systems. Lubienski (2006) found that reformers were more interested in horizontal moves
of students to specific programs that were still within their districts. The idea was to allow the
market to improve school choice, but not take students from their communities. Lubienski (2006)
suggested that schools had made program changes to attract better students. The competition
became vertical with students moving to the school that best fulfilled their needs. The marketing
of the schools was aimed at getting the best and the brightest instead of attracting students from
failing schools.
Schools which have a niche market have a built-in marketing tool. In Honolulu, Hawaii,
where this research was conducted, there are fifteen faith-based or Catholic schools, a Waldorf
school, seven Montessori schools, a Dewey-based progressive school, four single-sex schools,
and three learning disabilities schools within a ten-mile radius. Each school has a unique brand
and reputation. Schools are competing in the same area to reach out to their niche market. While
Hawaii independent schools compared to their counterparts throughout the United States are
unusual in that there are a high number of independent schools in a relatively small radius, the
diversity of the population requires greater choice. Another question that needs to be answered is
if the market has altered the academic offerings of the K-6 schools to meet the demands for
economic reasons? If this is the case, the question arises, did the changes have an immediate
impact and what is the projection for the future?

47
Davies and Quirke (2005) described the educational market for niche independent
schools in Ontario as competitive. The researchers used qualitative data to look at how schools
have been established that are not deemed elite, historical, or have a religious affiliation. The
authors interviewed school administrators, teachers, and parents of students, and asked what
market value niche schools have in the broader education realm. Davies and Quirke’s (2005)
research pointed out that the strain caused by market pressures may alter the quality of the
education and the mission of a school. The findings in the research establish some cause for
concern. Parent demands for a particular service or imposed performance objectives of the niche
school may constrain innovation and school growth. The weakening of the formal structure of
the school may happen because parent pressure may overwhelm the original mission.
Davies and Quirke (2005) contended that niche schools in their study are independent
and only a few are considered feeders to larger market setting schools. The feeder schools’
mission is to prep students for an experience at the “elite” or historical school. Oahu has four
major K-12 market players, Punahou, Kamehameha. I'olani, and Mid-Pacific. These schools
have no official feeder schools; however, many small K-6 schools in Honolulu have had success
marketing their acceptance rate in the larger schools. The schools do not mirror the four receiver
schools programmatically but advertise that their students are prepared to transition. According
to Davies and Quirke (2005), there are only three feeder schools in Toronto. All other schools
"avoid competition with those schools, conceding to be not in their league. Instead of adopting
tried and true elite practices, they are reducing their class sizes and are developing unique themes
and services" (p. 298). The market that they describe in their study is based on unique offerings.
They contend that the small schools only offer what their stakeholders demand.
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Social Media
McWilliam (2012) suggested building strong brands by using the internet to unlock
communication with stakeholders, which strengthens the argument for organizations to use social
media to promote themselves. The author contends that using the internet for brand promotion is
accomplished when the organization, “customizes messages as it identifies the individual by
name, rewards the individual for his or her continued support and interest, and recognizes the
passage of time and a strengthening of the relationship” (p. 1). These concepts can apply to
schools by forming sites that encourage people with common interests to participate in online
discussions. The research he conducted states that brand recognition is strengthened when groups
are formed that are open to broad appeal. The organizers of the online communities need to focus
on inclusion and codes of behavior. The central concept of this the study is that online
communities can strengthen brand messaging as part of a multifunctional marketing and
communication strategy.
According to McWilliam (2012), the content of the messages on social media, articles on
a website, e-newsletters, case studies, videos and articles on other websites increase the value of
the brand. These platforms would suggest that the social media channels are weakening mass
media marketing, such as television and radio. In the K-6 market, parents rely on messages from
schools to know what to expect in the following days, weeks, months, and years. The researcher
implies that establishing these internet communities creates a relationship with the institution.
McWilliam (2012) appeared to advocate for RM as part of the marketing and social media plan
for schools. The question that arises from his work is, if the internet becomes the primary form
of communication, will the relationship take on an impersonal appearance? The high touch that
49
is associated with RM may need to be adjusted as stakeholders use different channels to
communicate. Laroche, Habibi, and Richard, (2013), used a quantitative approach to explore the
questions associated with the effectiveness of social media and brand messaging. The research
focused on organizations that are both for-profit and nonprofit. Their research targeted social
media providers such as Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace and sent an opinion poll asking each
participant questions related to brands that use their services. They received 441 responses which
they believed to be an adequate sample. The results of the study showed that "social media acts
to provide benefits to its members, to facilitate information sharing and to enhance customers'
bonds to each other, it cements the customers' relationships with the brand, the product, the
company and other customers" (p. 81). This study provides information which can further efforts
for schools to create and maintain brand loyalty and communication with stakeholders. The
limitations of this study may be that it does not account for the dynamic changes that occur in
social media for future brand and marketing benefits.
The methods of communication have changed over the past ten years. Sessa (2014)
produced a quantitative study on strategies used by universities to identify social media use when
attracting students for enrollment. The researcher used a survey of 189 universities in the United
States and Canada. Sessa was a fourth-year doctoral candidate when she conducted her research
on the methods of communication to reach Millennials. She found that 100 percent of
universities in her study used some form of social media to communicate with potential students.
Studies have demonstrated that social media increased from 69 percent to 100 percent of
universities using social media over the course of five years. It was also found that 100 percent
of those who responded to the survey replied that they used Facebook to communicate with
possible candidates (Barnes, 2009; Stewart, 2015). The respondents also cited that Facebook was
50
very useful in reaching potential students with general information. A limitation that was found
in her study was that universities did not often have a designated social media manager. Sessa
(2014) argued that without a social media manager, it was difficult to get robust data.
Laroche, Habibi, and Richard (2013), and Sessa’s (2014) research concentrated on
universities. Both studies demonstrated the need for diversity when using the internet. Websites,
Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, Tumblr, and Instagram, are now used as a
significant form of messaging. Schools have a plethora of new options that allow them to
produce engaging content in a variety of media forms. Can K-6 schools use these outlets to build
their brand by using more channels of communication?
The other question that arises from the literature is if there is still a need for traditional
forms of marketing. In universities, there seems to be a mixed message. Brochures still seem to
be valuable in recruiting students, as there seems to be an emphasis on glossy publications. There
appears to be a need for tangible items to help in the enrollment decision process. Further
research should indicate if there is a need to continue with print media to attract students. With
younger students, parents are likely to be a part of a technology savvy generation. The question
that arises is if there is value in traditional forms of marketing for younger stakeholders.
According to Wilkins (2012) research indicated that paper products create an image for
schools. Marketing materials must demonstrate an image that students and parents find
appealing. The material has to meet the needs of the stakeholder. Wilkins (2012) contended that
visual images at two schools in London reflect the diversity of the population and the educational
opportunities at both schools. The article looked at each school's demonstration of their unique
offerings and culture and contended that visual design has a specific purpose in influencing the
stakeholder’s choice of schools.

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Marketing material needs to be concise and visually appealing to the consumer or
applicant (Habibi, Laroche, & Richard, 2013; Sessa, 2014; Wilkins, 2012). Social media appears
to have an advantage in that messages and branding can be done as market demands change.
Brochures, posters, and video can quickly become outdated. Promotional material needs to
project an image that creates a relationship between the potential stakeholder and the school, and
have an economic impact (Bowden, 2011). In a K-6 school, there will be a turnover of students
as they move on to receiver schools and employees may change from year to year. Wilkins
(2012) suggested that a person may hold onto something that has a powerful visual image that
speaks to a school's brand, while a social media site may not have the repeated message that
leaves a long-term memory.
Future marketing will depend on diversity as the market expands (Habibi, Laroche, &
Richard, 2013; Sessa 2014). Channels such as Buzzfeed and Pinterest create viral images. How
schools use the potential for image-based content will depend on the stakeholder's response when
enrolling their children in specific schools. Successful blog posts that receive the most social
shares also usually have a common characteristic: they pepper in some well-placed pictures to
break content up and emphasize specific points. Another example is infographics, which
combine images with a minimal amount of text to explain a topic and provide statistical
information or data from research studies. It will be essential and useful for schools to have a
tool that they can measure how enrollment is generated in the future (Habibi, Laroche, &
Richard, 2013; Sessa 2014).
Stakeholders have a choice in the type of education they select. Alexa, Alexa, and Stoica,
(2012) explored the use of marketing to attract students to universities in Romania. While this
research does not appear to relate to marketing strategies to increase enrollment in K-6 schools in
52
Hawaii, their research concludes that the internet can radically change the information a school
gives to potential students. The research advocates for openness of information, which allows a
school to satisfy its primary target audience's needs. The potential consumer needs to know what
an institution offers and how it wants to receive the information (Powell & Rey, 2015). There
may be the debate that marketing and branding alter the quality of education, but the reality is
that a school is a business that depends on enrolling students. The means, the channels, and the
message of a school’s marketing strategy need to be studied further and significant data has to be
collected to determine what will attract possible consumers to consider enrollment.
Competition
According to Powell and Rey (2015), schools use supply and demand as a foundation for
addressing their marketing strategies. Schools in competitive markets look to brand themselves
in unique ways, which provides an assurance of quality or distinct offerings to their potential
stakeholders that other schools cannot replicate. Essential marketing objectives are formulated
with a clear awareness of competition in the market (Bowden 2011). Brown and Mazzarol
(2009) argued that competition provides sharp distinctions among schools. A school’s positional
value in the market is dependent on the need that it fulfills. Schools with unique qualities or a
long history often have a brand that is distinctive and attracts a segment of the market. The
external perception of an institution can be altered by other schools in the market (Bowden
2011). The reputation of a school often gives a prospective applicant a feel for what it offers. The
quality of the marketing messages gives a school an advantage over others that rely on reputation
(Wilson & Carlsen, 2016). Schools which have specific offerings are affected by the value
stakeholders place on the benefits opposed to the cost of enrollment (Powell & Rey 2015).
53
Marketing strategies are formulated to address competition and brand awareness. The
marketing materials produced by a school influence choice. Information that is made and given
by a school to a potential applicant should supply complete data to make the decision a more
straightforward process. Often the data provided by schools eliminates particular students
(Lubienski, 2006). Marketing materials display the attributes a school finds to be the most
appealing or valuable to their potential applicants, but often is geared to specific students. The
danger occurs when a marketing strategy leaves out information which could divide the applicant
pool by race or economic class (Wilson & Carlsen, 2016). Marketing aims to distinguish the
favorable characteristics of an organization, without eliminating prospective candidates on any
other basis than the value people place on the specific attributes (Lubienski, 2007).
Conclusion
The literature reviewed demonstrates a need for quantitative and qualitative data that
display the impact of marketing and branding on the economic sustainability of small K-6
schools. Designed methods of gathering data that can be replicated and analyzed using statistical
procedures will be helpful for schools to incorporate when writing a marketing plan. Future
research will also have to address the limits to the qualitative data that have been presented in the
current literature. There is a need for better descriptions of research design and sample size to be
useful to track effective techniques to increase enrollment. While difficult to do, an association
will need to be established to examine how marketing has an impact on enrollment.

