It’s that time of year again, when well-intentioned education executives invariably start asking for our help with “back to school marketing plans.” 

It always confounds me.

Of course, if you’re a retailer or a company like Lakeshore Learning—the fan favorite among teachers for school supplies—back to school is a critical time of year. 

But when it comes to selling products and solutions to schools, there is almost no worse time than back to school to try to get the attention of relevant decision makers, for three reasons: 

  1. People are really busy. At the school and district level, teachers and administrators are dealing with new students, new teachers, teachers who have to take leave, and last minute scheduling changes. Security, construction, and transportation are all top of mind. Are new facilities going to be ready? Do we have enough bus drivers to get kids to school? There are so many issues that require school and district leaders’ attention, and the likelihood of a new product competing with those more urgent priorities is slim.
  2. Back to school doesn’t align with K-12 sales cycles. School leaders and district administrators don’t start planning for the new school year around the time of the new school year. Neither do most teachers. They’ve spent time completing professional development over the summer. They purchased new products in the spring and implemented them over the summer so they are ready to go by the time the start of the school year rolls around.
  3. Media is not paying attention. Back to school is not the time to try to land an article that is going to drive procurement. It is a good time to start telling stories about new approaches that are gaining traction. Reporters want to visit classrooms to see learning in action—and see what’s actually working. But, bear in mind that most teachers and school leaders won’t open their classrooms to reporters for the first month or so of school as they work to build rapport with their students.

Of course, there are exceptions. In particular, for beloved products that have developed a grassroots following among educators, back to school can be a time to reconnect with your education community, and offer tips and recommendations for how they might integrate products into the classroom. Two examples come to mind:

  • ClassDojo has been working with principals to connect their entire school as a community. They’ve been rolling free features out this month, which is super timely as principals gather with their teachers to discuss how to bring families into the loop on school year priorities, ensure they’re getting important information quickly, and build overall excitement for a new year.
  • BrainPOP is publishing stories on the creative ways educators use new and existing features in their daily practice. Their team also shares the expertise of their educator community on topics like classroom management for new teachers and strategies for motivating students. 

And, if you’re wondering where to spend your attention during back to school, consider rallying your colleagues to support a local teacher on DonorsChoose, an extraordinary resource for teachers looking to raise funds as they prepare their classroom for a new year. Teachers, alone, spend an average of $673 of their own money on school supplies.

This article is sourced from the opening letter of Whiteboard Notes, our weekly newsletter of the latest education policy and industry news read by thousands of education leaders, investors, grantmakers, and entrepreneurs. Subscribe here.