Promote Your School on Facebook

Don't let a lack of tech savvy scare you away.
Facebook is easy, fun, and full of prospects!

Your customers are on Facebook—and you should be, too!

This post isn't intended to provide technical, step-by-step instructions on how to create a Facebook page for your business; there are many other resources available if that's what you're looking for. Rather, this is a simple guide to encourage you to get started on social media marketing.

Where do I begin?

The first step is to fill out all the vital information about your school in the categories provided in the Facebook profile: school name, location, and contact information. This information will be the same as what you include on your website and/or in other marketing materials.

Don't forget to add some pictures! Everyone likes pictures, and your Facebook page should include pictures of your school, your cars, your instructors, and yourself—even happy customers, if they'll allow you to use their image. Photos are vitally important because they provide a connection between the Internet and the real world. Consumers can be skeptical about placing their faith—and their hard-earned cash—into the anonymous void of the Internet. Pictures build recognition and trust between you and the customer.

Okay…what's next?

The next step is to post regular and interesting status updates. These can range from additional pictures or instructional diagrams to important driving information and news from your school. You might post about special offers or deals you're offering. Updates are what you use to keep your customers interested and thinking about your school.

How often should I post status updates?

No more than a couple a day, but at least once a week. Such a wide range is obviously a rough guideline. Experiment to see how much effort you're comfortable putting in and what seems to work best in terms of getting a response.

How do I get people to "like" my business's Facebook page?

Start by inviting your family and friends. Once you've got a handful of "likes" it becomes easier to get more. Your next source should be your customers. Start telling people that your school in on Facebook, and make sure to mention your page during class. Reach out to your best customers and build outward from there.

What about paid advertising on Facebook?

Facebook offers several types of paid advertising, but the results can be spotty depending on execution. If you've got some Facebook paid advertising experience, please leave a comment below that we'll share with the other readers of this blog.

What's the point of all this?

As with all advertising, the intent is to drive more customers to your school. Most potential customers who don't select a traffic violator school off of the DMV/court list are going to start their search online or by asking friends and relatives for recommendations. Your school's Facebook presence is the 21st century equivalent of handing out your business card. You're hoping that the prospects you encounter are going to pass the information on to people they know, who will also become your customers.

Can you provide an example of a business's Facebook page?

Check out the Facebook pages of active social media marketing masters like Pepsi or M&Ms, to get some ideas. Or maybe you're already doing something great on Facebook—in which case you should leave a comment below and share what you know!

Florida Curriculum Update for 2014

In response to the "Aaron Cohen Life Protection Act" (SB 102, 2014 legislative session), the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) recently mandated that all 4-hour Basic Driver Improvement (BDI) and 12-hour Advanced Driver Improvement (ADI) programs present information on "Vulnerable Road User" (VRU) safety. Such instruction is particularly valuable to Floridians, as walking and bicycling are unusually dangerous in the state.

Going forward, BDI and ADI courses are required to describe and provide statistics on vulnerable road users, specify what laws and infrastructural trends have been implemented for their protection, and explain driving techniques that can enhance VRU safety. Toward that end, Traffic Safety Consultants, Inc., has updated Internet-based programs to account for these new curriculum requirements. Further, inserts for the booklet and video/DVD modalities are provided via links below; please include a copy of the VRU insert sheet with each product that you ship, in addition to any other applicable inserts.

Classroom instructors, meanwhile, should familiarize themselves with the "VRU Lesson Plan materials" content (link below). BDI instructors are to include this new material with their discussion of "Sharing the Road," which has always contained some of the content presented here. ADI instructors are to include the entirety of this all-new content between the sections "Is Speeding Really Dangerous?" and "Driving While Fatigued." This material is intended to be lecture-only, and there are no revisions to the workbooks, Flipcharts, or exams for either of these courses. (If you would like a complete, fresh copy of the revised BDI and/or ADI Lesson Plans, please contact Donna.)

Please click on the links below to access the files you need. You may read/print them online or download them to you local computer for easy access whenever you need them.

• BDI VRU insert - English
• BDI VRU insert - Spanish


• VRU Lesson Plan materials
• BDI: Incorporate this new material into your discussion of "Sharing the Road," which already contains some of the content presented here.
• ADI: Incorporate this new material between the sections "Is Speeding Really Dangerous?" and "Driving While Fatigued." This is all-new content for the ADI program.

