Excitement fills the air as the delivery truck pulls up to your school and the yearbook boxes pile out. The anticipation for what’s inside is palpable. Brimming with energy, your staff rips into the boxes and starts admiring the creation they worked so tirelessly on. The yearbook has arrived! But, now what? How do you get it from the yearbook boxes into your purchasers’ backpacks? Where do you even begin?
Whether you are a new or veteran yearbook adviser, this can be a daunting task. Yearbook distribution is an exciting but busy time that requires careful planning. But don’t worry, we have some yearbook distribution day tools to help.
Sales Spreadsheets and Ship Dates
If you use Online Sales through Walsworth’s Yearbook 360, the essential components are already in place. There you can find your Online Sales export, which lists the book and personalization orders. If you can’t find this report, talk to your Walsworth Yearbooks Sales Representative about accessing this information. This document will be the framework for distribution and sorting.
If your delivery truck hasn’t arrived yet, make sure you know your ship date. You can find this date on Yearbook 360. Communicate this date with your admin, front office and custodial staff so they also know when to expect the books. You’ll also need to work with them on finding a good place to store them before distribution.
When thinking about storage, consider where you hand books out and try to find a secure central location that can be locked so your books don’t walk away before you get a chance to hand them out.
Organization
Proper planning and organization are key to seamless distribution. Sort books with personalization alphabetically and keep them separate so they are easier to find when distributing. By pre-sorting your books and having your sales spreadsheet printed out, you’re setting yourself up for less stress and success!
When a student comes to pick up their book you’ll quickly be able to reference what was purchased, find their book, cross them off of the list and hand it out with a smile! If you want to take it a step further, track on the spreadsheet who picked up their book. Sometimes there can be confusion if one family member picked it up and the other didn’t realize it. By tracking this info, you can easily tell them it was picked up and by who.
Your students should help with physical sorting, and as a bonus, it gives them a sneak peek at the finished product. Some advisers also create customized receipt sheets for each student to sign, making tracking who picked up books simple.
Distribution Dilemma
There can be so many big ideas when it comes to yearbook distribution. But deciding what is right for you and your school is up to you. When you are crossed with the dilemma of whether to have a party or go smaller, and you aren’t sure which route to take, make sure to think about what you can feasibly do. Talk with your admin team and consider what has been done in the past. Think about whether students pick up their books at lunch or have you routinely had an event during the school day? How do graduates receive their books? If you are brand new or even going through a life change in your personal life, a big event could be overwhelming and might not be your best bet. But remember, there is no definitive answer, only what is right for you and your school. You may be ready to take on throwing a celebration to mark the year. Either way, we have the tools for you!
The Essentials
Even though distribution and signing parties are a lot of fun and a great way to celebrate your year, it’s not always feasible. But that doesn’t mean you can’t have any fun, here are the essentials to get you started. If you are into throwing a big event and want those details, hop to the next section.
Distribution Supplies
- Marketing materials, ie. posters, flyers, social media graphics. Pre-made resources can be found here.
- A laptop, tablet or smartphone with access Yearbook 360
- Multiple printed sales spreadsheets
- Highlighters, pens, and pencils for your staff
- Sharpies or pens for autograph signing
- A table and chairs for distribution
- Box cutters (don’t break down your boxes until you’re sure you don’t need them.)
- Optional: balloons, a Bluetooth speaker and a killer playlist
Current Students and Graduates
Homeroom or Advisory
A common method of distributing books to current students is through their homeroom or Advisory period. This is a great way to get books into the hands of purchasers. If you choose this method, you’ll need to pre-sort your books before delivering. Work with your front office to determine which purchasers are in which period and sort from there.
Lunch or Afterschool
Handing books out during lunch or after school can both also be great times to get books to your purchasers. If you do this, make sure you hang up signs, send emails home to parents and let people know when and where they are available for pickup. This will help minimize any confusion.
