A recent discussion on our Facebook page about printed flyers and PTOs and PTAs got me thinking a bit more about communication and effectiveness and costs.
Responses varied, with a few groups saying they still allot quite a bit toward copies and paper.
But my thought is that in 2016, if your group hasn’t gone heavily into online communications, you could risk falling behind and not getting your messages out as well as possible—not to mention, wasting a lot of money.
There are many good solutions out there for sharing your messages. Facebook is obvious. And a free email tool like our Parent Express Email makes online communication a breeze. We have several good resources about going beyond traditional forms of communication. Check these out:
6 Ways To Improve Communication
Years ago, the worry was that we couldn’t leave parents behind, that if even one parent couldn’t access your messages electronically, then your group had keep printing them. We have to stop that thinking because honestly, a lot of your print messages are missed, too. These days, it’s a fact that electronic communications are far more likely to find the right parents at the right time than a print newsletter. (And if you are truly worried about leaving parents behind, find out exactly how many parents that applies to and work out a system for those couple of parents.)
There might still be a place for printing here and there. But you don't want to get in a position of spending thousands of dollars when there are so many more cost-effective options.