Remember that these revisions are applicable to all modalities of the 4-Hour BDI and 12-Hour ADI programs.

Please make sure that you ship the latest home study inserts and discuss this material in class, as you will be responsible for teaching this new material to students!

Bicycle Safety: The Bike Box

A recent Forbes article notes that injuries and fatalities of pedestrians and cyclists have steadily increased since 2009—at a significantly higher rate than motor vehicle fatalities. From 2011 to 2012, pedestrian deaths rose 6% and bicyclist fatalities were up nearly 7%. These road users lack the speed, power, and protective "shell" that a motor vehicle affords drivers, and it is an important responsibility of every driver to ensure their safety.

Traditional Safe-Driving Techniques

The safety of bicyclists and walkers is generally enhanced by limiting the driving speed of motor vehicles and by separating motor vehicles from these road users as much as possible. In a practical sense, this means that drivers should remain vigilant for cyclists and pedestrians, slow down when operating a motor vehicle near them, and give them a generous space cushion—a minimum of three feet between a motor vehicle and a bicycle.

These tips remain helpful, but other steps are being taken at the infrastructure level to enhance the safety of bicyclists.

Bike Box/Advanced Stop Lines

A bike box (also referred to as an advanced stop line or advanced stop box) is a system of road markings employed at signalized intersections to allow certain vehicle types a head start when the traffic signal changes from red to green. The markings include a green box on the roadway with a white bicycle symbol inside, and include a green bicycle lane approaching and leading from the box. There are two parallel stop lines at the intersection: the first, at which all traffic except for the specified users (usually bicyclists, but sometimes buses or motorcycles) must stop; and a second, closer to the intersection, to which only the specified users may proceed. Signage may inform road users of the meaning of the extra stop line. Separate signals may be provided for the specific traffic, but usually all vehicles use the same signals.

The primary goal of this set-up is to prevent, through enhanced visibility and awareness, collisions between motorists who are turning right and cyclists who are going straight. At a red light, cyclists are more visible to motorists because they are in front of them. At a green light, the bike lane through the intersection reminds motorists and cyclists to watch for one another.

When the traffic signal is yellow or red, motorists must stop behind the white stop line that is behind the bike box. Don't stop on top of or "in" the bike box; keep it clear for cyclists' use. A right-turn-on-red may not be made at these intersections. When the light turns green, motorists and cyclists may move through the intersection as usual, with cyclists proceeding first. Motorists turning right on the green should signal and watch for cyclists to the right, especially in the green bike lane in the intersection.

Cyclists enter the bike box from the approaching green bike lane, stopping before the crosswalk on a yellow or red traffic signal. When the light is green, cyclists proceed as usual, taking care to watch for right-turning motor vehicles.

(The City of Portland's (Oregon) Office of Transportation publishes a helpful brochure to introduce motorists to this newer arrangement.)

Adult Involvement Can Lower Teen Driver Deaths

Driving Can Be Dangerous

Teen drivers are inexperienced behind the wheel, and they often make dangerous choices because they lack maturity and are prone to taking risks. It's no surprise, then, that traffic crashes are the leading killer of teens in the U.S.

Parents and Other Adults Can Help

Parents (or other adults) can have a significant impact on the safety habits of young drivers. That's the message behind the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) "5 to Drive" campaign intended to raise awareness about the critical role adults play in developing safe teen drivers.

The safety initiative encourages parents to:

• Learn about their state's graduated driver licensing (GDL) program, if there is one, and to understand—and enforce—the restrictions placed on their teen's license. Even in states that don't have an official program, parents can establish important ground rules for their teen driver: Restrict night driving and passengers, prohibit driving while on the phone, and require seat belt use at all times.
• Be a good role model. Parents must remember that their child sees how they drive and is likely to model their behavior. Therefore, it is imperative that parents practice safe-driving techniques themselves! (They might even take a defensive driving course to brush up on their skills.) Parents should also observe and discuss with their children these important "5 to Drive" safety rules:
1. No mobile phone use or texting while driving. Ten percent of those killed in teen-driving crashes in 2012 died when the teen driver was distracted at the time of the crash.
2. No extra passengers. NHTSA data show that a teenage driver is 2.5 times more likely to engage in risky behavior when driving with one teenage passenger, and three times more likely with multiple teenager passengers.
3. No speeding. In 2012, speeding was a factor in almost half (48%) of the crashes that killed 15- to 20-year-old drivers.
4. No alcohol. The minimum legal drinking age in every state is 21. However, 28% of 15- to 20-year-old drivers killed in crashes in 2012 had been drinking.
5. No driving or riding without a seat belt. In 2012, more than half (60%) of all 15- to 20-year-old occupants of passenger vehicles killed in crashes were unrestrained.

