• Research
• Multi-channel campaign strategy and creation
• Copywriting
• Video and photography
• OOH campaign
• Paid social media campaign

Firstly, we held a series of focus groups with the trust’s current staff to establish what they enjoyed about working at Outwood, plus in-depth interviews with teachers and support staff working at other organisations (or in training), about what they wanted from a new role in the industry.

In partnership with local design agency Foundry, we then used this research to develop the over-arching campaign strategy, ‘Be a real influencer’, which has played out across playground banners, bookbag flyers, recruitment brochures and exhibition stands, digital ads and a new microsite. We produced new tone of voice guidelines for the trust, wrote copy for a dedicated recruitment website, brochure and other print collateral, and shot new photography of staff and pupils to fit the  campaign theme.

We also commissioned Leeds video outfit Lester Film Co. to create 15 new ‘social-first’ videos of staff talking about working in their role and with Outwood, which have been used across social media and the website.

Our brief was to drive traffic to the new recruitment website, create positivity around working at schools as a career choice, and show staff satisfaction to encourage staff to apply. We have met all of these objectives in the early stages of the campaign.

The trust has seen a spike in enquiries since the recruitment campaign went live in April 2023. Our social media advertising campaign (LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter) reached over 125,000 relevant people in the first month alone. We’ve reached over 4,000 primary school parents with flyers in their child’s bookbag, encouraging them to consider a values-driven career change that fits around their family.

And we’ve created a powerful new way for the trust to talk about themselves, to appeal to new recruits more directly.

More results to follow!