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Chapter 3
Methodology
This qualitative study was conducted in two phases. The first phase of the study was
conducted using a survey distributed to 92 administrators from member schools affiliated with
the Hawaii Association of Independent Schools (HAIS). Data was gathered through the survey
given to the administrators about their perceptions of the effective use of their school's marketing
message and media influence toward brand awareness and consumer attitude regarding
enrollment. The second phase of the study included one-to-one-one interviews with an
administrator and separately, a parent from eleven small Hawaii private schools to collect
qualitative data on the perceived effectiveness of marketing and branding message and media
effects on enrollment at independent schools in Honolulu, Hawaii.
A sequential exploratory strategy using both a widely distributed survey and interviews
was employed to gather qualitative data regarding marketing, design, planning, methods,
implementation, and brand awareness. Collecting data from the selected schools’ use of a
marketing plan afforded the opportunity for the researcher to incorporate an analysis of the
techniques used to determine if a change had occurred starting with data before and during the
use of the plan (Box, Jenkins, Reinsel, & Ljung, 2015).
The first phase of the data collection was accomplished using a survey inquiring about
participants’ perceived effectiveness of the marketing techniques used to attract potential
enrollees in Hawaii independent schools. The survey was distributed to school administrators at
the 92 HAIS schools through email. The 92 names and email addresses were made available for
this survey through the administrative office at HAIS. Distributing the survey in this manner
provided an accurate and current email list of participants, the ability to personalize the invitation
55
to contribute to the survey (see Appendix A) and to send reminders as the due date was
approaching. There was a 56 percent completion rate of the survey distributed to the HAIS
administrators (Johnson & Owens, 2003). The surveys provided data that was gathered and
analyzed to deliver full descriptive answers to the research questions (McPeake, Bateson, &
O’Neill, 2014).
The next phase of the research was conducted using a one-on-one interview of eleven
small independent Hawaii school administrators and a parent from each of those schools. The
one-on-one interviews were conducted in two separate sessions at each of the eleven schools.
The interviewer and the administrator conducted one session and the second was conducted with
the interviewer and the parent. Their school personnel identified the parent as having recently
enrolled their child. The schools selected with the assistance of HAIS to take part in the
interviews had some form of a current marketing plan, had three hundred or fewer enrolled
students, and are in the Honolulu area. The eleven schools were afforded the option to remain
anonymous. While the broader survey of all HAIS schools set a base for what was perceived to
be effective marketing techniques that are used in attracting students, the one-on-one interviews
allowed for a more in-depth look at what the eleven similarly positioned school staffs perceived
to be effective marketing concerning enrollment. Conducting interviews in the eleven schools
provided data that describes the perceived correlational link between marketing and enrollment.
The respondents further described and analyzed what, why, and how marketing techniques were
implemented and how the desired results were achieved. The interviews (see Appendix A)
provided rich details and added depth to the data collected in the surveys. Conducting interviews
allowed for similar and contrasting results to be analyzed for the eleven schools.
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The use of an exploratory survey and one-on-one interviews addressed the following
research questions and guided them through the lens of Fishbein’s Multi-Attribute Theory
(1977):
consumer attitude towards a school’s brand?
What marketing message and media used by Hawaii independent schools are perceived by
the school’s administration to be the most effective for increasing enrollment?
Setting
The goal of the survey was to collect data from a wide variety of schools affiliated with
HAIS. The gathering of data that presented common or different usage of marketing techniques,
the perception of brand awareness, and enrollment development, allowed for an establishment of
a baseline that was further addressed in detail within the one-to-one interviews. The interviews
were conducted at eleven small Hawaii Independent Association member, K-6 schools in the
Honolulu District. Due to the nature of the study and the desire to collect sensitive enrollment
data, the names of the schools, administrator, and parent names are not included in the study. The
collaborating institutions provided a private space to conduct the interviews. Informed consent
forms outlined agreements to protect participant identity, and all participants' questions were
addressed. Interview access to participant information and data was maintained on a secure
network and strictly protected. If any participant felt uncomfortable in the one-to-one interview
57
or potential situations that may have arisen in the school, such as confidential personnel or
performance matters, they could have withdrawn from the study.
The sites for the interviews were purposely selected because of their similar student
capacity of 50-300 students. Each school chosen had an established academic and social identity.
While the schools could be competitors in the Honolulu marketplace, there has been a long
history of cooperation between HAIS schools. HAIS schools have historically and uniquely
shared information. While there may be some resistance to sharing sensitive enrollment data,
there is an established ethical relationship and expectation between HAIS administrators of
cooperation. These relationships allowed for the sharing of sensitive data with the researcher.
The schools may also use the data from the study to analyze their programs.
Participants
Surveys were distributed to the lead administrator of the participating 92 HAIS
institutions by email. The survey asked for data regarding the perceived effectiveness of specific
marketing techniques and brand awareness. Perceived effectiveness in this study is defined as
specific marketing messages and media that demonstrate an association between attribute
awareness and enrollment. The survey was not directed at parents of enrolled or prospective
students but inquired about data the school collected to get their consumers’ perspectives. Often
enrollment data will include responses on how a parent heard about the school and what factors
influenced them to enroll their child. This data often guides school administrators in developing
marketing plans based on the parent's attitude toward the school's attributes. The survey was
designed to be anonymous. There is no information anywhere on the survey that individually
identifies the institution or an individual.

58
The one-on-one semi-structured interviews were conducted with a lead administrator or
person knowledgeable about marketing from within the eleven selected schools (See Appendix
B). Each participant was given an involvement letter (See Appendix E) which described the
purpose of the study, confidentiality requirements and expectations of their contribution. As
previously stated, the participating schools’ administrative teams and the researcher already had
a professional relationship through their affiliation with HAIS.
The parents selected by their participating school were in their first year of involvement
with the institution and identified by the school administration. The interviews were conducted at
the location of the participating school in a private setting on campus. The participating schools
submitted the names of the parents who were willing to be interviewed. The criteria for selection
of the parents included their child being an applicant enrolled for the first time, not related to an
employee of the school, and not a member of the board or officer in the Parent/Teacher
Association.
Since the parents were new to the school, they had a fresh perception about the marketing
message and media that informed them about the school’s attributes. Each of the school’s
participants were invited to a meeting where the purpose, the methods of data collection, and the
importance of the study were discussed.
Data and Analysis
A qualitative exploratory strategy was employed to gather and analyze data. The data was
collected, coded, and categorized manually using a Word Document and Excel spreadsheets.
Interviews were recorded on audio tape and responses were transcribed in a Word Document.
The narrative data was cut and pasted to an Excel spreadsheet for qualitative narrative coding.
Data rows were manually assigned and categorized using responses from the survey and have a
59
cell in a matrix and were color-coded to enrich "at-a-glance" analysis. Some qualitative data was
gathered with the surveys which were distributed and completed by email. The data collected
from the survey responses was recorded and maintained in an Excel spreadsheet. The numerical
ratings of each question collected from the survey data was placed in a cell in a matrix to allow
for analytic induction (Saldana, 2015). The use of Excel and specifically, the descriptive statistic
routine, offers a broad range of built-in statistical functions that were utilized in this study.
Narrative coding was selected for the first phase of the research to allow topic questions
to be addressed by capturing the participant’s perceptions and realities (Saldana, 2015). While
the first phase of coding summarized sections of narrative data, the second phase employed
pattern coding. The pattern codes allowed for explanations of data and identify emergent themes.
The use of pattern codes in this marketing study examined common elements in social and
human perceptions (Saldana, 2015). After the first two phases of coding had been repeated
several times, category relationships were used to establish connections between the
classifications. As the concepts and following categories emerged interrelating themes within
the data were broken down into “meta” categories (Saldana, 2015). A hierarchy of categories and
subcategories was established to suggest the impact and frequency of the data.
The school administrators and parents took part in a short individual semi-structured
interview (See Appendices C & D) that gathered marketing and brand information on their
attitudes about the school's attributes and what techniques influenced enrollment. Each
participant was asked for and granted informed consent to be recorded during the interview. The
interviews were recorded on an Apple audio device and participants were allowed to review the
audio recording transcripts. The purpose of the questions was to get each person's perspective of
their school brand, their awareness of a marketing strategy, and perception of how the school
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attracts and enrolls students. The parent interviews focused on their attitude toward the school,
desired attributes, and the effectiveness of marketing strategies which resulted in enrollment.
The qualitative data that was gathered examined what methods of marketing were used
and the perceived effects. Interpretations of the collected data focused on specific marketing
strategies commonly used at each school. The internal data collected from each school was
compared to the perception of the administrators and consumers at each school. The data
collected was gathered to determine if schools developed a message about their product features
or attributes, their price, and their location. The data was analyzed to determine the effectiveness
of the relationship of the attributes to parent's desires and the formal means of communication.
Analysis of the various forms of marketing messages and media employed by schools, such as
the use of social media, mass-market media, and personal relationships was conducted to
determine the perceived value of each strategy in promoting school attributes.
The exploratory survey (see Appendix A) asked for responses about what methods of
communication the HAIS institutions employ to market their brand and their perceived impact
on consumer attitude. The information obtained from the survey explored how the marketing
strategy was being carried out and the perception of effectiveness resulting in enrollment. The
data shed light on what school administrators perceived to be what the parents valued in their
school. The survey was conducted before the interviews so that it informed questions about
marketing strategies and enrollment. The survey had a deadline of three weeks after the
dissemination of the questions. The sample size and the personal follow up by the researcher
may have encouraged a higher than standard return rate.
The survey focused on the strategies and practices of the participants’ marketing efforts
and how they perceived that they influenced consumer attitude. The focus of this section of the
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study was to explore any trends or outcomes after a marketing plan has been implemented. The
survey also explored if the school employed a defined marketing strategy. The one-on-one
interviews included data shared by the school with their marketing plan, execution strategy, and
enrollment. It was vital to the study to have parent participation to add depth to the conversation
about what they perceived to be valuable in what influenced their attitude toward the school and
their reasons for enrollment. Parents participating were asked through a semi-structured one-on-
one interview what their pre-inquiry admissions attitude and knowledge was about the school
and what attributes they desired in an independent school. The parents were presented with
specific marketing messages and media and then asked to describe which method the school used
that best conveyed the desirable attributes and the influence of the school's brand on the
enrollment of their child. The dependent outcome variable was enrollment.
The independent variables were the marketing techniques and the method of
communication used to influence consumer attitude toward enrollment. A score of each survey
question was tabulated using a five-point scale to determine the effectiveness of the use of social
media, personal relationships, print media and broadcast media. The score was tracked over the
time before and during the marketing plan. The control variables for the study were the attributes
a school chooses to market as their unique brand and what form of communication was the most
effective in creating an attitude change or action. The formula used is based on Fishbein's Multi-
Attribute Model (1977):

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A = bi ei
i=1
where,
A = attitude toward the school (brand)
bi = belief in the brand's possession of the attribute
ei = evaluation of the attribute as being good or bad
Example: The survey questions were scored on a five-point scale so that they could be
recorded, analyzed, and coded for perceived effectiveness:
Using the numbers from the following scale to evaluate the effectiveness of each characteristic:
TV advertising:
Ineffective
Effective
Neither
Extremely Moderately nor Moderately Extremely
Effective Effective Ineffective Ineffective
+2 +1 0 -1 -2
Potential Limitations
While it was difficult to prove causation between marketing, enrollments, and branding,
an effort was made to display data which can help establish an association between specific
messages and media in future strategic planning for independent schools. The data provides
mostly anecdotal evidence and was presented in a manner that does not conclude relationship,
but stresses the school's and parent's perceptions of the influence of the form of marketing
communication used to create enrollment. Consumers’ direct reaction to the marketing efforts
could prove an association but do not account for extenuating factors. Therefore, a direct reaction
63
could be assumed when the consumer enrolled their child because they responded to a specific
form of communication about a particular attribute the school claims and immediately decided
that the school was their preferred choice. It was not always possible to get specific answers
from consumers about what was the direct influence in deciding to enroll or not enroll.
The qualitative data were examined to determine which methods of marketing were used
and the perceived effects on enrollment. The collected data was analyzed for evidence of specific
marketing strategies commonly used at each school. The internal data collected from each
school was compared to the perceptions of the administrators and consumers at each school. The
data collected was coded into categories of relationship marketing and the formal means of
communication. Various forms of marketing, such as the use of social media, mass-market
media, or personal relationships, were categorized to analyze the perceived value of each
strategy in promoting school attributes.
Conclusion
Based on the study’s purpose, conceptual framework, and research questions, the
qualitative methods of collecting data through an exploratory survey and one-on-one interviews
contributed to the academic literature and applicable practice of marketing for independent
schools. The structure of the research is aligned with past studies and literature and adds to
academic discussions and future inquiries.
Independent school leadership teams should benefit from the data and analysis in chapters
4 and 5. The specific insights gained from the surveys and interviews should inform independent
school leadership teams about which marketing techniques would best enhance their brand and
attract students. Perceptions of the effectiveness of specific marketing practices and a possible
correlation to enrollment may benefit schools when leadership teams develop a strategy that
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creates a positive consumer attitude and attracts new students. The data from this research
examines what marketing techniques were most successful in creating brand awareness and
ultimately enrollment.
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Chapter 4
Research Findings
The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived effectiveness of using specific
schools in Hawaii. The research was conducted by gathering qualitative data on specific
marketing message and media used by Hawaii Independent Schools through a survey
disseminated to school administrators using the HAIS Head of Schools distribution list. The
study focused on independent schools in Hawaii and surveyed administrators from the HAIS
affiliated schools. Interviews were also conducted with lead administrators and a parent from
each school to get qualitative information to enhance the survey results. The research focused on
the participants’ perceptions of the impact on enrollment at Hawaii independent schools when
the schools used specific marketing tools to create a consumer action.
The data gathered looked at three areas of marketing that influenced enrollment in
Hawaii independent schools. The first area was the marketing message, and media administrators
perceived to be effective, followed by the influence of specific techniques parents identified
which influenced enrollment and finally the action taken by the parent concerning enrollment.
The research questions used to guide this study were as follows:
consumer attitude toward a school’s brand?
What marketing message and media used by Hawaii independent schools are perceived
by the school’s administration to be the most effective for increasing enrollment?