Driver Education is Important, But Just the Beginning

Parents should not rely solely on a driver education class to teach their teen to drive. While formal, professional driver education is important—and highly recommended—it should be used as just part of a broader GDL program. Parents are encouraged to communicate with their teen and set aside time to take their teen on practice driving sessions. It can be a great way to spend time together and to allow the teen to improve on basic driving skills.

Parents who are anxious about practicing driving with their teen could pick up a copy of the outstanding parent-teen driving guide, Teach Your Teen to Drive…and stay alive. This fantastic parent-teen guide provides life-saving tips and easy-to-follow, structured exercises to reduce the stress factors associated with the up to 60 hours of supervised driving practice that's required by all 50 states.

(If your stock of books is running low, or to get started with this excellent product, contact our Director of Affiliate Operations, Gloria Verver, for great affiliate pricing (via email or by calling 800 . 252 . 9488). Of course, you can always order via Amazon.com as well.)

Teen Drivers: Distracted and Dangerous

The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), a non-profit organization representing state highway safety offices (and an excellent resource that's available here!), recently released a report detailing the dangers of teen distracted driving. The report, "Distracted & Dangerous: Helping States Keep Teens Focused on the Road," highlights promising programs and policies designed to help teen drivers recognize deadly distractions and to encourage young motorists to be fully engaged while behind the wheel.

The Danger

"Teens have the highest crash risk of any age group, and research confirms that distraction is often a factor," Jonathan Adkins, the group's executive director, said in a statement. Indeed, teens represented the largest proportion of drivers who were distracted at the time of a fatal crash, based on the 2012 data used in the report (the latest available), and 57% of those killed were the teen drivers themselves.

Unexpectedly, the research indicated that the youngest and most inexperienced motorists were actually among those least likely (with the exception of drivers 60 and older) to use a mobile phone while driving. "Many brand new teen drivers recognize passengers and portable electronics are distracting. But as they gain experience and become more confident in their driving skills, their attitudes about talking and texting while driving, as well as transporting passengers, changes," Adkins added.

Distraction caused by multiple passengers is also problematic for new drivers. The probability of a crash increases with each passenger riding with a young driver, as it's often tempting for teens to pay attention to their passengers than to the road.

Help is on the Way

Superior driver education programs and graduated driver licensing systems can help a great deal with such issues—as can strict, but fair, enforcement of reasonable, well-drafted traffic laws. Of particular note:

• New York will soon have the nation's toughest distracted-driving penalties. Beginning November 1, 2014, drivers under the age of 21 will face a 120-day license suspension for a first conviction and a 1-year suspension for a second. And state law is complemented with aggressive enforcement that includes utilizing unmarked, raised sport utility vehicles that allow officers to better spot drivers who are texting or engaging in other distracting behaviors.
• North Dakota invested federal distracted-driving grant funds to provide law enforcement training in advance of a statewide, high-visibility enforcement initiative and media campaign conducted during Distracted Driving Awareness Month (April). The state continues to support the effort with messages via Pandora, Hulu, and other social media platforms directed to young drivers.

The report noted that simulators, peer-to-peer campaigns, contests, phone apps, and grassroots advocacy were among the promising approaches to fighting teen distracted driving.

Potential distractions are everywhere, and no driver is immune to the hazards. Considering that distracted driving can lead to slower reactions times than even a blood alcohol content of 0.08% (the presumptive limit in all 50 states), we should all have an interest in doing whatever we can to keep teens—and all drivers—distraction-free behind the wheel.

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Remember that October 19 – 25 is
Teen Driver Safety Week!

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Expanded Tracker Program

Traffic Safety Consultants, Inc., (TSC) is expanding our "Completion Tracker" service upgrade program that provides traffic violator school (TVS) students with follow-up notifications regarding the disposition of their traffic school completion. An additional option will mean greater choice and convenience for students and, hopefully, encourage them to make use of this service to enhance their traffic school experience.

