Years ago Dove funded a research effort to uncover "The Real Truth About Beauty." According to their site, their "global research highlighted a universal issue: that beauty-related pressure increases whilst body confidence decreases as girls and women grow older -- stopping young girls from seeing their real beauty."
Some of their key findings:
* Only 4% of women around the world consider themselves beautiful
* Only 11% of girls globally are comfortable describing themselves as "beautiful"
* 72% of girls feel tremendous pressure to be beautiful
* 80% of women agree that every woman has something about her that is beautiful but do not see their own beauty
From this research was birthed a marketing effort: The Campaign for Real Beauty. In this campaign, Dove began to redefine "beautiful" and highlight the beauty found in each woman. A goal was to pull away from the typical, the standard of beauty our society has established, and to reimagine a new model of beauty.
The parallels between this campaign and virtual learning are striking to me. We have a current model that cannot live up to its promise nor can anyone live up to the promises it wants to make.
It is time, not to merely find another model that is younger or has a certain look about her. No, it is time for virtual learning to reflect the beauty it has to offer in a real, authentic fashion. It must build to serve the audience it can best serve. It must redefine "learning" and break completely from the current way of seeing things.
The "Campaign for Real Virtual Learning" must exist because the individuals who are influenced the most by this effort are the same ones we all say we want to serve: KIDS.
If Dove can do it for beauty (see images in Target and other stores that reflect this new definition) then it can also be done for virtual learning.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Showing posts with label blended learning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blended learning. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Wednesday, September 25, 2019
Planes, Trains & Automobiles
All three are exactly alike really. They are merely different modes of transportation, designed to take people and/or products from one place to another -- from Point A to Point B.
Yet, they each have a niche and those who serve their niche well thrive.
Done properly they can complement each other and the overall economy is the better for it.
The same is true in education. Virtual, blended and traditional. Public, private and charter. Choose any three you like. Alternative, home-based, homeschool. The words are interchangeable. Each is merely a different mode of educating the young. Each has a niche to serve.
Those who understand their niche, cater to it, design for it, market to it, and serve it properly will thrive. Imagine though if each mode of education complemented each other rather than competed against one another.
What would learning look like then?
houston@figment-consulting.com
Yet, they each have a niche and those who serve their niche well thrive.
Done properly they can complement each other and the overall economy is the better for it.
The same is true in education. Virtual, blended and traditional. Public, private and charter. Choose any three you like. Alternative, home-based, homeschool. The words are interchangeable. Each is merely a different mode of educating the young. Each has a niche to serve.
Those who understand their niche, cater to it, design for it, market to it, and serve it properly will thrive. Imagine though if each mode of education complemented each other rather than competed against one another.
What would learning look like then?
houston@figment-consulting.com
Tuesday, September 24, 2019
Start with a better question
If you want a good answer then start with a better question.
We ask students, "What do you want to do for a living?"
The result? Life today as we know it.
What if we began asking students, "What kind of lifestyle do you want to lead?"
I wonder where their imaginations would take them? I wonder how they might see things differently? I wonder what life would look like?
houston@figment-consulting.com
We ask students, "What do you want to do for a living?"
The result? Life today as we know it.
What if we began asking students, "What kind of lifestyle do you want to lead?"
I wonder where their imaginations would take them? I wonder how they might see things differently? I wonder what life would look like?
houston@figment-consulting.com
Tuesday, September 17, 2019
Customer service in schools? Don't let data guide you.
Customer service is not a program. It is not an initiative. It is not the technology you use. It is not something you do.
And please, whatever you do, don't let data lead the way. For many years the number one question asked by guests at the Magic Kingdom, according to data, was, "What time does the 3 o'clock parade start?"
Imagine if Walt Disney World had spent an inordinate amount of time seeking ways to ensure the guests understood that the 3 o'clock parade began at 3 o'clock. It would not have minimized the question and Disney would have been dumbfounded because the data told them this was the problem. (See point 3 below for the answer)
Too many schools work from the outside-in. They launch initiatives to offset parent problems or an influx of calls. They purchase new technology in order to make it easier for parents to connect with the schools. And, they gather data that tells them how many parents are complaining about X, Y, or Z so they can then work to alleviate X, Y, or Z.
Over time the band-aid approach of initiatives fails and schools are left to wonder why. So, they move on to purchase new technology or reassess the data and the pattern begins again.
Where are they going wrong?
1. Amy Cuddy, a Harvard Psychologist, and TED speaker, says that "how you say something is more important than what you say."