66
The area of concentration for this research study was the perceptions by administrators
and parents of the practical use of marketing techniques to inform parents of the school's
attributes and to inform parents’ decisions to enroll their child. The study was designed from the
research questions to have administrators describe their knowledge of the school’s attributes,
marketing plan, implementation, and effects on enrollment in an exploratory survey. The survey
was sent to 92 HAIS member schools, and eleven schools were selected to participate in a one-
on-one interview with the researcher, to obtain in-depth qualitative information. The schools
participating in the interviews provided the lead administrator and one parent for participation.
The interviews were conducted at the participating schools and the administrator and parent were
interviewed separately. Participants’ and institutions’ names and specific geographic location
information in this research were omitted to ensure privacy.
Participants
Table 1. Self-Identified Job Titles of the Survey Participants
Lead Administrator (Head of 91%
School/President/Director)
Principal/Dean 4%
Marketing Director 8%
Admissions Director 8%
Support Staff 0%
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Table 2. Current School Enrollment of Participating Schools in the Survey
1-300 50%
300-600 23%
600-1000 12%
1000-3000 12%
3000+ 3%
The exploratory twenty-six question survey was electronically sent to all ninety-two
HAIS member schools’ lead administrators. The lead administrator could delegate the answering
of the survey questions to another lead staff member or answer the survey themselves. The
participants could also indicate that, as the lead administrator, they may have more than one role,
including Principal/Dean, Marketing or Admissions Director. Having more than one role would
explain why the total contains more than 100%. Table 1 indicates that ninety-one percent of
those participating answered that at least one of their roles was that of a lead administrator.
Interviews with the participating small schools often indicated that the lead administrator
is tasked with the marketing efforts conducted at their school. Larger independent Hawaii
schools were included in the survey because of their perceived dominance and resources. The
schools that participated in the survey were not asked to provide their city/town location or
island. The schools were asked to provide a range for their current student enrollment.
The eleven schools chosen to participate in the interviews were located on the island of
Oahu and had a student population of 300 or less at the time of the interview. Seven of the eleven
administrators interviewed cited having to take on many roles as part of the job at a small school.
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Marketing as a stand-alone job was not found to occur in any of the schools interviewed. The
locations for the interviews were selected because the Oahu independent school market is
considered to be competitive with 39 of the 75 independent schools located on the island with
20,288 students enrolled. Twenty-two schools in the Honolulu district, not including schools
located outside of the city, have 300 or fewer students (Hawaii Association of Independent
Schools. 2016).
It was essential to get background information on the lead administrator's knowledge of
marketing and if their school had a marketing plan to be able to answer the first research
question. What marketing message and media, if any, is used in a school’s strategic marketing
plan that can be perceived by administrators and prospective parents as effectively influencing
consumer attitude toward a school’s brand? It was essential to get background information on
the lead administrators knowledge of marketing and if their school had a marketing plan.
The results from the interviews indicated that lead administrators had varying degrees of
understanding of what marketing entails, although all saw value in having a strategic plan. One
Head of School noted, “marketing by definition is the actual advertising, print, media, social
media, online presence, but I guess now that you ask me it should be broader. It should come
down to researching whom we serve, and what are our differentiating factors.” Several echoed
the sentiment of one of the participants who stated that marketing “must be internal and external
messaging including social media, print, press releases, word of mouth, campaign flyers, and
ads.” Another administrator defined marketing as “knowing your product and identifying who
will be a good match for the product.”

69
Marketing Plans and Strategies
Table 3. Schools Responding from the Survey Indicating they do/don’t have a Formal Marketing
Plan
Yes 62%
No 38 %
Those school leaders participating in both the survey and interview were asked if they
had a formal marketing plan. The survey indicated that 62% did have a formal plan. The one-on-
one interviews with the administrators from the eleven schools indicated that only two of the
schools had a formal written marketing plan that included market analysis, desired outcomes,
and techniques for creating brand awareness. The nine other administrators interviewed
responded that they had elements of a marketing strategy, but did not have the statistical analysis
of their desired customer base or recommendations as to how to best communicate their brand.
One Head of School said, “we have no formal marketing plan in place, but we review how to get
our message across with our admissions people and talk about the trends they are seeing."
Another Head of School responded, “We do not currently have a formal marketing plan, but we
have been talking about it. I do not believe there ever has been one and we can play with the
word formal. We had brochures and TV commercials, but I think that was all on the job
experiences, but not a cohesive strategy.” One of the small schools indicated that they did have a
formal plan,
The current marketing plan evolved and is updated annually. It was done 7 years ago.
During our accreditation process last year, we updated it. We partnered with a masters
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group from the University of Hawaii to do a comprehensive marketing study and
developed a plan.
Beliefs about Personnel Needs for Marketing
Table 4. Schools with a Designated Marketing Employee
Yes 68%
No 32%
Table 5. Administrator’s Value of Hiring a Dedicated Marketing Employee
Yes 75%
No 25%
The survey revealed that a significant number of schools who took part in that phase of
the research had a designated a marketing person. None of the eleven administrators who were
interviewed had an employee who was designated just as a marketing specialist. However,
smaller school leaders often assigned marketing to themselves or another employee in addition to
their primary role. There was often a relationship between the admissions office and marketing.
All of the Heads of Schools interviewed felt that the cost of having a designated
marketing person was too high and felt they needed to combine the job with other
responsibilities. Without the cost involved all administrators interviewed saw the value in having
a marketing professional on staff. One administrator commented, "We all know we need to have
some designated person, but it is hard to justify the cost to a board without seeing immediate
results." The survey indicated that 75% of those participating perceived the value of having a
marketing employee
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Table 6. Administrators that Have or Would Consider Employing Outside Marketing
Professionals to Develop Strategy
Yes 58%
No 42%
In Table 6, there appears to be a moderate consensus that an outside marketing agency
could provide benefit to the school. A Head of School who currently had not used a marketing
agency stated that they should "reevaluate using an outside firm, because what we have been
doing has been going on for years. We should spend some time and get some help from
someone who knows the market.” Another school administrator commented,
In consideration of the size of my school, I'd like an outside agency, I don't want just to
hand it off, like here’s our problem, please fix it, but start with them to get the ball rolling
and get everyone on our side activated and get them together and build the rest of the plan.
It comes down to if we have the resources to contract someone from the outside.
School Brands and Attributes
Table 7. Administrator’s Perceptions that Their Marketing Plan is Effective in Identifying Their
Brand
Extremely effective 9%
Moderately effective 73%
Neither/nor 14%
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Table 7 displays the administrators’ perceptions about the effectiveness of their school's
marketing plan, and if the plan had an impact on identifying their school brand. The majority of
the respondents felt they had an effective plan in place. The goal of marketing would be to create
an impact so that consumers or other stakeholders would increase their knowledge of the
school’s brand and make an informed decision to enroll their child. In the survey sent to HAIS
administrators, 13% of those who answered indicated that their school saw no impact, while 4%
viewed their marketing plan as being moderately ineffective.
During the interviews, one Head of School responded to a question about the positive
effects about branding, stating, "in this town, I am not convinced that marketing can be an
effective tool to compete against ‘the big 3.’ It seems to be the lifetime goal for parents to get
their kids into these schools, regardless of the actual education. They want the name brand.”
Another Head of School commented in an interview that, while he felt that the marketing plan
gave awareness about the school, he was “not sure if it translates into enrollment.” Another
administrator added
Our marketing efforts are designed solely to inform people about the school who were
previously unaware of our existence. It is our opinion that the value we provide is best
communicated through the information we share and the relationships we can foster, and
these attributes largely influence whether or not the people who inquire enroll and the
people already enrolled remain.

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Table 8. Administrators’ Perceived Attributes for Branding Their School
Attributes Extremely Moderately Neither/Nor Moderately Extremely

Likely Unlikely
Likely Unlikely
Teaching staff 81% 15% 4% 0% 0%
Academic 62% 38% 0% 0% 0%
Curriculum
Relationships 57.69% 42% 0% 0% 0%
Teacher/student 52% 44% 0% 4% 0%
Ratio
Access 46% 50% 3% 3% 0%
to Teachers
Class Size 50% 46% 0% 4% 0%
Peer Relations 27% 73% 0% 0% 0%
Proximity 40% 44% 12% 0% 4%
to Home
Price 39% 42% 15% 4% 0%
Financial Aid 35% 42% 19% 4% 0%
Athletics 15% 42% 35% 4% 4%
Social Status of 12% 31% 19% 23% 15%
Parents
Religious 8% 19% 50% 8% 15%
Affiliation
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Table 8 displays what attributes the administrators who participated in the survey
perceived to be the most valuable for parents when forming their opinion about a school's brand.
The importance of knowing what the school offers and how it sees itself should guide the
message of the marketing effort. The identification of a school’s brand internally and externally
is valuable in shaping enrollment management. The objective of identifying school attributes is
to match what the school’s consumers are searching for and providing a good fit for potential
students.
The survey indicated that administrators perceived that parents would identify the quality
of the teaching staff as being the attribute that would stand out about their brand. The quality of
teachers was followed by the academic curriculum, relationships, teacher/student ratio, access to
teachers, class size, peer relations, and proximity to home, as being the top eight attributes that
would define the school brand. The survey also indicated that the attributes parents felt least
defined the brand or influenced them into enrolling were; price, financial assistance, athletics, the
social status of parents, and religious affiliation.
The interviews shed some light on the perception of the administrators concerning brand
awareness and the attributes they felt shaped their schools. While none of the participants
mentioned the teaching staff to be the most critical factor in their branding effort, all eleven said
the quality of the teachers shaped potential enrollees’ views of the school. One administrator
stated, “we have some teachers here that are known as innovative and are highly visible, those
teachers are highlighted when we bring people on campus.” There was also a feeling that when a
prospective candidate looked on the website, having a staff with strong educational backgrounds
and longevity at the school enhanced the school's brand. “People recognize quality and reading
the teacher’s biography can either help or hurt you,” commented a lead administrator. Another
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contributor to the interviews added, “we surveyed what students like best and emphatically kids
like their teachers so much and that is the reason they go to school here.”
Each of the participants pointed to the school’s curriculum or pedagogical affiliation as a
crucial element in their branding efforts. Attributes such as academic rigor, progressive
education, special needs, innovative approach, and gifted programs, were some of the terms used
to contribute to the school’s brand. All eleven administrators agreed that inquiring potential
applicants would ask for a definition about specific educational philosophies. Some of the
schools identified as operating with a specific educational affiliation, such as Montessori,
Waldorf, Dewey-based Progressive Education, and Child-Centered Learning. There was a
common perception that students’ parents needed clarification about the type of education the
schools deliver.
The administrators’ perceptions were that they needed to educate the parents. “We have
parent coffees and evenings where we talk about progressive theories and define that it means
experiential learning by doing,” stated a Head of School. Another participant commented on the
parents’ perceptions of the school’s brand, “the community does think that we are a special needs
school because we have a methodology that looks at the individual or our kids are physically
active instead of sitting still in a classroom.”
Class size and the benefits of a small school were often mentioned as attributes the
participants perceived parents wanted in a school. Words such as, close community, low
student/teacher ratio, and nurturing, were used in nine of the eleven interviews. One Head of
School commented, “because our school is small, and through our program students develop a
greater amount of self-confidence.” Another administrator saw the small school environment as a
deterrent to competing in the independent school market, “We are in an area of power people,
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who want to send their kids to the big school. Those families look at small schools only if their
child is different in any way and needs us until they can be accepted to the larger school.”
Safety was an attribute that was mentioned in all eleven interviews. “Parents always cite
safety and security,” mentioned an interviewee. “We may be their first experience with school,
and they want their children to be secure and happy in their environment,” mentioned another
interviewee. Other attributes that were mentioned by the interview participants included school
location, ease of drop off and pick up, religious affiliation, green space, and room to play. There
was complete agreement from all the administrators that participated in the interview that their
attributes were what guided their marketing. There was also agreement that, other than a few
surveys, they had not collected hard data.
Table 9. Administrators’ Perceptions of Their Knowledge of the School’s Target Audience
Extremely good 35%
Moderately good 61%
Neither/nor 4%
Moderately poor 0.00%
Extremely poor 0.00%
A key component to a marketing plan is the identification of the target audience. A
marketing study identifies the potential consumers from various areas of the community.
Marketing research also develops a consumer profile and the types of communication techniques
that will reach the target audience. As indicated in Table 9, 96% of administrators felt
comfortable with their knowledge of their target audience. Yet, none of the administrators
perceived that they had poor knowledge of their target audience.

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During the interviews, it became clear that the participating administrators could define
their current customer or parent base. One administrator from a small school with consistent
enrollment stated that her students’ parents were “working professionals from all over the
island.”
Many of the administrators noted that some data on demographic information was
required for accreditation. Even without detailed data, there was a definite sense from the
administrators that they know whom their schools served. One administrator cited evidence that
her school drew “the vast majority of students from the three closest zip codes and are comprised
of diverse nationalities.” She stated that “we know who our market is and we know our families.
This lets us tailor our marketing to be high touch.”
Table 10. Administrators’ Perceptions of their School’s Competitive Advantage
Extremely good 27%
Moderately good 58%
Neither/nor 15%
Moderately poor 0%
Extremely poor 0%
An administrator's belief about their school's competitive advantage colors the way they
view marketing for brand awareness and enrollment management. As can be seen in Table 10, a
majority of administrators feel extremely or moderately confident that their school has a
competitive advantage in the independent school market. It is also noteworthy that 15% of those
that answered the survey felt that they had no relevant perceptions, either positive or negative,
about their competitive advantage.

