Most schools and counsellors think they've done their ideal client persona work.

hey haven't. This week Helen Tudor (energetic, hard-nosed, slightly woo - her words) joins me to talk stick figures, attracting the right families, red flag parents, and why your prospectus is boring everyone into a "maybe." Spoiler: it's not about the parents. It's about you.

Connect with Nicola

https://www.instagram.com/nofluff.biz/
https://www.facebook.com/nofluffsolutions
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/

Connect with Helen Tudor
https://helentudor.online/about
https://www.linkedin.com/in/helentudor/
https://www.instagram.com/helentudoronline
https://www.facebook.com/helenctudor

Somewhere in your student enquiry pipeline right now, there's a family who went quiet after visiting, an agent whose enthusiasm never turned into bookings, or a student you promised to get back to and haven't. You know exactly who it is. That's your frog, and you've been finding very productive-looking ways to avoid it.

Nicola takes Brian Tracy's Eat That Frog and applies it specifically to admissions and education sales: what your "frog" actually looks like in a pipeline, why checking your emails first thing is the most effective way to never eat the damn thing, and the ABCDE method for being brutally honest about which of your tasks are actually moving the needle versus just making you feel busy. Plus the "converter mindset" that separates people who process enquiries from people who convert them.
As a start to the 2026 academic year, this is a great listen to get the important stuff done!

Connect with Nicola

https://www.instagram.com/nofluff.biz/
https://www.facebook.com/nofluffsolutions
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/

What if the reason your admissions team isn't converting has nothing to do with their skills, and everything to do with the story they're telling themselves about sales?

In this episode, Nicola Lutz sits down with Ruth Hughes, founder of Curious Human, coaching psychologist, and former Director of Marketing and Admissions at a leading UK independent school, to explore the concept of the sales self and why so many people in education resist it.

They dig into the real cost of being "nice" instead of kind, why information-dumping feels safe but loses enrolments, how to shift an admissions team from admin mindset to commercial mindset, and the psychology behind following up without feeling pushy.
You'll walk away understanding:

Why limiting beliefs like "I don't want to pressure them" are avoidance, not ethics
How to guide prospects toward a decision rather than just answering questions
Why futures, not features, should drive every tour and consultation
How to stop taking rejection personally when you've genuinely invested in a prospect

Practical, honest, and grounded in coaching psychology, this one will change how you think about your role in admissions.

  Connect with Nicola

https://www.instagram.com/nofluff.biz/

https://www.facebook.com/nofluffsolutions

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/

Connect with Ruth

https://www.instagram.com/curious.humans/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruth-hughes/

https://curious-human.co.uk/

Getting a "no" feels like a physical injury. Neuroscience proves it.

Functional MRI studies show that social rejection activates the same regions of the brain as physical pain. And once you understand that, a lot of behaviour in education sales starts to make perfect sense.

The softened sign-offs. The extra brochure instead of a direct question. The meeting that ends with "I'll send you some information and you can let me know." None of it feels like avoidance in the moment. It just feels polite.

In this episode of Selling Education, Nicola Lutz digs into the psychology behind why admissions teams struggle to ask for the next step, and what to do instead.

In this episode, Nicola covers:

If your admissions team runs brilliant visits but struggles to convert enquiries into enrolments, this episode will show you exactly where the momentum is being lost, and how to get it back.

Connect with Nicola

https://www.instagram.com/nofluff.biz/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/

https://www.facebook.com/nofluffsolutions

Most schools think turning up is enough. Book the meeting, open the deck, present the school. Job done.

But according to Basia Salamon, one of Poland's leading education agents and founder of boutique consultancy Excellence in Education, that approach is losing schools agents before the conversation has even really started.

With over 15 years of experience advising families on international schooling and boarding school placements, Basia has seen every mistake in the book. In this episode of Selling Education, she sits down with Nicola Lutz to share exactly what schools and agents are getting right, and what they're getting badly wrong.

In this episode, we cover:

Whether you're an admissions professional, a language school owner, or an education agent, this episode will make you rethink how you're showing up for the families and partners you serve.

