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Here at HQ, we are pleased to see the feedback we’re getting from Franchisees who have partnered with PTAs to hold Math Nights at local schools, and we’d like to share some of the wonderful results we’re seeing.
Based on our recent survey of franchisees, of the 45% of franchisees who have already held a Math Night, an overwhelming majority have found the event to have been beneficial in strengthening school relationships, increasing local awareness of their Center, and helping Franchisees connect with parents. In fact, some Math Nights have been so successful that eight of our franchisees have already held six or more. Way to go!
Considering the success that so many Franchisees have had with Math Nights, now is a great time to reach out to schools in your community as they plan their calendar for the 2018/2019 academic year. If you don’t want to take our word for it, listen to your fellow franchisees … 88% of Franchisees who have held Math Nights would recommend holding a Math Night to other Center owners!
Pro Tips For A Successful Event
Before you begin planning, review the “Host a Math Night” microsystem in the Operations Manual and take a look at the Math Night Information Packets on Download Depot (for PTAs [2] and Non-PTAs [3]), which include a materials checklist. Keep in mind these important tips to make your event as successful as possible:
Before Your Event
- Plan ahead – choose an event date at least 2 months out to allow for adequate planning.
- Recruit volunteers – have 2-3 Mathnasium staff members and 10-20 additional volunteers to help with check-in, check-out, and game tables. Plan to meet 20 minutes early so you can instruct them on how to staff the tables and play and moderate the games.
- Order smart to save money – Please follow the instructions in the “Host a Math Night” microsystem for ordering items from both Amazon and Accolade. Ordering has been arranged in the most cost-effective way possible to ensure Franchisees can budget effectively with a minimum of unforeseen expenses.
During Your Event
- Parent and student passports – These play a key role in the Math Night event and follow-up afterward. Parents should be encouraged to fill out passports at the beginning of the evening to save time at the end. We have passports for both students and parents to encourage whole family participation and interaction. Kids who see their parents engage with math are less likely to have math anxiety. Likewise, parents who have a good experience with math are more likely to encourage their kids to succeed.
- Game Substitution – If you feel that any suggested games (such as Playing the Odds) are too difficult, feel free to use the suggested alternatives or any of the fun, math-encouraging games that you have in-Center, and which can be played in five minutes or less. Plan to have enough of each game for multiple players per table. (Side note: HQ is looking into additional games that came be used and cycled into subsequent Math Nights.)
- Keep things flowing – Have multiple staff members at the Rewards table to prevent a bottleneck at the end of the night, when parents and kids are submitting their completed passports and collecting goodie bags. Parents should be encouraged to enter contact information onto their passports at the beginning of the night, but make sure there are plenty of extra pens on hand and volunteers to help parents do it at the end of the night if needed.
After Your Event
- Contact Math Night participants after the event via email to thank them for attending. We know that with so many attendees (most Franchisees report having over 91 participants at their events) it may be difficult to get everyone’s information, or that it may be time consuming to enter each new lead. Still, we highly recommend entering new leads from your Math Night into Radius as soon as possible, and consider adding them to future promotional offer emails. When adding leads to Radius, remember to select the Lead Source as “School Related” and then choose “Math Night” as the Sub-Source. While event leads like those from Math Night may not be ready to convert to enrollments right away, it’s important to keep the conversation going after you’ve initially gained their awareness and started the conversation with them. And tracking in Radius can help you determine how long it takes for them to interact with you from another marketing channel once they have a more direct need for your services.
- Follow up with schools – If you’ve already had a great event with a school, make sure to reach out again to get the next event on the calendar. If there are schools who haven’t yet responded to your offer to hold a Math Night, don’t be discouraged. Many PTA leaders are overburdened as they take on the role of volunteering on top of other major home/career obligations and many already had set plans for the current school year. Schools may now be eager to put Math Nights on their calendar for the 2018-2019 academic year as they develop new plans. (Especially after hearing glowing reports of Math Nights from their parents and PTA members at nearby schools.)
- Add new leads to your monthly newsletter mailing list to keep the lines of communication open in a low-pressure way. (Reminder: A newsletter template pre-populated with a blog article and family activity is available each month for you to customize.)
With so many Franchisees responding positively to the short-term benefits of partnering with Parent Leadership Organizations to host a Math Night, and with the expected long-term benefits, there is no better time to reach out to your local school or Parent Leader Organization about hosting a Math Night in your community!
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