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In the interview sessions, administrators pointed to what they perceive to be their niche
in the market. Many pointed to their religious affiliation, while others cited a specific brand of
curriculum, such as Waldorf, Montessori, and Progressive Education. One administrator stated
they are the only Catholic co-educational school in the area that offers pre-kindergarten to 8th
grade. There were several of those interviewed that thought their size was an advantage. An
administrator at a school of 160 students felt that being a small school was perceived as an
advantage to potential students. “Being a small school is our number one advantage. We can
develop relationships and offer a high touch environment with a smaller staff that can highly
personalize the experience for the students and parents.”
The community’s perception of the school played a key role on their view about having a
competitive advantage. Another educator said, “we are blessed to have a good reputation and
where the children go after they finish our program, speaks for itself.” An administrator at a
school with a reputation for having a strong waitlist noted, “we only have twenty-seven slots
open each year and high retention, so the perception is that it is challenging to get accepted.” She
also noted that perception by the community sometimes works against the school. “Some people
will not apply because they think that only legacy or parents with connections can get in and that
is not the truth.”
While there were a few administrators that admitted that they could not compare
themselves to other schools, they did feel they had attributes that specific consumers would find
appealing. An administrator at an all-girls school suggested that "I am not sure we have a
competitive advantage. We can stay competitive because of our outcomes. A graduate from here
can be accepted anywhere, Ivy league, public research universities or small liberal arts schools.
They can have the future they want or change the future.”
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Media and Messaging of the School Brand
Table 11. Administrators’ Perceptions of the Effective Use of Various Forms of Media in
Branding Their School
Facebook 42% 42% 8% 4% 4%
Twitter 16% 32% 36% 8% 8%
Instagram 27% 46% 15% 4% 8%
Pinterest 0% 12% 58% 0% 30%
Blogs 0% 12% 58% 8% 22%
Podcasts 0% 0% 62% 0% 38%
Newspaper 8% 53% 19% 12% 8%
Magazines 12% 50% 22% 8% 8%
The marketing of a school’s brand is developed by identifying the attributes and the
academic pedagogy that distinguishes the particular characteristics of one school from another.
While many other factors determine the messaging of a school, the type of media used to convey
the communication is often determined by demographic information, personnel, and budget.
Table 11 presents results from the survey indicating how effective the participants perceived
eight types of common forms of media used in Hawaii. In this section, television, radio, and
other forms of mass media were not included. The inclusion of these forms of media are
incorporated in the enrollment section of this study. Schools predominantly use social media as
an inexpensive method of conveying the brand messaging in Hawaii schools. The survey
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indicated that Facebook was the most effective messaging tool included on the list of types of
media.
Another significant finding in the survey was that each school participates in the
Honolulu Magazine's Private School Guide. The magazine placement included either full page,
half, or quarter page color advertisements and featured a story about the school and pictures
highlighting attributes. In table 12 only 12% of those who answered the survey felt that their
advertisement was highly effective, while 50% felt it was a moderately effective use of media in
brand messaging.
The interviews confirmed the use of Facebook, as an effective means of communicating a
branding message. An interview participant commented, “we use Facebook as a means to tell our
story. We do paid advertising.” All of those interviewed expressed that Facebook reaches a large
audience and extends to the target market of parents and grandparents of school-age children.
Another administrator commented that she had heard that “Honolulu has grown into the third
largest social networking city in the country.” The perception is clear that the use of social media
by schools to influence the market and to establish their brand is widely employed.
The downside of the use of social media is the amount of time, money, and energy
involved to stay current given the shortage of personnel. A participant in the interview stated,
“We would love to have a person do all the posting to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. We
don't have the budget to hire someone, so it ends up being me.” The case in many of the small
schools is that the Head of School or other lead administrators devoted time to posting on social
media. The interview participant continued by saying, “I’m not sure it is the best use of my
time.” A common theme among those interviewed was that they needed a strong social media
presence to be competitive in the Honolulu independent school market.

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Ten out of the eleven administrators agreed with the survey prompt that it was necessary
that their school place an advertisement in Honolulu Magazine, but only three felt it was worth
the cost and had seen direct benefits. One administrator pointed out, “we do advertise in
Honolulu Magazine each year. If we don't, it may look like we are hurting or have already
closed.” Another participant said, “We know we have to do it, but they need to cut the cost. It
seems like they are profiting from the schools and making much money from sales to parents.”
The consensus from the participants was that the magazine helped from a marketing and
branding standpoint, but there was little impact on attracting students.
Marketing’s Effects on Enrollment
Table 12. Administrators’ Perceptions that Their School’s Marketing Plan has an Effect on the
Growth of Enrollment
Extreme growth 15%
Moderate growth 60%
No growth 25%
Moderate decrease 0%
Extreme decrease 0%
Table 12 displayed the administrators’ perceptions that their school’s marketing plan
affected the growth of enrollment. As previously stated, enrollment in Hawaii independent
schools has declined over the past ten years. The survey indicated that the administrators
perceived that the marketing plan did have a positive effect on enrollment. Seventy-five percent
of those who participated in the survey indicated that they believed that the school's marketing
efforts did result in extreme or moderate growth. Administrators responded that 15% saw
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extreme growth and 60% experienced moderate growth, while 25% showed no growth. No
respondents indicated that having a marketing plan prompted enrollment to decrease.
As previously stated, enrollment in Hawaii independent schools has declined over the
past ten years. Adverse enrollment fluctuations have not been the case at all schools. One small
school that participated in the study had a 23% increase over the past two years. The school
showed growth, had an outside agency conduct a formal marketing study, and developed a plan
to increase school exposure and enrollment. The school had experienced fluctuations in
enrollment over a ten-year period beginning in 2008. The administrator commented, “Since we
know our audience, we don't waste a lot of money on unnecessary advertising.” The enrollment
grew after carefully following a strategy that encouraged brand awareness, community
involvement, building relationships, and taking interested families through the enrollment
process.
The interviews gave differing points of view on the purpose of marketing strategies and
intended outcomes. These perspectives may indicate that enrollment growth was not the goal at
all schools, as one administrator commented, “Our marketing efforts are designed solely to
inform people about the school who were previously unaware of our existence.” Some of the
administrators who were interviewed had more applications than they had spots for incoming
students; therefore, their marketing objective would differ from schools with enrollment deficits.
One administrator from a school that only admits a total of 27 slots, said she had
proposed a marketing effort to “make sure that the public knows what we do as a school and to
make predictions to see if the market has shifted.” Another Head of School did not see the
benefits as a direct correlation to their marketing efforts. She commented that she was “not sure
if having a marketing plan translates into enrollment.” One administrator responded by saying
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their enrollment grew because “the research from our marketing effort allows us to know who
our target audience is, and what parents are looking for in a school.” No administrators
responded in either the survey or interviews that their marketing plan had a negative impact on
enrollment.
Another Head of School also mentioned that having data helped form their marketing
message and media use, “We know where they come from and for the most part, their
professions.” Having data appeared to be relevant to the participants, although only a few had a
formal data bank. Most of the administrators at the small schools indicated that they collected
personal demographic information from their admissions forms. Each interviewee indicated that
they asked potential parents to describe how they heard about the school. This information could
then be used to develop marketing statistics that could inform a marketing strategy.
The small schools struggle with budgetary restraints in the hiring of marketing and in
some cases admissions professionals. One school leader indicated that, until the current school
year, she did the marketing and admissions on her own. While she hired an admissions director,
she was still the person in charge of marketing. Another administrator from a school that
admitted that their enrollment was steadily declining mentioned, “We should reevaluate because
what we have been doing has been going on for years and isn’t working. I would like some help
from someone who knows the market.”
During the interviews, only the admissions director mentioned the term, “price of
acquisition,” needed to be considered when grading the effectiveness of marketing plan on
enrollment. Indirectly, a lead administrator stated, “I'm not sure marketing plans and the use of
media translates into enrollment.” Each of the eleven interview participants suggested that they
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needed to have a more formal way to evaluate trends and needed a marketing strategy to
understand data better and the media tools that would influence enrollment growth.
The Effective Use of Media on Enrollment
Table 13. Administrators’ Perceptions about the Effects of Television Commercials on
Enrollment
Neither/nor 68%
Moderately ineffective 8%
Extremely ineffective 8%
There is a debate about television advertising; it is questioned about whether it is useful
in creating enrollment. The administrators who participated in the survey indicated that 68% did
not perceive that television commercials had a positive or negative impact on enrollment.
Another 16% felt that television commercials were moderate to extremely ineffective. The
question that follows the data is why do schools advertise on television if it appears to have little
impact on enrollment?
That question was posed to the eleven administrators who took part in the interviews. It
may be hard to show causation when discussing the action of enrollment and television
advertising. One administrator made the point that “few parents admit to getting the idea to
enroll their child in a school because of television.”
All of those interviewed cited that the cost of television advertising for a small school
made it relatively prohibitive. The schools that did advertise said their television advertising was
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often affiliated with a school event that the public was invited to and not focused on enrollment.
An administrator who said that their event acted to get the public on campus commented, “We
advertise on television about the event and get a big turnout. We know we get many students to
apply to school after they have been to the event, but we cannot say there is a correlation
between the advertising and enrollment.”
Other administrators expressed the belief that the television advertising gave the school
name recognition. A participant added, “the field is extremely competitive and expensive. Never
convinced about effectiveness, but one only has to ask if there is no advertising, where would the
school be?” Another administrator interviewed said, “I am not sure we get much return on the
dollar with television, but we do let the community know we exist.”
Perceived value also may be a factor in whether a school advertises on television. An
administrator at a small school with few yearly openings stated, “we have not felt the need to
advertise on TV, because we do not think it makes sense. We get most of our applicants through
referrals and alums.” Another participant mentioned, “We notice the schools that do television
advertising because either they are introducing something new or they have a reputation for not
doing well. We try to avoid it so that we do not put our program in that category.”
Table 14. Administrators’ Perceptions about the Effects of Radio Commercials on Enrollment
Neither/nor 54%

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The perception of an association between radio advertising and enrollment seems only
partially appreciated by school administrators. Table 14 is telling because no administrators who
participated in the survey felt radio advertising was extremely effective and under 20% felt it
was moderately effective in producing enrollment. The primary perception is that radio
commercials have little to no impact on enrollment.
The interviews with the eleven administrators confirmed the data indicating there
appeared to be minimal effectiveness of radio commercials with enrollment. Despite the feeling
that radio had little impact on enrollment, eight of the eleven administrators interviewed had
produced commercials to advertise either events or enrollment information. Some of the
Christian schools took part in a tuition discount scheme through a local radio station, which
encourages prospective enrollees to mention that they heard about the school on the station. If a
prospective enrollee credits the station with the contact information, potential students could
receive a percentage off tuition.
When asked about the effectiveness of the program one administrator stated, “We have
experienced some success with this, but the advertisement just drives them to enquire, and most
seem to have been aware of the school before they heard the commercial.” Perceived value again
was cited by another Christian school leader who decided against participating in the program,
“because it seemed to cheapen our product.”
Most of the administrators who participated felt the value in radio advertising came from
providing a source of name recognition. The perception of several administrators was that a
prospective enrollee would hear the name on the radio and that would cause them to search for
further information. The actual advertisement would not be the driving force that caused
enrollment, but would instead produce a call to action. One administrator commented, “very few
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people say they heard it on the radio but might have heard it and then spoke to a knowledgeable
friend.” The call to action to inquire about the school would not show causation for enrollment
but may have sparked a future inquiry, which led to enrollment.
Table 15. Administrators’ Perceptions of How Likely Interested Parents Look at the Website
Extremely likely 65%
Moderately likely 35%
Neither/nor 0%
Moderately unlikely 0%
Extremely unlikely 0%
Table 16. Administrators’ Perceptions that The Website influenced enrollment
Neither/nor 12%
Websites are perceived to be a powerful tool to inform interested parents about the
attributes, academics, and enrollment process at an independent school. Administrators also
perceived the potential advantages of having a good website as indicated in Table 15. The results
of the survey indicated that 65% were extremely likely to have viewed the school’s website
when starting the inquiry process. The remaining 35% believed that parents were moderately
likely to look at the website. While 100% of those surveyed were convinced that parents are
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likely to view a school’s website, Table 15 also produced data that indicates that administrator's
felt strongly that the school's website influenced enrollment. The participants in the survey
perceived that 88% found the website to be extremely to moderately effective in influencing
enrollment. Only 12% surveyed felt that the website had no noticeable influence on enrollment
and no participants felt that it was completely ineffective concerning enrollment.
The value of the school website for information gathering and enrollment was reinforced
in the interviews with administrators. All eleven of those who participated in the interviews felt
that their school's website had a strong influence on the enrollment process. As one interviewee
stated, “I think it is the first place people look nowadays.” Others agreed that it might be a major
factor in providing information, but also cited other factors. One administrator commented,
“people may say they like our website, or I saw it on the website, but we do not know how they
got to the website. It might be word of mouth and then they went to the site to look something
up.”
A few administrators felt that if the interested parents were not from Hawaii, then their
first contact with the school was the website. If they were from the islands, they might have
heard about the school through a friend or drove by and saw the exterior of the school. One of
the participants stated, “I do not think it is like I found our extracting company during a flood by
just looking up and going down a list on Google. Once in a great while, it may happen, but I do
not think people find schools that way.” Many of those interviewed noted that they had little to
no data to support their perception that the website influenced enrollment, but felt that it played a
significant role.
The other notable perception of all eleven small school participants was that they did not
like their current website. Comments such as, “not happy with our website” and “it is dated” was
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often heard. Each administrator noted that the cost, time, and staffing, made the website difficult
to build and maintain to their standards. Some noted that they have parent volunteers build the
platform, while others noted that they spent a substantial amount of money to hire an outside
agency to create their website. One administrator who created their website in-house noted, “we
cannot keep it updated because of the lack of human resources. As soon as it was created, it was
already out of date.”
Table 17. Administrators’ Perceptions That Social Media Effects Enrollment
15%
Extremely likely
58%
Moderately likely
19%
Neither/nor
4%
Moderately unlikely
4%
Extremely unlikely
During the survey and interview phases of this study, some form of social media was
regularly cited as a marketing tool used by schools to increase brand awareness and enrollment.
Websites were separated from social media during this part of the study, because most schools
use their websites as a form of student and family engagement, such as initial Google searches,
forms, applications, and calendars. Websites are also used as a place where potential consumers
can look for links to social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, blogs, and
many other platforms.
Table 17 displays that there are widespread opinions on the effect of social media on
enrollment. Administrators answered the survey by indicating that the majority, of 58% felt that
social media was moderately likely and 15% viewed social media to be extremely likely to affect
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enrollment. While a relatively small percentage of participants perceived that social media was
moderate to extremely unlikely to influence enrollment, there was a feeling among 19% of the
participants that the school's use of social media had neither/nor any impact on enrollment.
The interviews revealed that all eleven administrators used various forms of social media
to get their school’s message out to potential enrollees. One participant suggested, “I do believe
social media and the web are the best for advertising. For small schools, having a person
maintain all these sites can be a challenge, but someone has to do it.” While each participant
noted that they used several forms of social media, the use of Facebook posts and paid
advertising was cited by seven of the eleven administrators.
A theme that emerged when discussing social media was that the age of the parents of
children in the early grades was getting younger. There was concern that the constant shifts in
social media made it difficult to maintain a strategy. One administrator felt that “we try to hit all
the platforms and hope we reach our target audience.” As noted this can be difficult and time-
consuming for small schools, with little staff. Another participant recently hired a
communications director and had been presented with an alternative to their established methods.
He commented, “She feels we need to get away from print media. Her feeling is newspapers are
dead, and I believe it, but are we just going on a gut feeling or is there actual data to what is most
effective?”
Relationship Marketing Approaches for Increasing Enrollment
Table 18. Administrators’ Perceptions That the School’s Marketing Effort Creates a
Relationship with the Interested Parent and Student
Extremely good 13%
Moderately good 67%

