How can we get parent emails?
In email campaigns to prospective students, how can you engage the parents intentionally if the emails are going to the student's inbox?
For Gen Alpha, parents are their top go-to source of information. That means parents need to be treated as a primary audience—one with distinct questions, concerns, and influence.
But getting their email addresses is easier said than done. Here’s what I’d try:
Students as the conduit.
Add a P.S. at the end of your email: “P.S. Forward this to your parents.”
Give students prompts to bring up at dinner (“Ask your parents what dates may be good for a visit…”)
Add a parent email field to your forms (expect only about 1 in 4 students to give it to you).
Reach parents where they already are.
Place a parent sign-up form on high-traffic pages like financial aid.
Send a postcard to the home with a QR code for sign-up.
Add parent email fields to event and tour registrations.
Target households with paid media on Instagram and Facebook.
Treat parents as their own audience.
Once you have the emails, don’t just CC them on student comms. Parents want answers to questions students don’t even ask. Like:
Is it better to do advanced classes, sports, music or something else in middle school?
How easy (and costly) is travel to and from campus?
How does your cost compare to other schools? (A pre-filled spreadsheet goes a long way.)
What do I need to start compiling for FAFSA?
If my child gets sick and needs a doctor, where do they go?
When’s the first chance my child can come home?
How do I send them mail?
How can I connect with other parents?
Bonus: Watch this video about millennial parenting and what it means for getting gen alpha interested in your college 🎥
This is how you build any great email list.
No matter whose inbox you’re trying to reach—parents, potential clients or donors, peers, fans, or volunteers—the same principles apply:
Find them where they are. 🔎
Use every interaction as an opportunity to ask for their email. 🤝
Offer real value in exchange for their email. 🌟
Always give them a way to opt out 👋
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