 Connect with Basia

https://www.linkedin.com/in/basia-salamon/

https://eie.pl/

Connect with Nicola

https://www.instagram.com/nofluff.biz/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/

https://www.facebook.com/nofluffsolutions

You've definitely written this in an email:

“If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call.”

It sounds polite. Professional. Safe.
But in student recruitment, it’s often where the conversation stalls.

It gives no clear next step, no reason to act. Leaving families to not move forward, and instead drift away.

Nicola Lutz, from No Fluff, unpacks why this common sign-off is costing language schools, independent schools, and education agents enrolments, and what to say instead to guide families confidently to the next step.

If your enquiry-to-enrolment conversion isn’t where it should be, this episode will help you tighten your follow-up and keep momentum with prospective families.

Listen now and start turning more enquiries into enrolments.

In this episode of Selling Education, I’m joined by career confidence expert Zena Everett to talk about something most admissions and recruitment teams feel but rarely unpack properly, the “crazy busy” trap. We dig into why capable people end up overwhelmed, how imposter syndrome shows up in our sector, and why focusing on the work that actually moves the needle matters far more than just staying busy. If you work in admissions, student recruitment, or agency leadership, this conversation will feel very familiar.

Connect with Zena Everett
https://www.instagram.com/zenaeverett1/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaeverett/

Connect with Nicola

https://www.instagram.com/nofluff.biz/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/

https://www.facebook.com/nofluffsolutions

In this episode of Selling Education, I sit down with Ian Aird, CEO of English Australia and one of the most commercially astute leaders in the ELICOS sector.

With 25 years across teaching, admissions, marketing, operations and executive leadership, Ian has lived the full sales journey. We dig into the uncomfortable but essential truth that many education teams are presenting, not selling and that this is quietly costing enrolments.

We cover:

Why “selling” and “presenting” are not the same thing

How to find the real tension behind a parent or agent’s hesitation

Why most sales teams are undertrained, even when they are experienced

The role CEOs should play in the sales pipeline

How to check understanding properly instead of asking “Does that make sense?”

Whether AI will reduce language travel or make it more premium and experiential

This is a practical, honest conversation about sales craft in education, leadership responsibility and what it really takes to improve enquiry-to-enrolment conversion in a changing market.

If you work in admissions, recruitment, agency management or sector leadership, this episode will challenge how you think about selling and give you sharper questions to take into your next conversation.

Ian's links:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ianaird/
https://www.englishaustralia.com.au/

Nicola's Links:
https://www.nofluff.biz/
https://calendly.com/nicolalutz/quick-chat-with-nicola
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/

I’m joined by Brendan Schneider, founder of SchneiderB Media, and one of the few people in school marketing who’s actually done the job. Admissions, marketing, leadership, budgets, boards, pressure. He’s been there.

We talk about:

Why many schools are still stuck in outdated marketing habits

What inbound marketing really looks like in a school context

Why SEO is being ignored, and why that’s a mistake

The danger of beautiful websites that don’t convert

How marketing and admissions need to work together, not in silos

Why retention is quietly one of the biggest growth levers schools overlook

This episode is practical, honest, and grounded in reality. No theory for theory’s sake. Just clear thinking, useful examples, and ideas you can actually act on.

If you’re responsible for enquiries, enrolments, or the school’s reputation, this one’s worth your time.

Brendans Links:
https://www.schneiderb.com/

No Fluff Links:
nofluff.biz

In this solo episode of Selling Education, I tackle a question that makes many schools uncomfortable, but cannot be avoided any longer.

What happens in admissions teams that would never be acceptable in a well-run business?

I break down the everyday practices in schools that would raise serious red flags elsewhere, from expecting revenue outcomes while avoiding the word sales, to measuring admin activity instead of conversion, shaming follow-up, treating every enquiry the same, and expecting results without proper training, structure, or recognition.

Admissions teams are stretched, well-intentioned, and deeply committed. The issue is that we have never properly named, prioritised, or professionalised the work of converting enquiries into enrolments, even though it is complex, high-value, and emotionally demanding.

Connect with me!

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicola-lutz/
https://calendly.com/nicolalutz/quick-chat-with-nicola