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Neither/nor 20%
Moderately poor 0%
Extremely poor 0%
The concept of establishing a relationship with potential enrollees through referrals was a
tool that each participant said their school used to their benefit. Schools encouraged word of
mouth to establish the first contact. Once prospective applicants were intrigued about the school
from communication through word of mouth with a friend, neighbor, or colleague, the next steps
appeared to be either further research through the school's website or to call for a tour. According
to the survey participants, 80% of the schools incorporate word of mouth in their marketing
effort to connect the potential enrolling family to a person, such as an admissions director, at the
school. Once that is achieved the prospect can then select to form a relationship with the school
or look elsewhere.
Designing a marketing plan for an independent school should indicate that the consumer
is known and that the tools of marketing have been put in place to create a message to entice
future communication and create an action. The administrators from the Hawaii schools who
took part in the survey perceived that their marketing efforts created a relationship. Over 2/3 of
those surveyed felt that their marketing effort created a relationship with potential parents and
students. The administrators from the Hawaii schools who took part in the survey perceived that
their marketing efforts created a relationship which led to enrollment.
The administrators from the Hawaii schools who took part in the survey perceived that
their marketing efforts created a relationship. All eleven of the administrators who were
interviewed for this study felt that creating and maintaining a relationship was a vital component
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to attracting and retaining students. In the interview, only two of the eleven participants knew the
term, “relationship marketing.” Although each agreed, at a small school, that approach was an
essential element of how he or she recruited students. An interview participant stated, “word of
mouth is an authentic grassroots marketing tool. The parent thinks, ‘does what I hear interest
me?’ And, after going to the website, they come to the office and ask to speak about the school.”
The term, “high touch” was brought up by many of the administrators. One participant
commented, “Building and maintaining a relationship is more important than any other method
we use to enroll students.” Another administrator suggested, “as a small school, we do not have a
huge staff, but we can be highly personalized from the first touch we have with parents.”
Developing a personal relationship with the potential applicants was a consistent response during
the interviews. The admissions director who took part in the interview stated, “once we have
contact, we follow up with phone calls, emails, and texts. We arrange an individualized tour,
which produces a high yield of applications." There was agreement among the administrators,
that after the potential consumers had been on campus, maintaining a relationship was a useful
marketing tool for creating lasting enrollment management.
Table 19. Administrators’ Perceptions that the Open House Influences the Likelihood of
Enrollment
Neither/nor 19%
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Getting prospective students and parents on campus is often the goal of independent
schools. The ability to display the attributes of a school is perceived by administrators to be a
useful marketing tool. The open house has been conducted in diverse forms and used as an
opportunity to sell the school’s culture and to explain the enrollment process. Some schools use
traditional open houses, where prospective parents visit the school and meet teachers, while
others use a school-driven event to attract an external audience. Open houses take on many
different shapes and attract interested potential consumers to have a personal experience.
The question that was asked in the survey and interviews was “Did the open house
influence prospective parents to enroll their child in your school?” Table 19 indicates that the
survey respondents felt strongly that open houses were extremely to moderately likely to
influence enrollment. However, 19% of the survey participants countered that they did not
perceive one way or the other that the open house influenced enrollment and 8% believed that it
was extremely unlikely that the open house had an impact on the process.
The administrators who were interviewed confirmed that open houses were useful tools,
but also had different definitions of its meaning. Each of the eleven participants indicated that
they had some form of an open house. Three of the administrators indicated that their schools
used events to attract potential enrollees to campus and distribute school information. One of the
interviewees commented, “we used to do traditional open houses and get a handful of
applications from it. Now we have a fall festival, and it attracts around four thousand people.
Sometimes it is the first touch we have with future students.” At the events, prospective parents
of potential enrollees get to experience the school's culture and receive information about the
next steps in the application process. One administrator whose school holds an event stated, “we
get to meet the prospects at the event and then arrange a personal tour.” According to all three of
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the administrators with an event, the key is to get a broader reach. “An event reaches people
through our advertising, sponsorships, and community awareness. It includes people who have
never thought about the school and now see it as an option.”
One of the Heads of School of a high school stated in their interview that they have a
traditional open house, but indicated that they have student guides take prospective applicants
around campus. “The chance to talk to someone in their peer group seems to appeal to most of
the kids on the tour.” Another administrator commented that, “the most important thing is to get
them to your campus. When they see the school, it has an impact. They are either going to love
the place and curriculum or it is not going to appeal to them.” After looking at the data and
collecting the responses, there is a strong indication that schools rely on the appeal of an open
house and the chance to have potential students experience the attributes of the school.
Table 20. Administrators’ Perceptions that Word of Mouth Influences a Parent to Enroll Their
Child
Neither/nor 0%
Administrators cite word of mouth as the most effective marketing tool that influences
parents to enroll their child. In Table 20 of the survey, 92% perceived word of mouth to have
been extremely likely to have influenced parents to enroll their child in school, while only 8%
found it to be moderately likely. There were no survey responses indicating word of mouth did
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not influence enrollment. The strength of word of mouth, especially in small schools, appears to
be a marketing tool that is relied upon to attract potential students and ultimately create the
action of enrollment. In the interview phase of this research, each participant cited word of
mouth as being critical for their enrollment management.
Without hesitation, word of mouth was what each participant responded to the question to
name the number one way a prospective parent hears about their school. One respondent stated,
“based on anecdotal feedback from prospective families our strongest marketing is word of
mouth, next is social media.” Many of the participants indicated that their best tool for spreading
the word about their school was to teach parents to be ambassadors. An admissions director who
took part in the interview commented, “We try to give parents key talking points so that when
they are discussing schools to friends and neighbors, they have accurate information.” The
general feeling by each of the administrators was that enrollment was based on emotion and
general knowledge of the school’s attributes. The relationship established with the stakeholders
appeared to be paramount in spreading the story of the school.
There was some debate if word of mouth could be controlled. One of Head of Schools
stated, “You cannot depend on word of mouth alone, because it is uncontrollable.” The
consensus amongst the interviewees was that word of mouth can be a positive marketing tool, as
well as it can be a detriment to enrollment. “When something negative occurs at the school or
someone leaves with bad feelings,” commented an administrator, “that can damage all the good
marketing work you have done.” There was a strong perception that parents of students either
currently enrolled or who had attended, would recommend the school as long as they felt they
had a strong relationship with a teacher, staff, or fellow parents. The admissions director stated,
"You have a personal touch with each applicant and maintain that relationship even after they
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leave our school. We always ask that they speak well of us when they move on and we find for
the most part that they do.”
There was a perception common to all of the interview participants that larger schools or
those with a reputation for being difficult to get accepted into only need to use word of mouth as
a marketing tool. One participant at a school with steady enrollment shared, “We do not do any
advertising. The majority of our new applicants come through word of mouth.” Another
administrator at a school with a waitlist commented, “The misperception is that students cannot
get in. We encourage people in the community to tell friends to apply.” She went on to say, “Our
website and printed materials are helpful, but the biggest seller for the school is our families, we
always encourage families and trustees when they hear comments about not getting kids in that
they say absolutely not. It is more about the right fit.”
As previously stated in this study, the Honolulu independent school market has been
dominated by a few large schools with strong reputations for being selective in admissions.
Many of those interviewed expressed the opinion that even with great word of mouth for their
school, the competition from the “elite” schools made it difficult for small schools to grow.
The lead administrator at a kindergarten to 12th-grade school referred to the larger schools when
she compared her smaller word of mouth platform mentioning, “They have thousands of alumni
spreading word of mouth, which we cannot compete against because of their bigness and legacy.
It does not matter if we are the right fit for their child.” While this may be the prevailing attitude
among schools in the Honolulu area, some of the small school leaders believe they serve a niche
market and use the power of word of mouth to propel prospective applicants to take action.
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Parent Participants in the Interviews
Eleven parents from the selected small schools in Honolulu participated in a semi-
structured one-to-one interview. The focus of the interview was to determine the parent’s pre-
inquiry admissions attitude and knowledge about the school and what attributes they desired in
an independent school. The parents were presented with specific marketing messages and media
and then asked to describe which method the school used to best convey the desirable attributes.
The parents were asked what message and media best influenced their understanding of the
school’s brand and what factors led to the enrollment of their child.
The parents who participated in the interviews had not gone through the process of
enrolling their child or the child’s siblings in their current school in the past. The purpose of
picking the first-time enrolled families was to explore what their attitude was going into the
process and what influenced them to enroll their child. None of the parents who took part in the
interviews had other children at different schools. The administrator of the schools that
participated in the interviews in the previous section of this study selected the parent participants.
All the parents, except for one had heard of the school before the search process and
acknowledged that they had an impression of the school before starting the enrollment. The one
parent who was not aware of the school before the inquiry phase began, had not moved to
Honolulu until a few months before school commenced.
The Attributes That Influenced Enrollment from the Parent’s Perspective
Table 21. Attributes Cited by Parents that Influenced Enrollment of Their Child in a Small
Hawaii Independent School
Student is Known/Relationship
Small Class Size/School

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Safe Environment
Access to Teachers/Staff
Location
Pedagogy
Religious Affiliation
Placement in Receiver School
Peers
Price
In Table 21, parents cited attributes which influenced the enrollment of their child in
their current school. The most commonly cited attributes for parents was that their child would
be known on campus. All eleven parents strongly agreed that the strength of the school they
selected was that teachers and administrators knew their child. One of the parents confirmed,
“The size of the school and the fact that the whole school comes together every morning was a
key factor and that there is a sense of community. That was very important to my husband and
myself.” Parents were impressed that the teachers and staff knew their child’s name. “We liked
that the Head of School greets the students each morning using their name,” asserted a parent.
All of the participants affirmed that the school's use of effective marketing showed the
positive benefits of a small independent school and the personal relationships families form.
Along with the small school environment, the participants indicated that they appreciated the
small class size and the student/teacher ratio. The participants were unanimous in their opinion
that large classes presented an impersonal learning environment. “If our child would have
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difficulty, we were confident that they would receive the help they needed,” assured a parent
participant.
Safety was cited as a primary factor in the decision process. The participants stressed that
the small environment made for a more secure school. None of the parents mentioned the
physical characteristics of the school as providing safety. The contention from all of those
interviewed was that the people on campus provide a more secure setting. One parent of an
incoming student expressed, “I mostly wanted a place that felt maternal because she is spending
her day in school and not with her family. I wanted her to be in a place that is comfortable, safe,
and not rigid or cold.”
Along with the small, safe, school environment, parents were also looking for access to
teachers. Schools that incorporated teachers in the enrollment process impressed the parents. One
school made sure that the child's future teacher reached out to the family during the enrollment
phase. Parents in this study indicated that they liked the idea that teachers would respond to them
and their child. A parent who selected a school that offers multi-age classrooms commented,
“Everything was done in teams, so our child gets the attention of one teacher or the other.”
Many of the schools had a lead teacher and an assistant in the classroom, especially in the
younger grades. The parents who enrolled their child in one of these schools cited that they felt
that their children had a better chance of getting their needs met.
Parents seemed more concerned with the location of the school than the administrators
who participated in the study. While each administrator cited location as either being a positive
or negative attribute, all eleven identified other factors to be more meaningful to parents. Parents,
during the interview phase, named location to be extremely important in how they identified the
school's brand. Many cited the green space at some of the schools or the ease of drop off and
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pick up was easy on the way to work. Another school, which was not known for being a
convenient location, struggles with getting prospective students on campus. A parent who
selected the school for their daughter commented, “even though it is out of the way, it is such a
beautiful campus and in a nice area, that we can make the drive and still feel good about it.”
The pedagogy of a school would seem to be the most vital element of their branding.
While every parent interviewed stated that the curriculum was relevant, it was outweighed by the
previously mentioned attributes. Schools with identifiable historical pedagogy seemed to fare
better with parents placing value in that as a positive attribute. The parents who selected schools
with deep-rooted educational philosophies, such as Montessori or Waldorf, identified more
strongly with the curriculum. A mother with a young child at a Waldorf school stated, “even if I
move I will always look for another Waldorf school." Another parent participant said, "we love
the teachers at this school, but the Montessori practices sold us.”
Some of the schools that participated have a rich academic tradition that parents
recognize. One parent of a six-year-old stated, “we didn’t want a cookie cutter kind of school
where they mold all their kids. We like that each child learns at their own pace.” A participant,
who is also a teacher at another school, met some of the faculty at a professional development
workshop and was impressed with how they were teaching. “the more you learn about the school
you find out if it is a good fit or not. When we were on tour, a parent asked about the lack of
textbooks, proving it is not for everyone.”
Eight of the eleven schools that participated in the interviews had a religious affiliation.
The schools were affiliated in some form with the Catholic, Episcopal, Nazarene, or Lutheran
Churches. The parents who participated and sent their child to one of the faith-based schools
cited to some degree that selecting the school was based on Christian principles. “My husband
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went to Catholic school and wanted to have that environment for our kids,” asserted a mother,
who went to a secular private school when she was a student. Another parent selected an
Episcopal school, because even though she was turned off by mainstream religion, she
commented, “I want my children to get the values and character that this school can give.”
Honolulu, as previously was stated, has several large schools that dominate the market.
Only three of the small schools that took part in the interviews went past 8th grade. The other
schools often feed into the larger schools. Schools will market their acceptance rate into “schools
of choice,” much like high schools list where their graduates attend university. The parents that
took part in the interview did not express as much concern as would have been anticipated. One
parent whose child is in kindergarten mentioned, “our daughter is too young to be prepping for
another private school.” There was a strong sense of confidence that their children would get the
skills they needed and would find the school that fits their learning style in the future. This
attitude may be indicating a shift in the market, or it may also be contributed to the younger age
of the participant's children.
Parents often have preconceived ideas about what their child’s peer group will be like at a
private school. Except for the family that had just moved to Honolulu, all the parents in this
study said they already knew children at the school. Honolulu is a diverse city both racially and
economically. One parent at a historically favorite school said her perception changed after
visiting the campus. “I was a little concerned before the tour that he would be surrounded by
certain types of kids or parents would surround us, but I found it to be very inclusive, and not
elitist.” All of the parents acknowledged that they had heard good things about their child’s peer
group, and it reflected well on the character of the school.

