WE SEE IT In March 2021 we launched our new website and school film as part of our marketing strategy and rebranding and both have been met with a great deal of positive feedback from prospective parents, overseas agents and our school community. Head of Marketing & Admissions, Joanna Conway, who joined Shebbear in summer 2020, explains the thinking behind the concept. Why did you decide to create a school film as one of your main projects?
unique selling point (USP) was definitely the fact that, being a small school, we really do know every single pupil individually and because of this, we are able to provide a tailored learning experience for them. The second theme was that not many people know about us - I think we were described quite often as a hidden gem in the comments. I didn’t want us to be a hidden gem, I wanted us to be a gem that people knew about! A film that could capture the spirit of Shebbear College would be a great way to spread the word about us and increase our digital presence as a school, something that was high on my list of priorities. The film, along with the website, became my two main projects for the next few months.
When I joined Shebbear during lockdown one of the first things I did was to send out an online survey to all our staff members to find out a bit more about the school, what they felt were our strong points and what was unique about us. I am an Old Shebbearian and so I know a bit about the school, but I wanted to find out how it had changed and how it was perceived now. The comments that came back were really positive and there were a couple of themes that emerged - the first was that our
How did you decide what was going to be in the film? I first met with All Told, the company that produced the film, in the autumn term. Following this there was a lot of research: The film crew spoke at length to our pupils and staff to find out their thoughts about the school and to plan the story we wanted to tell. It was less about the actual subjects being taught or shown, but rather to portray a feeling, to evoke emotion in the watcher and to be ‘real’. So many school films just feel a bit staged and I wanted this to be different.
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THE SHEBBEARIAN 2021
