Create additional communications to let families know about the Discussion Board
We suggest sending a launch email to Discussion Board users to announce your new Discussion Board. Additionally, we recommend setting up a recurring email, portal ad, and newsletter ad to remind families to use the Discussion Board. You can access communication templates in our Discussion Boards Communication Best Practices Guide.
View our Guide to Create and Send an Email and Guide to Advertisements for step-by-step instructions to help you set these up.
Set up a profile picture
Adding a profile pic is a nice, personal touch for families to see as they browse and participate in the Discussion Board!
Promote the Discussion Board in your existing communications
Add the "Discussion Board Summary" block while designing an email to remind families to join the discussion!
Recruit parent moderators/ambassadors
This is a great way for parents to get involved and maintain positive engagement in your Discussion Board. Have select parents keep an eye on any content to report and encourage them to create regular posts of their own!
💡 Pro Tip: Add a question in your onboarding survey to ask if families are interested in serving as parent ambassadors or volunteers. Use this community as your outreach list!
Advertise on social media
Post about the Discussion Boards on Facebook, Instagram, or other social channels! Make it clear who the Discussion Board is for, if it is not for everyone.
Example:
Promote at family events
Let families know about the Discussion Board at events like Orientation and Family Weekend and get them excited to participate!
Create a survey to collect feedback
Once your Discussion Board has been live for at least a few weeks, we suggest creating a survey to check in with families on how things are going and get their insight on topics they would like to see. Visit our Guide to Creating a Survey to learn how you can set this up.
💡 Pro Tip: Use those survey insights to create new Discussion Board posts that families will care about!
Looking for Discussion Board post ideas?
Posts that perform well often:
Encourage families give each other advice or drop their questions in the comments
Include images
Give families the chance to introduce themselves and post photos
Example Post Topics:
NEW Discussion Board - Introduce Yourself in the Comments!
Where is everyone from?
Travel Tips and Tricks
Post Your Move-In Photos!
What questions do you have before the school year starts?