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The tuition of the schools that participated in the interview ranged from $10,800 to
$22,000 per year. Each school offered some degree of financial assistance based on need. One of
the schools qualified for free or reduced lunch. Even with the high cost of living in Hawaii, the
group of parents who were interviewed did not mention the price of their child’s education on
their own. When it was brought up to the parents, all perceived the value of education justified
their enrollment in their current school. A single mother who participated in the interview
commented, “I didn’t even think about the price. I just wanted him to be with friends, but after
he was accepted, then I was like wow this is quite a bit more than I expected.” Another parent
mentioned, “affording school is hard, but I love it here.”
The participating parents indicated that the schools send a strong message that the
schools are affordable. One participant stated, “price is a killer, but they help you out in any way
they can. From our first visit, they were like, let us see what we can do to have you be here.”
There was a consensus that all eleven schools did a great job of messaging about affordability.
One parent summed up her feelings about tuition when she said, “tuition does play a factor, of
course, you see it and say oh my gosh, but that is why we work so hard, and you can't really put a
price on education.”
The Type of Media Parents Cited that Influenced Enrollment
Table 22. The form of Marketing Media that Influenced Enrollment in a Small Independent
School in Hawaii
Word of Mouth
Website
Open House/Event
Tours
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Social Media
Honolulu Magazine
Television/Radio
Banners
Newspapers
Table 22 shows the media tools used by contributing schools from the most effective to
the least likely to influence parents to enroll their child. The marketing media that influenced
each parent in this study to first visit the school and later to enroll was cited to be word of mouth.
The scenario that was heard consistently was that a group of friends or work colleagues would
discuss where their child was going to school and their impressions. Word of mouth was either
positive or negative. Depending on the relationship of the people talking word of mouth would
either peak interest or give a lasting impression that the school did not have the right attributes
that would warrant further steps. One of the participants stated, “my friend enrolled her son here,
and I trust her, so that made it easy to inquire about my child.” Another parent mentioned, “we
have friends here that have kids a few years older, and they loved it. You mostly go through
word of mouth, and those referrals are better than advertisements. You start to ask everyone
where they are applying and what they think.”
An informal network is created where parents discuss schools. This network can make or
break enrollment. One school experienced a conflict, which enabled negative word of mouth. A
parent who ignored the negative talk and enrolled their child despite the talk said, “people don't
always get the whole story straight, so you have to trust yourself." Word of mouth often drives
the consumer to check other sources for information.

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The participants in the interview looked for other forms of communication after hearing
about the school through word of mouth. Each parent mentioned that they looked at the school
website after hearing about the school from friends or knew about the reputation of the school.
Exploring various schools’ websites was particularly useful for a prospective family who moved
to Honolulu during the summer before school began. The participant said, “we started our search
by looking for websites of Catholic schools in the area where we were moving.” The websites
generally give useful information and can leave a strong impression on the potential consumer.
One parent stated, “some schools had a junk website, and that turned me off.” The quality of the
website and the ease of browsing left an impression on the participants.
Each of the schools held either an open house or an event to attract potential enrollees.
Parents seemed to appreciate the chance to get on campus and to get to talk firsthand with
representatives from the school. Four of the schools hold themed events, which attract larger
audiences and yield follow up tours and applications. “My first time on campus was when I came
for a festival in the fall, I never really thought about the school before that, but I followed up
with a tour, and now we have two children here,” commented a participant. HAIS also holds a
school admissions fair each year which attracts a large crowd. Only two of the parents
interviewed said they attended.
Each of the schools in the study offered a personalized tour for prospective families. Each
interview contributor mentioned the tour as being useful. The participants with high schools,
incorporate their current students on the tours. One mother of a junior said, “getting to have
someone close to my daughter's age helped her to feel more welcome.” The goal of the tour was
to establish a relationship and give a firsthand experience to the prospective student. One of the
parents added, “after the tour, I felt validated because the admin director knew my child.”
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Another parent stated, “A lot of the schools sound alike on paper, so I made an appointment to
come see for myself. I was impressed with the students, that I came away and said I want my
child here.”
Social media allows parents to stay up-to-date on events and happenings at a school. No
participant in the interview felt that social media influenced their decision to enroll, but each said
they did follow the school on either Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. The parents acknowledged
that they saw the Honolulu Magazine Private School edition. The overall impression was that it
was good to help spread the message about the school, but it did not have an impact on
enrollment.
Parents did not cite television, radio, banners, or newspapers having any significant
influence on enrollment. One parent said, “being on TV or the radio makes the school look good
and keeps our name out there, but I'm not sure anyone decides where I'm sending my child to
school based on it.” Another parent summed up their feelings when they said, “it is just about
the relationship you have with people at the school, the other ads, keep us informed.”
Summary
The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived effectiveness of using specific
schools in Hawaii. The qualitative data was collected from Hawaii independent schools’
administrators, asked for their perceptions of the effectiveness of their marketing message and
media. The surveys produced data based on the perceptions of the administrators about their
knowledge of how their school incorporates marketing to produce brand awareness and increase
enrollment. The interviews were conducted with lead administrators and separately with parents,
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who had enrolled their children in the participating schools. This section of the study allowed for
the use of qualitative data, which enhanced and added depth to the survey results.
The research results demonstrated that Hawaii independent school administrators and
parents perceived the impact of marketing to be useful in creating a consumer action specifically,
brand awareness and enrollment. Specific marketing tools were used in creating the consumer
action. This study found that administrators had a general knowledge of the scope of a marketing
plan, but often confused the use of media as a strategy for marketing. The research phase of a
school's potential market was often overshadowed by the method of delivery of an intended
message.
The research affirmed that Hawaii independent schools benefited from a purposeful and
well-crafted marketing plan, which included building and maintaining relationships. Relationship
marketing methods, such as open houses, social media, tours, and personal contact was found to
have the most significant impact on the enrollment process. Despite the challenges associated
with marketing in a competitive school environment, administrators demonstrated they have a
grasp on the needs of the consumer group they serve and produce useful marketing messages.
Hawaii small schools struggle with creating a budget, time allotment, and the personnel to enrich
their school's brand awareness and increase enrollment. While no two small schools had identical
challenges, the research clearly illustrated the difficulties they faced competing in an
independent school market dominated by established large schools with established reputations.
Chapter one introduced the study’s problem of practice, purpose, and research questions.
Chapter two outlined the process of reviewing the literature for relevant content to inform the
research. Chapter three defined the study’s method of collecting and interpreting the data.
Chapter four presented the research findings collected from the survey with depth provided from
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the responses to the one-to-one interviews. Chapter five reviews and answers the research
questions, interprets and aligns the findings with relevant literature, provides recommendations
and establishes conclusions about the study.

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Chapter 5
Interpretation of Findings
The qualitative study examined Hawaii Independent School administrators’ and parents’
perceptions of marketing strategies and the associated messages and media which effectively
influenced brand awareness and enrollment growth. There were two phases of the study. The
first phase employed a sequential exploratory strategy using a survey distributed to all HAIS
member school administrators. The second phase consisted of separately conducted one-to-one
interviews with eleven administrators and eleven parents who had selected an independent
school to enroll their child. The study produced data regarding marketing plans, school attributes,
the content of messages, implementation, brand awareness, and enrollment results.
Literature and research support the use of marketing strategies to develop a message
about a school’s brand and has demonstrated that parents find value in a school’s attributes.
Schools that employed marketing strategies that delivered an accurate and enticing message, and
in a platform that parents valued, produced enrollment. The research was framed in Fishbein’s
Multi-Attribute Attitude Model, where specific questions were designed to probe the participants
regarding the content of the marketing message. The presentation of the perceptions of the
school administrators, regarding the value of the method and message of marketing the school
attributes encouraged parents to take action. This research examined if the perceptions of the
school administrators matched the parent's experience. This chapter will interpret the findings of
the research, and present conclusions, recommendations, and implications of the study.
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Review of Research Questions
Research Question #1
What marketing message and media, if any, is used in a school’s strategic marketing plan that
can be perceived by administrators and prospective parents as effectively influencing consumer
attitude toward a school’s brand?
A school’s brand is the identifiable attributes or impressions, both internally and
externally, that make the school unique. The survey indicated that administrators who identified
that they had either a formal or informal marketing plan, felt strongly that their plan was
effective in influencing stakeholders with the identification of the school's brand. The message a
school portrays in their branding has to match what the prospective parents of enrolling students
value.
Internally the message of a school’s brand has to be accurate and agreed upon by the
majority of their stakeholders. School’s that have an unrealistic perception of their brand or how
their potential consumers view them, face a difficult time matching the message with reality.
Externally, school’s that have a brand that is recognizable because of pedagogy or reputation
face the challenge of educating their potential consumers between what is real and what is
perception. In the study, it was found that schools with specific curriculums still faced either
misperception of what they offered or parents enrolled their child because the culture was a fit.
Interestingly, schools associated with Waldorf, Montessori, or who had church affiliations, still
struggled with how the consumers viewed their brand.
This study revealed that the majority of administrators had a deep understanding of what
their school offers concerning their academics and culture. What many administrators lacked was
the resources, specifically, time, budget, and personnel, to conduct an in-depth market analysis to
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better develop strategies for brand awareness. The administrators at many of the small and larger
schools that directly compete against the historically dominant schools, could not afford the
market research to develop a strategy to increase brand awareness. Many of the school’s lacked
marketing research that could provide the administration with an accurate picture of their
attributes and the method of communication that best suited their consumer base.
Based on the literature and this research, the development of relationships appeared to be
the method most used to convey brand awareness. Small schools built their reputations on
personal and nurturing environments. Students needs being met was a top priority of the
administrators at the small schools. They cited overwhelmingly, that the relationships between
the students, parents and the teachers defined their schools. The small school brand promoted the
benefits of being known and a better student/teacher ratio. The perception of the majority of the
administrators was that their brand message revolved around the care a student receives from a
small school which in turn outweighed the attributes of a larger school.
The message of the brand was conveyed through relationships. Referrals or word of
mouth was found to be the best source of communication when informing consumers about the
school's attributes. Current families, friends, neighbors, and alumni transmit the brand message
to potential consumers. Schools that had conducted market research, and designed a word of
mouth strategy, appeared to control their message with great purpose and success.
The administrators viewed the use of social media as a means to produce brand
awareness, and in some cases, control the message. Facebook and Instagram afforded schools
with a relatively low-cost method of producing consumer awareness for the school’s programs
and culture. Platforms where negative comments can to an extent be blocked or deleted, allowed
schools to present their brand in a format where the message is controlled. Many administrators
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in this study cited that negative messages on social media can produce damage. Overall, social
media enhanced the relationships with their community concerning the school's brand. Websites
were also referred to as a reliable source of information. The importance of a website was
apparent in this study. School's produce a message to consumers that is controlled internally.
The website engages the consumer with information, a call to action, and procedures to move
forward. Social media is a significant component in executing a relationship marketing strategy.
While many administrators did not verbalize their understanding of relationship marketing, they
did acknowledge that schools cannot exist without relationships.
What marketing message and media used by Hawaii independent schools are perceived by the
school’s administration to be the most effective for increasing enrollment?
The survey and interview phases of this study revealed that many independent schools
identified that they had a marketing strategy in place, but often did not have a formal research-
based plan. After discussing the development of a formal marketing plan with interview
participants, the common perception of school administrators was that the methods of
communication defined their strategy. Except for two administrators in the interview, all the
other participants acknowledged that very little research had been accomplished that defined
their potential audience. The interview phase of the research disclosed that the administrators
viewed marketing as employing media to increase brand awareness and ultimately increase
enrollment. Feedback or data was rarely collected to determine effectiveness.
Enrollment and tuition generally produced the primary stream of revenue for the
independent schools that participated in this study. Some of the schools had limited openings and
a waitlist, while others struggled to fill seats. A few of the schools had increased enrollment over
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the past two years, some maintained enrollment patterns, while others had experienced near
critical losses. In any case, all participants agreed that matching the attributes of the school with
the desired needs of the student, generally produced enrollment.
It is difficult to prove that there is a direct causation between a marketing plan and
enrollment. The research and the literature indicate that without the essential elements of a
marketing plan, there is less certainty that schools have statistical evidence of their consumer
base, what attributes interest parents, and the best method of communication that results in
creating an action. School’s employed media to communicate their attributes.
The perception of the administrators was that there was an association between word of
mouth and enrollment. A trend that occurred in both the survey and interviews was that positive
word of mouth led to an action. Often after hearing about the school from someone they trusted,
the potential consumer followed up by either going on the school website or exploring on
Facebook or other social media outlets. A call to action, such as attending a school-sponsored
event, an open house, scheduling a tour, or a phone call followed after the initial word of mouth.
According to the participants, the call to action created a relationship resulting in either an
application or led the potential student in a different direction. To a lesser extent other tools of
media, such as television, radio, newspapers, or magazines influenced enrollment.
Administrators often cited various forms of media as necessary to create name recognition, but
rarely experienced a direct correlation between forms of advertisement and enrollment.
What were the marketing messages and media cited by parents in making their decision to select
an independent school in Hawaii?

