Ranked a top three school division in the state by Niche, York County School Division (YCSD) serves nearly 13,000 students in all of York County, Virginia. YCSD partnered with Rhodes Branding to implement a strategic recruitment campaign to highlight the unique values of working in the district.
The York County School Division is recognized for its strong academic performance, but like many districts, faced challenges in recruiting and retaining top talent. With increasing competition from neighboring districts, YCSD sought to differentiate itself through a focused marketing and recruitment campaign. This effort, initiated in early 2023, was designed to improve their visibility and appeal to a diverse pool of candidates.
The partnership began with a discovery phase in February, including a detailed audit of the district’s historical data on applications and diversity, combined with an analysis of existing recruitment strategies.
In May, we presented our findings at a Candidate Experience Workshop with key current staff and recent hires. The workshop uncovered new strategies to reach key candidate subgroups unique to the area, improve the candidate hiring and onboarding experience, address common pain points in the application process, and elevate the district’s brand.
Our creative team later traveled back to the district in September to produce a recruitment video, featuring testimonials with teachers and staff. The video showcased the district’s vibrant community and quality of life for potential hires, bringing the district’s value proposition to life.
Following production, Rhodes Branding developed a media plan and digital marketing strategy to support the district’s recruitment efforts ahead of the 2024-25 school year. Collaborating with the YCSD team, we developed a Human Resources-specific landing page and digital ad creatives for programmatic and paid media. The 6-month campaign launched in January 2024 and achieved 3.24 million impressions, 8,000 new website visitors, and contributed to a 61% increase in job applications.
By partnering with Rhodes Branding, York County School Division successfully revitalized its recruitment strategies and built a stronger brand presence throughout the local area. This comprehensive campaign ensured YCSD stood out in a crowded market, attracting top-tier candidates and setting the foundation for sustainable staffing success in the coming years.
Our partnership with YCSD and recruitment campaign achieved 3.24 million impressions and 8,000 new website visitors and contributed to a 61% increase in job applications.