About a year ago, we packaged the new Proof of DMV Submission notification (students get an email with the date, time, and sequence number of their completion that was posted successfully to the DMV's Traffic Violator Course Completion (TVCC) database) with the Completion Tracker notification (an email reporting that the court with jurisdiction over that student's case had viewed their TVS completion report via TVCC). We are now breaking out the Completion Tracker as, once again, a stand-alone product offering. This will allow students a "budget option" to track their their completion through the reporting-and-processing phases of traffic school attendance.

Effective October 1, 2014, students will be presented two post-completion tracking options via your traffic school websites:

• Completion Tracker
• Proof of DMV Submission/Completion Tracker Package

All other facets of the program, including contractual terms for participation, will remain the same. If you have any questions about this update, please contact Chris (via email or by calling 800 . 487 . 1699) or Tara (via email or by calling 800 . 863 . 2590).

As always, these service upgrade products require no work or effort on your part—indeed, they should cut down on the number of customer service calls you need to field from students who are concerned about whether or not their completion was reported. Better still, this outstanding service option will please your students and make them more likely to return or refer business.

Instructor Continuing Education

REGISTER NOW for the online Traffic Violator Instructor Continuing Education Seminar! You can complete this Internet-based program at your convenience, and it's a great way to take advantage of the option for traffic violator instructors (TVIs) to participate in continuing professional education as a condition of license renewal—in lieu of trudging down to an occupational licensing office to take a DMV-administered test.

For complete details about this valuable program for all traffic school instructors, check out our blog post announcing the program or the FAQs page on the course website (www.TrafficSchoolInstructorCourse.com).

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Remember: Take a moment to check the expiration date of your instructor license and/or the license(s) of any instructor(s) working for you. Whether you choose to take advantage of this continuing ed seminar or not, you'll need to make sure you renew your instructor(s) license(s) in a timely manner!

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Don't forget that, as a special service to our affiliates, Traffic Safety Consultants, Inc., (TSC) is making the Traffic Violator Instructor Continuing Education Seminar available for just $9.95 (regularly $49.95). To claim your affiliate-only discount, simply enter the coupon code from your e-mailed notification about this course in the appropriate field on the payment page.

If you have any questions about this excellent new benefit from TSC, please contact Chris (via email or by calling 800 . 487 . 1699) or Tara (via email or by calling 800 . 863 . 2590).

California Spanish Classroom Materials Available!

Traffic Safety Consultants, Inc., (TSC) is pleased to announce that the classroom materials for our Spanish traffic violator school (TVS) lesson plan have been delivered and are ready to be distributed. TSC has offered affiliates a California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)-approved TVS lesson plan in English for many years, and we're now ready to expand our offering with a Spanish-language version. This new product is DMV-approved for use statewide, and has been professionally translated from our outstanding English TVS classroom-based lesson plan. It's the same great content and the same high-quality presentation materials—in an all-new language, for Spanish-speaking drivers in California!

If you are interested, please contact Chris (via email or by calling 800 . 487 . 1699) or Tara (via email or by calling 800 . 863 . 2590) to get started with your DMV paperwork that will allow you to transition your school to TSC's Spanish classroom lesson plan.

New Bike-Passing Law

California's "Three Feet for Safety Act" (CVC §21760) takes effect September 16. This law essentially codifies what has long been a recommended safety practice: Drivers overtaking and passing a bicycle that is proceeding in the same direction on a highway must allow at least three feet between their vehicle and the overtaken bicycle or its operator. When a three-foot space cushion is not possible because of traffic or roadway conditions, drivers are to slow to a reasonable and prudent speed and pass only when doing so would not endanger the safety of the cyclist.

Hundreds of bicyclists are killed and many more are injured nationwide every year. Many of these incidents can be prevented if both drivers and cyclists practiced more caution, and the new law is intended to reduce vehicle-bicycle crashes by reminding passing drivers to give bicyclists plenty of room to ride safely. Remind students that they must always do their part to ensure the safety of all users of the roadway.

A violation is an infraction punishable by a fine of $35; the fine is $220 if a collision between the motor vehicle and the bicycle causes bodily injury to the cyclist.

"Proof of Submission" Pricing

Due to rising administrative costs, Traffic Safety Consultants, Inc., (TSC) will be adjusting the price of our "Proof of DMV Submission" service upgrade for California online traffic violator school (TVS) students. The new pricing will be effective on Monday, September 1, 2014; all payment functionality will be updated accordingly.