Walt Disney World understands that customer service (guest experience) must be a culture -- not a program nor an initiative. And, technology must serve the guest experience culture and bring value to it. And, data? Well, data is used properly to help Walt Disney World identify pain points and delight opportunities. You see, customer service is not an effort to overcome a bad experience. It is also an opportunity to build experiences that continually delight the customer and build loyalty.
More importantly, Walt Disney World understands that how you say something carries more weight than what you say. But, when HOW and WHAT merge together seamlessly and both are done properly, delight is the result.
2. If schools truly want to serve their students then they must move beyond the idea of initiatives and programs. They must place technology and data where they belong. They must, I repeat, must move toward a culture of service that permeates the school.
My oldest son started his college experience in a class designed to assist new students with the college experience and, hopefully, lead to better retention of students. His professor, on the first day of class, spent much of the time sharing how much he cared about them and wanted them to succeed. "I am here for you this semester to make sure you have a great experience," is what he told them. One week later he was gone, replaced by a new professor who repeated the same content. Why? Because it was an initiative of the university and for those who led it, they had their script to follow but their heart was not in it.
Another professor of his that same semester went about her duties of teaching and guiding the students, answering their questions, encouraging them, and working to inspire them. When she would see my son on campus, she would walk over and ask him how he was doing and how his other classes were going. She didn't need to tell him how much she cared but when she said it, he knew she meant it. For her, it was not a program nor a script. It is who she is, not what she does.
Three years later when she sees him she still inquires about his well-being.
3. Back to the 3 o'clock parade. Disney understood that the real question being asked was somewhere below the surface. The data did not guide them, rather it assisted them because they kept it where it needed to stay -- in a support role. Once they uncovered the real question being asked, they then built it into their culture of how to answer it (how you say something). (If you want to know what they did, shoot me an email - houston@figment-consulting.com)
When a student says something improper in a school that has a customer-service culture, they understand the real issue might lie below the surface. And, they are trained to look for it, be open to it, and how to probe for it.
It has a completely different feel to it.
Start with these three tenets and you can begin to build a customer service culture in your school -- one that will last and one that will radically improve the relationships you desire with your students and parents.
houston@figment-consulting.com
And please, whatever you do, don't let data lead the way. For many years the number one question asked by guests at the Magic Kingdom, according to data, was, "What time does the 3 o'clock parade start?"
Imagine if Walt Disney World had spent an inordinate amount of time seeking ways to ensure the guests understood that the 3 o'clock parade began at 3 o'clock. It would not have minimized the question and Disney would have been dumbfounded because the data told them this was the problem. (See point 3 below for the answer)
Too many schools work from the outside-in. They launch initiatives to offset parent problems or an influx of calls. They purchase new technology in order to make it easier for parents to connect with the schools. And, they gather data that tells them how many parents are complaining about X, Y, or Z so they can then work to alleviate X, Y, or Z.
Over time the band-aid approach of initiatives fails and schools are left to wonder why. So, they move on to purchase new technology or reassess the data and the pattern begins again.
Where are they going wrong?
1. Amy Cuddy, a Harvard Psychologist, and TED speaker, says that "how you say something is more important than what you say."
Walt Disney World understands that customer service (guest experience) must be a culture -- not a program nor an initiative. And, technology must serve the guest experience culture and bring value to it. And, data? Well, data is used properly to help Walt Disney World identify pain points and delight opportunities. You see, customer service is not an effort to overcome a bad experience. It is also an opportunity to build experiences that continually delight the customer and build loyalty.
More importantly, Walt Disney World understands that how you say something carries more weight than what you say. But, when HOW and WHAT merge together seamlessly and both are done properly, delight is the result.
2. If schools truly want to serve their students then they must move beyond the idea of initiatives and programs. They must place technology and data where they belong. They must, I repeat, must move toward a culture of service that permeates the school.
My oldest son started his college experience in a class designed to assist new students with the college experience and, hopefully, lead to better retention of students. His professor, on the first day of class, spent much of the time sharing how much he cared about them and wanted them to succeed. "I am here for you this semester to make sure you have a great experience," is what he told them. One week later he was gone, replaced by a new professor who repeated the same content. Why? Because it was an initiative of the university and for those who led it, they had their script to follow but their heart was not in it.
Another professor of his that same semester went about her duties of teaching and guiding the students, answering their questions, encouraging them, and working to inspire them. When she would see my son on campus, she would walk over and ask him how he was doing and how his other classes were going. She didn't need to tell him how much she cared but when she said it, he knew she meant it. For her, it was not a program nor a script. It is who she is, not what she does.
Three years later when she sees him she still inquires about his well-being.