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The use of specific marketing messages and media can be identified as having some
relationship to creating the action of enrollment for a student in Hawaii independent schools.
Parents responded in this study, that they weigh the attributes a school has to offer with the value
they place on what a school can offer before they elect to enroll their child. When the attributes
align with the perceived value and the message has been delivered in a platform that parents cite
as effective, enrollment often occurs. Schools which design their message to feature their
attributes produce the desired result of enrollment.
The goal of a school marketing strategy is to increase consumer awareness and to use
media, and other outlets to match attributes with consumer needs. The parents responded in this
study that they valued that their child was in a small, safe, school environment, where they have
easy access to teachers and staff. Location of the school in Honolulu, where traffic patterns are
inconsistent, decreased the likelihood of enrollment. While academic pedagogy played a key
role, parents cited they found it to be a contributing factor with their decision, but not the only
measure before enrolling. Parents interviewed in this study at faith-based schools cited religion
as a deciding factor in the process. It was interesting to note that price was not mentioned as a
factor during the interviews until after their child was enrolled. It appears that the attributes
justified the financial cost, although schools providing financial assistance, was not in the scope
of this study.
Through the research, survey, and interviews, it is clear that a potential enrollee, may
make contact after hearing about the school through an association with someone, through word
of mouth, attendance at an event, contact with an admission representative, took a tour or made
contact through some form of media. Once there had been a connection between the consumer
and the school, a relationship was formed and the participants were taken through the enrollment
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process, including acceptance or rejection from one or both parties. In a setting where a
relationship is part of the marketing strategy, there remains contact between administrators, the
student and the family until they have finished the program.
According to parent participants, the platform used to communicate the message of the
school was important in the decision-making process. Parents confirmed the administrator’s
perceptions that a relationship can be formed and the school attributes can be communicated
through various methods. While, word of mouth, websites and social media ranked as positive
forms of messaging, parents having had a personal touch or experience with the school through
an open house, an event, or a tour helped to establish a relationship. Parents recognized the use
of magazines, radio, television, banners, and newspapers as a means to hear about the school. No
parents mentioned that traditional forms of media strongly influenced their enrollment. Yet, as
stated earlier, messaging that encouraged a relationship created a correlation between the school,
the parent, and enrollment.
Interpretation and Alignment of the Findings with the Literature
As the literature in this study documents, marketing is necessary for the viability of
independent schools. Participants in this study support the work of Read and Bick, Oplatka and
Hemsley-Brown, and Giannakis, Harker, & Baum. Administrators of independent schools are
challenged with shrinking enrollment, increased competition, and budgetary restraints.
Understanding or sourcing of marketing is essential to create a study of potential consumers,
develop a formal strategy, establish a unique school brand, identify attributes, select and deliver
a message, and collect data that ultimately produce enrollment. Educational marketing is based
on organized objectives and involves a plan, a system of analysis, designed programs, and an
exchange of values (Read & Bick, 2014).

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The literature confirms the findings of this study that the attributes of a school need to
match the message and media established through a marketing plan. The attitude of the potential
enrollee toward the school must be either confirmed or refuted compared to the message the
school is presenting and upon what platform the communication is delivered. The positive or
negative impression made through media, word of mouth, or personal visits and the distinct
qualities of a school, influences potential stakeholders. The external perception and the
recognized significance of a school often determine enrollment (Giannakis, Harker, & Baum,
2015).
The literature outlines the struggles administrators experience developing a plan that
reaches the intended consumers. The school’s management is not trained in marketing and often
cannot afford specialists. This study confirmed research by Oplatka and Hemsley-Brown, where
administrators understand the need for marketing in a competitive environment like Hawaii, but
cannot agree consistently on the value and the returns on investment. Often small schools
experienced stretched staffs resulting in the development of marketing strategies seeming less
urgent related to the safety and academic offerings at a school.
The study confirms the literature of Powell and Rey, Vander Schee, and Oplatka, that
small schools incorporate Relationship Marketing (RM) to develop marketing strategies. The
message of the school’s attributes is best communicated by purposefully developing a
relationship. The literature details some of the methods incorporated in conveying the school’s
message by thoughtfully planning to use word of mouth, open houses, personal tours, and social
media.
Other literature documents that established schools may choose to form a more
transactional relationship, where enrollment occurs with a transfer of money through tuition, and
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minimal effort is made to form a lasting relationship. In this scenario, outlined by Palmer,
Lindgreen, and Vanhamme (2005), the administrators at a school would have little to do with the
enrolling student or family after the admissions process is over. Teachers would then become the
point person for the student and parent. The transactional marketing method, to a greater extent,
does not appear to be practiced at Hawaii independent schools.
The perceptions of the administrators in this study reflect the literature about the value in
forming marketing strategies and messages based on the attributes of their schools. Meeting the
desired attributes with a clear message through the desired platform is reinforced through the
research of Stone & Woodcock and Ajzen & Fishbein, Consumers place value in a message
about desired attributes, which in turn, creates an action. In Hawaii independent schools, the
action would ideally result in brand awareness and the enrollment of students.
Implications and Recommendations for Action
Given that marketing literature supports the results of this study, the following
recommendations may assist independent school leaders in developing a strategy that can help
them address the challenges of creating strategies, brand awareness, messaging, and competing
for students to increase enrollment. The first two recommendations are specific to small
independent schools, while the third is designed to encourage further education.
Small Schools Form Partnerships to Hire Marketing Professionals
As this study and the literature has confirmed, small schools struggle with defining their
market, developing a brand message, and effectively communicating their attributes. The result
in Hawaii is that many small schools have struggled to keep enrollment at a sustainable level.
The cost of hiring marketing professionals is generally out of reach for many small schools to
include in their budgets. While only a small minority of administrators reject the notion that
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having a formal marketing plan has value, the cost and lack of professional resources prohibit
many from hiring an outside agency. Marketing professionals can form an independent profile of
the school, including a list of attributes the school offers, a demographic study, and develop a
strategy to communicate the school’s message. A professional marketing agency can deliver a
profile of consumers and target the potential enrollment opportunities. Another avenue would be
to engage a university in offering a graduate-level project or internship to conduct a marketing
analysis.
In Honolulu, many small schools face the prospect of competing against large
independent and traditionally imposing schools with an established market. Besides, independent
schools are challenged by charter and public schools. Administrators are tasked with designing
an enrollment management plan while competing for a tiny pool of applicants. Since employing
a full-time marketing coordinator is often cost prohibitive, combining resources and contracting
a marketing firm or professional to conduct a small school study, which produces data that can
inform each institution on how to proceed to increase brand awareness and attract enrollment. In
a cooperative study, the small schools would have to view themselves not as competitors, but as
filling a niche in the Honolulu market.
Small Schools Develop Data Collection Procedures
Admissions Directors are often tasked with collecting enrollment information on
prospective students. Each administrator in the interview phase of this study indicated that they
have a section on their application which asked how the prospect heard about the school. This
question is a good beginning, but needs to be expanded to collect demographic information, a
collection of desired school attributes, and the preferred methods of communication. A
recommendation from this study would be to equip small schools in Hawaii with a brief form
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that would enable schools to get a better understanding of their consumer market. It would also
allow schools to collaborate to match the needs of the student. A scenario where this
collaboration could work would be when a parent inquires at a school not equipped to deal with a
child with a specific learning challenge, or a family looking for a single-sex school or faith-based
school. The standard data collection form would allow an admissions director or administrator
to make recommendations to a school that had the attributes the prospect desired.
In many markets, this may seem far-fetched because independent schools often assume
they are competing for the same students. With accurate data, this may prove not to be the case.
While schools often share many of the same attributes, a better-defined brand awareness allows
schools to target students whom they can best serve. A collaborative may not be possible in
competitive environments, but in Honolulu where the culture encourages cooperation, a common
form to collect marketing data may allow small schools to flourish.
University and Professional Development Marketing Training
This study and the current literature validates that independent school administrators are
often tasked with understanding and designing marketing strategies. This study also confirms
that administrators are challenged with the professional skills, time, and knowledge of marketing
to successfully produce the data needed to increase brand awareness and increase enrollment.
The research points to the need for universities to offer specially designed courses for
administrators in school marketing. Many education graduate programs are including courses in
business and law. Enrollment often determines independent and charter school's existence. The
inclusion of graduate level, school marketing courses could assist education leaders to
understand a crucial part of their job.

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Organizations like the National Business Officers Association and the National
Association of Independent Schools sponsor professional development opportunities in
marketing. Lead administrators, admission directors, and staff members should be encouraged by
their board of trustees to attend these sessions. The knowledge they will gain from learning from
marketing professionals will inform their marketing strategies, and possibly enhance the
enrollment process.
Recommendations for Further Study
The lack of relevant research, specifically in marketing strategies of independent schools
in the United States, handicaps administrators looking for answers to the question of how to
create brand awareness and media messaging. Only a modest amount of research has assessed
the value of marketing and its impact on enrollment. Future research should examine the cost
benefits of customer acquisition concerning conducting a formal marketing study and media
campaign.
Researchers should continue adding studies to the literature to bridge the gap between
commercial marketing strategies and approaches that may help independent school leaders plan
large-scale initiatives. The continued study on the benefits of administrators in identifying and
matching attributes with consumer values may guide strategies which could result in the
sustainability of schools in competitive markets.
Further study about the impact of Relationship Marketing and the shift away from
transactional models is necessary to inform schools of the changes in strategies to better improve
enrollment and retention. Further research on the power of word of mouth and how to
incorporate the approach in a marketing plan that retains control over messaging would benefit
school leaders. Many school administrators rely on assumptions about their market and the
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media, to effectively communicate the value of their school. A study focusing on successful
marketing strategies at independent schools could guide leaders in creating a plan resulting in
enrollment growth.
Lastly, when considering recommendations based on this study, future research can address
how to create value which addresses market needs. A study may look at how a school rebrands
itself when enrollment is declining. In competitive markets, many small independent schools
struggle to exist. Schools that have faced a crisis need research that suggests the tools to reimage
the message to their stakeholders. This current study touches on perceptions and should inspire
more research to produce data to address the future needs of independent schools outside of
Hawaii.
Conclusion
The purpose of this study was to produce research on the perceived effectiveness of using
specific marketing and branding strategies to increase retention and enrollment of students in
independent schools in Honolulu, Hawaii. The research confirmed through qualitative data that
administrators perceived significance in specific marketing messages and media used by Hawaii
independent schools.
A new perspective for enrollment management was provided by incorporating Fishbein’s
Multi-Attribute Theory (1997) to frame questions about the value of a school’s attributes and its
relationship to using specific marketing tools to create a consumer action. Independent school
administrators, in Hawaii, understand the challenges of competing for students and the creation
of brand awareness has proven to be essential in their continued viability as an educational
institution. The lack of understanding or employment of a formal marketing strategy makes
enrollment growth unpredictable at best.

121
This study adds to the existing literature on the marketing of independent schools by
providing data, which can be used to enhance strategies to influence brand awareness and
enrollment. Hawaii independent schools can incorporate the perceived applicable practices that
encourage messaging, which could result in attracting and retaining students. While this study
did not seek to prove that there is direct causation between marketing and enrollment, it provided
data to support the perception by administrators that a robust marketing strategy could provide
schools with tools to contend in a competitive market.

122
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131
APPENDIX A
Survey
What is your position at the school? (Can be more than one role)
____ Lead Administrator (Head of School/President/Director)
____ Principal/Dean
____ Marketing Director
____ Admissions Director
____ Support Staff
What is your current enrollment?