Graduate Drive-Thru
If you receive your books after school is out for the summer, getting the books to graduates before they go off to college or begin their post-secondary journey can be a challenge. An easy, effective way to distribute to graduates is through a drive-thru pickup. Schedule a few days when students or parents can pick up their books from your yearbook staff at the front of the school. You’ll want to promote this heavily on social media as well as your school district profiles. Work with the front office to send out an email to graduates’ parents about your dates and times so there is no confusion. This will help prevent dozens of books from being unclaimed.
Communication and Promotion is key
Life gets busy and emails can be overlooked. Be sure that you communicate with parents and staff continuously by sending scheduled reminders for yearbook distribution and the graduate drive-thru. We have pre-made graphics that you can use here, or sites like Canva can help your staff create eye-catching graphics for social media. Work with your front office staff to send scheduled emails to parents.
If you haven’t sold out of yearbooks and have more available for purchase, make sure to let everyone know! Yearbook distribution can be a great time to sell those extras, just don’t sell them at a discount. They are more valuable now that you have limited quantities! As always, remember, overcommunication is the key for success.
For a full list of Distribution Day promotion ideas check out this flyer.
Party On…
If you want to throw a distribution party but aren’t sure where to start? We have the resources for you!
Create a Vibe
Preparation remains paramount when it comes to throwing a party. Start with the essentials listed above, then expand to create a vibe.
- Think about decorations such as balloons, tablecloths and more that match the color of your book.
- Ask a local DJ to play music at the event. If that isn’t option, have your staff create a playlist with fun, upbeat music and play it through a Bluetooth speaker.
- If you have access to a TV, put together a slideshow of your unused photos. People will enjoy seeing the pictures!
- Selfie mode! Design a social media-worthy photo op for purchasers with their yearbooks, complete with a custom hashtag of your choosing!
- Ask your cheerleaders and mascot to come to help bring some extra energy to the event.
- Food trucks are everywhere nowadays. See if a few can stop by your school during the party! Students may love the opportunity to grab a bite to eat while they are signing yearbooks.
- For more party ideas head here.
After the Party
The party doesn’t stop for the yearbook staff when the last yearbook is handed out. There is still work to be done. Make sure to secure any money collected and the leftover yearbooks in a lockable location and clean up well. Thanking everyone who contributed is equally important as well. Handwritten notes go a long way for the principal, the front office staff, janitors, parents, etc. You’ll want to be able to continue the tradition next year, so a proper clean up and thank you is worth the time.
More Resources
Your Distribution Day Headquarters: Check out the Walsworth website for more great yearbook distribution resources. We have everything from ebooks and training videos to social media graphics, flyers, posters and more.
If you haven’t sold out, remember, it’s not to late to sell those remaining yearbooks! Guerilla Marketing with flyers, posters and more can help you let non-buyers know they are featured in the book. It might shock you to know how many students who are pictured in yearbook photos are non-buyers. Reel them in and get those books out sold!
Distribution Day: The Big Reveal: Unlock the secrets to a seamless yearbook distribution day! Walsworth’s eBook, Distribution Day: The Big Reveal, provides your staff with some dos and don’ts, ensuring a smooth delivery and a positive experience for all involved.
Learn from Others
When looking at how to distribute your book, a great idea generator and valuable resource to watch is from our video training series, “Distribution Day: Plan to Get Your Book to Your Audience,” where we break down the process of distribution day between spring and summer/fall delivery. Karen Johnson, MJE, yearbook adviser from Lawson High School in Lawson, Missouri, distributes yearbooks to 50% of their student body each year. She shares her methods, discusses their distribution event, Cardinal Flight Night, and talks about organization, promotion and more.
As your year comes to a close and the yearbooks are handed out, remember to take some time to appreciate all that you’ve accomplished! Your class or club created an amazing book that will be cherished for years to come. Take time to read it, really look at it and smell. There is nothing like that new book smell! Appreciate every detail, even the little mistakes you may find, and make sure to give yourself and your staff grace. You’re all human, and no human is perfect. But your yearbook, it’s perfectly imperfect.