3. Back to the 3 o'clock parade. Disney understood that the real question being asked was somewhere below the surface. The data did not guide them, rather it assisted them because they kept it where it needed to stay -- in a support role. Once they uncovered the real question being asked, they then built it into their culture of how to answer it (how you say something). (If you want to know what they did, shoot me an email - houston@figment-consulting.com)
When a student says something improper in a school that has a customer-service culture, they understand the real issue might lie below the surface. And, they are trained to look for it, be open to it, and how to probe for it.
It has a completely different feel to it.
Start with these three tenets and you can begin to build a customer service culture in your school -- one that will last and one that will radically improve the relationships you desire with your students and parents.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Friday, March 18, 2016
Ten things homeschoolers want virtual schools to know
1. Virtual schooling is not homeschooling though both are done primarily in the home, so don't tell us it is.
2. True flexibility is found in homeschooling, so find another word when we talk
3. Individualized learning, real individualized learning, is what homeschooling is all about
4. There are close to 2 million of us homeschoolers and no we don't all think alike
5. The small, yet sometimes loud minority of those homeschoolers who speak up don't speak for all of us
6. Don't talk to us about the free tuition because we know there is a cost
7. Freedom matters a great deal to us, and we won't give it up easily, even for something free
8. There are close to 2 million different reasons why us homeschoolers have chosen to homeschool
9. We are real people at the end of your data point, don't forget that
10. When we say "no" to your virtual school, what we are really saying is we don't trust what you are telling us
houston@figment-consulting.com
2. True flexibility is found in homeschooling, so find another word when we talk
3. Individualized learning, real individualized learning, is what homeschooling is all about
4. There are close to 2 million of us homeschoolers and no we don't all think alike
5. The small, yet sometimes loud minority of those homeschoolers who speak up don't speak for all of us
6. Don't talk to us about the free tuition because we know there is a cost
7. Freedom matters a great deal to us, and we won't give it up easily, even for something free
8. There are close to 2 million different reasons why us homeschoolers have chosen to homeschool
9. We are real people at the end of your data point, don't forget that
10. When we say "no" to your virtual school, what we are really saying is we don't trust what you are telling us
houston@figment-consulting.com
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
Crafting a Virtual School Marketing Plan Webinar (Updated)
Yesterday I shared details on my upcoming 90-minute webinar Crafting a Virtual School Marketing Plan, and the initial response has been better than I anticipated.
There are still a few spaces remaining though for the webinar. So, if you want to register, simply go to my web site Figment-Consulting.com and fill in the information. The event is scheduled for Monday, March 28, at 11:00 a.m. ET. A link will be provided to all registrants prior to the event.
During the webinar we will cover a variety of topics, strategies, and messaging to help virtual schools create a more effective and efficient plan to reach better-fit students, capture more of them, and retain them.
We will cover topics such as:
Positioning -- how do you differentiate yourself from other virtual schools?
Price -- if it is tuition-free why is price so important?
Public relations -- how do you get your message out in a toxic environment toward virtual schools?
Place -- what does it feel like to be with you? When people visit your web site, your event, your office, what does that do to them and for them?
Other topics will carry us down the path toward a cohesive approach to marketing that is applicable in whichever state you operate in.
So, I invite you to join me for this webinar. It is guaranteed to generate a great ROI for you.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Taking the easy road
Instead of taking the easy road, or the easy way out, take the road you desire to take toward the destination you want.
Focus on what you want, and know the path toward it will sometimes be easy, sometimes not. No matter. Enjoy both as you keep moving forward toward your want.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Friday, March 4, 2016
Are you selling or are they buying?
Spend your time on selling and you will miss the buying going on around you. Spend your time on buying, and your sales will increase.
Help people buy what they Want, and you will sell them what they Need.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
It can't be done.
So, at some point in time, and according to dictionary.reference.com it was around 1706 someone decided they could no longer write cannot. Instead, they shortened it to can't. For the sake of saving two letters except you have to add the apostrophe, you can now write can't -- which saves approximately .2 seconds of your time.
Cannot on the other hand can also be spelled can not.
Three different ways to express your inability to do something.
Oh wait, there is a fourth and probably more accurate rendering of these three words: won't.
So many times we say can't, or cannot, or can not, when in reality we mean won't. It's not that we can't do it, we just do want to put in the effort to try it. Or, we are afraid we might falter the first few times. Or, perhaps we just want to find an easier way or have someone do it for us.
When you desire to do something and that desire is strong enough, it's funny how can't evaporates from our thoughts.
Just something to think about, if you want to.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
Virtual school recruiting season is upon us
"Move at your own pace" -- Wait, I can take a month to understand this concept? "Well, not exactly your own pace."
"It's flexible" -- Wonderful, I can take the month of December off. "Well, we're not that flexible."