1-300 300-600 600-1000 1000-3000 3000+
Does your school have a formal marketing plan?

Yes No
As the lead administrator how would you characterize your involvement in developing the
marketing plan?
Involved Involved Uninvolved Uninvolved Uninvolved
How do you perceive the effectiveness of the marketing plan?

Effective Effective Ineffective Ineffective Ineffective
Since implementing the marketing plan how would characterize your enrollment growth?
Do you have a designated marketing person at your school?

Yes No
Would you employ an outside marketing agency to help develop a strategy?

Yes No
Would you consider hiring a dedicated marketing professional?

132
Since implementing the marketing plan how would characterize your enrollment growth?
How would you rate your knowledge of your target audience?

Good Good Bad Bad Bad
How important is it to collect data on:
Age of parents
Important Important Unimportant Unimportant Unimportant
Parent’s occupation
Demographic information of your customer base

How likely do you feel parents will cite the following school attributes as the reason they
enrolled their child in your school?
Class size
Likely Likely Unlikely Unlikely Unlikely
Teacher/student ratio
Facilities
133
Proximity to home
Teaching staff
Academic curriculum
Relationships within the school

Access to teachers
Peer relations amongst students

Price
Financial aid
Religious affiliation
134
Athletics
Social status/networking opportunities

How likely would a teacher at your school be able to describe your brand to an interested
parent?
How would you rate your competitive advantage over other schools in your market?
How effective do you feel your marketing efforts established a relationship with the
students and their families?
How likely are interested parents going to see your school on TV?
How effective do you feel TV advertisements have been in influencing a parent to enroll
their child in your school?
How likely are interested parents going to hear about your school through radio
advertising?
135
How effective do you feel radio advertising has been on influencing a parent to enroll their
child in your school?
How likely are interested parents going to visit your website?

How effective do you feel your website has been in influencing a parent to enroll their child
in your school?
How likely are interested parents going to attend an Open House?

How likely are open houses cited as influencing a parent to enroll their child in your
school?
How likely are interested parents going to cite word of mouth as an influence when
enrolling their child?
How likely are parents to cite social media as an influence when enrolling their child?
How would you rate your presence on Facebook in communicating your school brand?
136
How would you rate your presence on Twitter in communicating your school brand?
How would you rate your presence on Instagram in communicating your school brand?
How effective are blogs in communicating your school brand?

Is there anything else you would like to share about your perception of the effectiveness of
your implementation of your school’s marketing strategies?
137
APPENDIX B
Interview Guide
The twelve participating schools will be asked to arrange access for a meeting with the lead
administrator and a parent of a newly enrolled student. The meeting will be individual semi-
structured interviews. Each interview should last approximately 10 minutes.
Welcome Participants
● Introduce myself as the facilitator. Thank them for their participation in the case study.
● Provide brief overview of the subject: “The purpose of this study is to explore the perceived
effectiveness of using specific marketing and branding strategies to increase retention and
enrollment of students in independent schools in Honolulu, Hawaii.” For Parents: “I will be
asking you today about your perception of the effectiveness of different types of marketing
techniques and asking you to comment on what attracted you (or what attributes) the
marketing message provided that resulted in your decision to enroll your child.” For school
personnel: “I will be asking you today about your perception of the effectiveness of different
types of marketing techniques used by the school to attract new students.” Provide examples.
● Review confidentiality and voluntary nature of the case study.
Explain Interview Process

● Facilitator asks questions of the individuals, clarifies terms, and summarizes
● Facilitator will take notes.
● Explain that the individuals with their permission will be recorded on an audiotape and
that it will be erased after the information has been compiled
Establish Ground Rules

● Remind participants no names will be cited.
● Encourage individuals that they can answer in detail.
● Explain that the semi-structured nature of the interview allows for follow up discussions.
● There are no right or wrong answers.
● Free to end the interview at any time.
Conclusion of the Interview

● Thank the participants and offer to share the final results of the research.
138
APPENDIX C
Semi-structured Interview for Educators (Administrators and Teachers)
● Are you aware if your school has a formal marketing plan and what does marketing mean
to you?
● If you have a formal plan how and when was the marketing plan developed?
● Did your school employ an outside marketing agency or develop the plan in-house with a
designated marketing employee?
● How would you describe your school’s customer base and demographic?
● How do you perceive the effectiveness on enrollment of the marketing plan?
● What school attributes do your enrolling students and parents like best?
● What do you perceive to be your school’s competitive advantage?
● How effective do you feel your marketing effort establishes a relationship with the
students and their families?
● Which of the following do you perceive to be the most effective communication
techniques in promoting your school brand: earned media, word of mouth. paid
advertising. internet marketing, social networks, open house, event
● What are some of the challenges in marketing your school in Honolulu?
● What are other ideas or comments you’d like to share?
139
APPENDIX D
Semi-structured Interview for Parents
● Can you describe the attributes you look for in an independent school for your child?
● How did you hear about the school you enrolled your child in?
● Can you describe your attitude about the school before making contact with them?
● How did you make contact with the school?
● Which forms of communication did you receive from the school after you made contact?
● Are you aware of the school using earned media, word of mouth, paid advertising.
internet marketing, social networks, open house, event. If so can you give examples?
● Which of those marketing techniques was the most helpful in making your decision?
● How does this school maintain communication with you and do you feel that the school
values your ongoing relationship?
● How would you describe this school’s brand?
● What were the major influences that caused you to enroll your child?
● How much did price factor in on your decision to enroll your child?
● As a parent, do you feel a part of the marketing effort?
● What are other ideas or comments you’d like to share?
140
APPENDIX E
Participant Outreach –Parents
Participant Outreach - Parent/Guardian
Title of the Research Study: Marketing Approaches Used In Independent Schools: Analysis of
the Perceived Effectiveness of Marketing in Hawaii Independent Schools
Dear __________
My name is Tim Spurrier and I am a graduate student in the Educational Leadership doctorate
program at the University of New England. I am conducting a research study designed to
investigate the perceived effectiveness of the use of marketing techniques for the purpose of
brand awareness and enrollment for Hawaii independent schools.
You are invited to participate in this research study. The following information is
provided in order to help you to make an informed decision on whether or not you would like to
participate. If you have any questions at any time, please do not hesitate to ask.
You have been selected by the administration of _____________________ to participate

in this study. The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of marketing approaches
used in independent schools in Hawaii. The area of concentration for this research study will
focus on your perception of the effective use of marketing techniques to inform your decision to
enroll your child in school. You will be asked to describe what attributes you were looking for
in an independent school and how the school made you aware of their brand.
Your participation will be part of a study where selected parents, educators, and
administrators from your school will meet individually with the researcher to explore the
school’s effectiveness in marketing. Each participant will be asked to take part in a one-to-one
semi-structured interview. The interview will be conducted at your child’s school in a private
setting and will last 10-15 minutes. With your consent, the interview will be recorded through an
audio device and written notes. There will be no students included in this study.
Your participation is completely voluntary. You may choose to answer only the questions with
which you feel comfortable and can discontinue participation at any time. Some of the data may
be used for future research purposes consistent with the original purpose stated in the consent
141
document. The final data will be stored for a period of no longer than two years after which it
will be destroyed.
Every effort will be made for you to remain anonymous, but there is a risk of loss of privacy.
However, no names or any other identifying information will appear in any published reports of
the research. The research material will be kept in a secure location, and only I will have access
to the data. At the conclusion of the study, all audiotapes of interviews will be deleted and any
other identifying information from the transcripts will be removed.
If you have any additional questions concerning your child’s rights, you may contact Tim
Spurrier at telephone 803-221-6460.
Documentation of Informed Consent
You are voluntarily making a decision whether or not to participate in this research study. Your
signature certifies that you have agreed to participate having read and understood the information
presented. You will be given a copy of this consent form to keep.
____________________________________ __________________________
Signature of Participant Date
142
APPENDIX F
Participant Outreach –Educators
Participant Outreach – Administrators, Staff, Teachers
Title of the Research Study: Marketing Approaches Used In Independent Schools:
Analysis of the Perceived Effectiveness of Marketing in Hawaii Independent Schools
Dear __________
My name is Tim Spurrier and I am a graduate student in the Educational Leadership doctorate
program at the University of New England. I am conducting a research study designed to
investigate the perceived effectiveness of the use of marketing techniques for the purpose of brand
awareness and enrollment for Hawaii independent schools.
You are invited to participate in this research study. The following information is provided in
order to help you to make an informed decision whether or not you would like to participate. If
you have any questions at any time, please do not hesitate to ask.
You have been selected because of your position at _____________________ to participate in
this study. The purpose of this study is to examine the perceived effectiveness of marketing
approaches used in independent schools in Hawaii. The area of concentration for this research
study will focus on your perception of the effective use of marketing techniques to inform
parents of the school’s attributes and to enroll their child. You will be asked to describe what
your knowledge of the school’s attributes, marketing plan, implementation, and effects on
enrollment. Your participation will be part of a study where selected parents, educators, and
administrators from your school will meet individually with the researcher to explore the
143
school’s effectiveness in marketing. Each participant will be asked to take part in a one-to-one
semi-structured interview. The interview will be conducted at your school in a private setting and
will last 10-15 minutes. With your consent, the interview will be recorded through an audio
device and written notes. There will be no students included in this study.
Your participation is completely voluntary. You may choose to answer only the questions with
which you feel comfortable and can discontinue participation at any time. Some of the data may
be used for future research purposes consistent with the original purpose stated in the consent
document. The final data will be stored for a period of no longer than two years after which it
will be destroyed.
Every effort will be made for you to remain anonymous, but there is a risk of loss of privacy.
However, no names or any other identifying information will appear in any published reports of
the research. The research material will be kept in a secure location, and only I will have access
to the data. At the conclusion of the study, all audiotapes of interviews will be deleted and any
other identifying information from the transcripts will be removed.
If you have any additional questions concerning your child’s rights, you may contact Tim
Spurrier at telephone 803-221-6460.

144
Documentation of Informed Consent
You are voluntarily making a decision whether or not to participate in this research study. Your
signature certifies that you have agreed to participate having read and understood the information
presented. You will be given a copy of this consent form to keep.
____________________________________ __________________________
Signature of Participant Date

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University of New England

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Marketing Approaches Used In Independent Schools: Analysis Of

Follow this and additional works at: https://dune.une.edu/theses

Part of the Educational Leadership Commons

© 2018 Tim Spurrier

Marketing in Hawaii Independent Schools

BS Towson University 1982

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For the degree of Doctor of Education

Portland & Biddeford, Maine

MARKETING APPROACHES USED IN INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS: ANALYSIS OF THE

PERCEIVED EFFECTIVENESS OF MARKETING IN HAWAII INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS

This qualitative study examined Hawaii independent schools’ administrator’s perceptions

enrollment trends are not encouraging.

allowed for questions to be designed to determine school administrators’ and parents’

distributed to Hawaii independent schools inquiring to administrators about their perception of

Michelle Collay, Ph.D., Lead Advisor

Brianna Parsons, Ed.D., Secondary Advisor

Margaret Friedman Ph.D., Affiliated Committee Member

each step of the way.

CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE…………………………………….………………21

Unique Branding of Independent Schools…………………….…….…….……………..23

Attributes of a Small School……………………………………….………….…25

Case Studies and Anecdotal Accounts…………………………….…………….26

Student Experience Management…………………………………….………….27

Admission and Enrollment Strategies……………………………………...……33

Admission and Enrollment Strategies……………………………………….…...39

Acceptance of Marketing in Education…………………………………………..41

Marketing Indicating a Lack of Prestige………………………………………………....45

Marketing of Independent K-6 Schools to Increase Enrollment using Niche Marketing..46

Data and Analysis…………………………………….………………….……………...58

CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH FINDINGS…………………………………….………………….65

Marketing Plans and Strategies……………………….……………….………………..69

Beliefs about Personnel Needs for Marketing……………………….…….…................70

Media and Messaging of the School Brand………………….………………………….79

Marketing’s Effects on Enrollment…………....………………………………..............81

The Effective Use of Media on Enrollment………....………………………………….84

Relationship Marketing Approaches for Increasing Enrollment……………………….90

Parent Participants in the Interviews…………………………………………...............97

The Attributes That Influenced Enrollment from the Parent’s Perspective……………97

The Type of Media Parents Cited that Influenced Enrollment…...……….…………..102

CHAPTER 5: INTERPRETATION OF FINDINGS…………………………………………108

Review of Research Questions…………....…………………………………………..109

Interpretation and Alignment of Findings with Literature……….…………………...114

Implications and Recommendations for Action………………………………………116

Small Schools Form Partnerships to Hire Marketing Professionals………….116

Small Schools Develop Data Collection Procedures...……………………….117

University and Professional Development Marketing Training……….……..118

Recommendations for Further Study…………………………….…………………...119

APPENDIX B: INTERVIEW GUIDE……………………………...……………...………...137

APPENDIX C: SEMI-STRUCTURED FOR EDUCATORS………………………………..138

APPENDIX D: SEMI-STRUCTURED FOR PARENTS……………….…………………...139

APPENDIX E: PARTICIPANT OUTREACH-PARENTS…………….……………………140

APPENDIX F: PARTICIPANT OUTREACH-EDUCATORS………….…………………..142

1. Self-Identified Job Titles of the Survey Participants……………………………………66

2. Current School Enrollment of Participating Schools in the Survey……………….........67

4. Schools with a Designated Marketing Employee…………………………………........70