Spreading the Word About Montessori
Sometimes inspiration strikes us at unlikely times. Trevor Eissler (pictured), Montessori parent and the author of Montessori Madness, was watching the Super Bowl this past February when an idea hit. Why not have a Super Bowl ad to promote Montessori?
Eissler has long been frustrated by the fact that most parents (and even many educators) are unaware of the Montessori method. While each of us may promote Montessori to our own friends and family, think of how many more people could be reached by a commercial during the biggest TV event of the year.
After trying out the idea in front of 100 Montessori administrators at the AMI conference in Jacksonville, FL, to a hugely positive response, The Montessori Super Bowl Ad Project was born.
At his website, Eissler is asking for pledges from schools, individuals, and organizations. While a 30-second Super Bowl ad costs $3 million (an eye-popping sum), that works out to just $6 per Montessori student in the United States.
His reasoning is simple: more publicity for Montessori means more students; schools who might buy expensive ads in newspapers and other media can easily put some of that money towards the Super Bowl ad, with much more potential for increased visibility.
After just two weeks, the Montessori Super Bowl ad campaign has raised over $20,000 in pledges. Says Eissler, “We have had pledges from a Montessori school with five children operating out of the teacher’s basement; we’ve had pledges from Montessori homeschoolers; we’ve had pledges from parents, teachers, individuals, and corporations.”
He continues, “We have a branding problem in Montessori. We have not defined who we are and what we stand for. Mainstream parents have either never heard of Montessori, or they get it wrong. That is our failure, not theirs. The Montessori Super Bowl Ad is our opportunity to have thirty seconds to brand Montessori and set the perception for people about this method.”
He also mentions that students at The Montessori High School at University Circle will be managing parts of this project: social media, website design, and collecting and producing videos, one of which might become the Super Bowl commercial. It seems fitting that these students partake in this real-life chance to spread the word about Montessori.
There you have it. An idea whose time – hopefully – has come. A chance to bring Montessori to millions. What do you think? Eissler is happy to take suggestions, from marketing the project to the production of the commercial itself. You can reach him at info[at] montessorisuperbowlad.com.
Thanks to Trevor Eissler for graciously answering my questions and providing information and pictures. Please check out Montessori Super Bowl Ad for more information or to make a pledge. You can also follow him on Twitter (@montessorisuper) or become a fan on Facebook.
Thanks for posting the Super Bowl project on your blog, Lori. I have received a lot of positive feedback on the idea. I have also received some negative feedback in the form of some people thinking that there were other ad venues that might be more effective than a 30-second Super Bowl spot. To those well-meaning folks I would like to respond, “This is not the only $3 million out there! Please start up your own ad campaigns for radio, print, internet, billboard, or anything else. I support you!” This Montessori Super Bowl Ad project is only the first in a long, relentless campaign to spread the word to more and more families and to get the country talking about Montessori. The possibilities are wide open IF we work together.
Hi, Trevor! Thanks for stopping by. I agree, the field is wide open (no pun intended). I have already spent the past 5+ years online talking about Montessori to anyone who will listen (I do it in real life too) – there are ways for everyone to reach out and spread the word.
Let me know if there are any important updates to your project – I’d love to hear about it!