"It's individualized" -- Great, so I can select the courses I want to take. "Not really, you still have to take 4 math, 4 language arts, 2 science, 2 history and obtain 24 credits to graduate."
"95% of our families would recommend us to another family" -- Wonderful, can I speak to one of them? "Yes, however, only 35% of those families are returning this year so we can find you one of those."
"We are tuition-free" -- Great, I like free. Sign me up. "Fantastic, it helps with my commission."
"If you are being bullied, gifted, struggling, homebound, homeschooled, military, college-and-career minded, we can help you" -- So that's all it takes to be successful? "Well, not really, but that's all it takes to enroll."
We can do better than this.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Saturday, February 27, 2016
It's urgent
What would it look like if you spent your day on building remarkable rather than the problem brought to you classified as urgent?
Simply because someone says "urgent" doesn't mean it requires immediate attention. And, urgent may take you away from important.
Important matters for the long run.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Friday, February 26, 2016
What virtual schools can learn from start-ups
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| David S. Rose |
David's upcoming book The Startup Checklist: 25 Steps to Found and Scale a High-Growth Business is primarily for those seeking to launch a start-up company. However, much of what he has to say can also apply to the world of virtual schooling.
Too many times virtual schools look to others within their industry for best practices, or ideas on how to improve when real innovation can occur by adapting ideas from outside the world of education.
David shares 25 steps based on his years of success, failings, and experience learned. Surely, there is at least one step that can help improve a virtual school.
Real innovation can occur by seeking answers outside the education box.
Read books such as David's to grow, learn, and find alternative ways to adapt
Attend conferences that have nothing to do with education but everything to do with tech innovation
Spend time with entrepreneurs and less time with educators
houston@figment-consulting.com
Thursday, February 25, 2016
Failing and failure
The other happens when you give up -- not on a project but on yourself.
Don't confuse the two and don't let the one interfere with the other that is part of the learning process.
Failing is an action. Failure is a decision.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
Every one has a story to tell . . .
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| On location of Storybrooke, ME from Once Upon a Time |
And, with that person comes a story, their story. Their very own, individual story. A story they want to share.
Big data has great potential to serve us in the world of buyer behavior. Don't forget though that sometimes an individual story is necessary to be heard in order to better understand the customer we so want to serve.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Saturday, February 20, 2016
Nine Essentials for building a virtual school that serves and Capilano
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| Capilano Suspension Bridge in North Vancouver |
It was a fascinating day spending time with British Columbia educators, and hearing what they are doing in the world of digital learning.
And, it was an honor to be able to share my Nine Essentials with them believing that much of what I shared crosses geographic boundaries.
Also, had the pleasure and joy of experiencing some of the beauty of Vancouver, Steveston, and Capilano Suspension Bridge Park in North Vancouver today.
Capilano Suspension Bridge spans 460 ft and rises 230 ft above the Capilano River. And, does it swing when you are in the middle. Wow.
Included in the park is a Treetop Adventure that allows you to walk among the giant firs. It is breathtaking.
Then, if that is not all, you also can traverse the Cliff Walk where you follow a narrow walkway that juts out from the granite cliffs. It is not for the faint of heart.
Heading tomorrow toward Seattle and Portland to conduct some training sessions.
If you ever have a chance to go to Vancouver. Go.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Friday, February 19, 2016
Figment Consulting announces new training sessions
The most effective training session is the two-day, on site, intensive session to help virtual partners becomes schools that serve. This session, under Training, is the gold level of what I offer. During this session, we cover the Nine Essentials to build virtual schools that serve properly -- teacher-student relationships, investing in teachers, building a retention culture, constructing a remarkable learning experience, becoming a human connection school, finding right-fit students, growing with purpose, launching with success in mind, and developing a specialist mindset.
In addition, we are now offering additional training sessions (under Services) on the following (either on site or online):
One-day Marketing Training: Covering the 15 P words of marketing to help you build a Relationship Strategy that leads to better enrollments and higher retention.
One-day Training Seminar to learn how to become a Human Connection School: This seminar has served as a follow-up to my Nine Essentials training and goes even more in-depth in order to build strategy and tactics to move away from socialization and into connectionalization.
Virtual School Next Gen Training: This one-day training allows us to go in depth to build the learning experience as we work our way towards remarkable. We move to the tactical level and how each person plays a pivotal role in going beyond academics. The result is a deeper engagement by students and families which leads to higher retention.
Customerology Compass: In this 2-hour training session, we cover the Needs, Wants, Stereotypes, and Emotions (NWSE) of your students and families. In doing so we learn how to meet their Needs while serving their Wants. We learn how to overcome Stereotypes and build loyalty as we tap into their Emotions.
