Tips for Working with School Digital Communications Platform Peachjar

Info updated for 2021.

Many school districts use digital communications platforms like Peachjar for delivering items like activity fliers to parents. For Scouting, that means learning how to follow some basic guidelines to optimize communications items for that platform. Here, we explain more about what Peachjar is, how to follow their guidelines, and their expert design tips.

How Does Peachjar Work?

Peachjar streamlines school-to-home communication by distributing fliers, community resources, and vital school updates directly to parents through their digital service.

Over 600 school districts and more than 20,000 community organizations use this tool to deliver communications to school parents. And if a school district is using Peachjar, then they are contractually obligated to send all school communications through the Peachjar digital platform rather than through printed materials.

Every Flier Must Be Approved by the School District and Must Follow Their Individual District Guidelines.

Each district has a set of guidelines that determine what kinds of fliers they will approve to be sent out to parents. Peachjar links these guidelines in their program provider accounts under a “District Guidelines” tab. An example may be requiring your flier to have both an English and Spanish version.

Peachjar Fliers can be read by screen readers.

Peachjar fliers comply with WCAG 2.0 A & AA standards. That means, for example, that parents that have visual impairment can receive information from Peachjar fliers via screen reading devices that detect text, then read it back to them.

For this process to work properly, there is a step in the flier upload process that populates the text from your flier into a box as it will be “read” by Peachjar systems. If the text in that box does not match what is on the flier, you run the risk of the flier being denied by the district, so be sure to check that it is correct.

Over 14,000 schools use the Peachjar system.

That’s close to 20 percent of all schools in the United States who use the Peachjar system. The platform has heavy coverage on the West Coast, East Coast, and throughout the South. To see if your school is a Peachjar school, check the school finder. 

Peachjar Design Tips.

Peachjar recommends strong, clear calls to action, simple copy, and large images. If you’re looking for some great fliers to get you started, check out the options in the BSA Brand Center. You can find fliers for Cub Scouts and fliers for Scouts BSA.

Although schools and parent groups can upload flyers without charge, there is a fee for organizations, such as the Boy Scouts of America, to distribute their fliers through the platform. Costs can vary by duration and number of schools.

LIMITED TIME PROMOTIONAL CODE

Peachjar is offering the Boy Scouts of America a 20% off promotional code that has unlimited uses through the remainder of 2021. The promo code is BSA2019. (Note: The 2019 code and discount have now been extended to the end of 2021, but the code remains: BSA2019.)