Two other popular training sessions allow us to help clients develop their Service Theme and Service Standards. These separate sessions establish the foundation and reference points as we construct a service culture.
Of late, two other efforts have proven popular. The first is where we spend two days in order to help you edit, revise, and rethink your Marketing Strategy in order to reach the right type of students. The second one allows us to focus on your Messaging in order to help you craft the right type of message and utilize the proper channels to convey it.
And, we also offer Leadership Coaching services. We spend one hour a week with your leadership team members to move each one toward the central chief aim, and bring each one together for a more cohesive experience that leads to more effective and disciplined decision making.
The required investment varies with each session, and whether or not it is conducted on site or online. Email us today and we can put together an offer to meet your most immediate needs.
Coming soon -- we are working toward making these services portable by recording them and allowing for downloads.
Until then, keep thinking differently. And thank you to those who have allowed us to be of service to you. Without you, these ideas for the various training seminars might have continued to be overlooked on our part.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Thursday, February 18, 2016
"It's a poor sort of memory that only works backwards." The White Queen said to Alice
Adding more to the plate of families who are leaving because the prior plate was too full is memory not working properly.
Believing that a new branding message can paint over the rotting foundation is a memory not working properly.
Expecting technology to save the day when families crave interaction is memory not working properly.
While I am not sure The White Queen had any knowledge of virtual schooling when she made the comment to Alice, I am sure that many in the world of virtual schooling are not listening to her words of wisdom.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Bring an umbrella and unasked questions
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| Vancouver Umbrella Shop in Richmond, BC, Canada |
"Bring an umbrella," she replied.
Whether she knew it or not, the polite hotel front desk clerk in Vancouver answered my unasked question. In reality I knew what the temperatures were like because I had checked. What I really wanted to know was what she answered, and I didn't even have to ask.
I am traveling tomorrow to Vancouver to speak at a conference on Friday, then making my way down to the coast west of Portland to conduct some training for a client (with a stop at the Pike Place Market Starbucks in Seattle along the way of course).
So, I had done my homework in terms of weather conditions, travel plans, etc. But, when I called to confirm some details with my hotel in Vancouver, what I really wanted to know is how much does it rain there? I had been to Seattle a few times the past several years but first time in Vancouver. While it is just north of Seattle, I was also aware of how that could make a huge difference in weather conditions (having just learned that firsthand in my recent trip to Alaska -- Anchorage was above freezing while Wasilla, which is only 50 miles NE of Anchorage, was closer to single digits).
What's the point to all of this? I simply wonder how many times virtual school administrators fail to answer the unasked questions from their parents. How many times do they assume that what the parents want to know is exactly what they asked? (In reality, a good listener will be able to discern if there is an unasked question that needs to be answered)
Case in point -- the Agora Cyber Charter School is conducting a Board Meeting tomorrow night. In light of the recent layoffs it should prove to be an interesting one. If the leadership is not careful, they will allow many unasked questions to go unanswered.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Tuesday, February 16, 2016
Know, Accept, Be
Accept who you are and you will recruit students you can best serve.
Be who you are and you will attract more students like the ones you serve best.
houston@figment-consulting.com
Monday, February 15, 2016
Building virtual schools that serve
I will have the opportunity to share my Virtual School Manifesto in a talk titled Nine Essential Ingredients for Building Virtual Schools That Serve. The recent Agora Cyber layoffs demonstrate how broken the current model is, and how much we need to re-imagine virtual learning. My talk lays the groundwork for a different virtual -- one built on the right foundation and finding the right-fit students in an authentic and transparent manner.
But, I also wanted to take a moment and point out some of the other sessions going on during the conference that have the potential to be game-changers.
Jean Kloppenberg and Mary O'Neil are sharing their passion for helping students find their SPARK as they call it. They believe each student has at least (maybe more) one interest, one passion, one desire, that will propel them to engage deeply. It is our responsibility to help them find it.
Lisa Read will guide attendees through a session titled Meaningful Mentoring - Collaborating in Chaos. It is an exploratory session on how to leverage the expertise around you for mentoring -- a lost art in today's world.
Randy LaBonte will take us on a Walk on the Wild Side of Digital and teach us how Purposeful Use of Tech and Program Design Improves Learning.
Barb Goddard and Patty Golumbia walk us through a session on Digital Learning and the Anxious Student. Here we will learn ways in which anxiety in students can be managed and directed toward progress and gain.
It's not too late to join us in Richmond-Vancouver as it promises to be an enlightening time together.
houston@figment-consulting.com
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