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How Data Mining Can Increase Phonathon Acquisition

by Jessica Neno Cloud, CFRE (opens in new tab)

A NEW SERIES FROM JESSICA NENO CLOUD This is the second in a series on donor acquisition by Jessica Neno Cloud, CFRE, the author of Successful Fundraising Calls: A Phonathon Scripting Workshop. Cloud is the assistant director for fundraising initiatives and planned giving at the University of Southern Mississippi Foundation. She practices evidence-based fundraising with a focus on return on investment, and has a variety of innovative and effective techniques to share. You may also be interested in the first article in this series: “How Data Mining Can Increase Direct Mail Acquisition.” The leaky bucket is a common metaphor in annual giving. Organizations will not retain 100% of donors from year to year. In fact, most institutions have retention rates far below that. Without acquisition work to bring on first-time donors, most of our organizations would flat-line within a short period of time. However, acquisition work is expensive. The best acquisition results usually come from the phonathon program, where conversations can be tailored to the prospect’s interest and have a human touch. Acquisition mailers usually have poor results, but surely there is some low-hanging fruit in your database that would prefer a mailing. (To learn more, read our article on […]

How Important is Your Institution’s Reputation? A Strong Naming Policy Can Help You Protect It

by Vincent E. Duckworth, CFRE (opens in new tab)

In February 2013, a South Florida university announced a 12-year, $6 million naming gift to name their football stadium for the company of an alumnus. The gift itself had all the hallmarks of a very natural extension of a deep relationship: the donor was an alumnus and former chairman of the university, and he had a track record of donating to the university and hiring its Alumni. There was just one problem. And it was a big problem. The donor’s business was owning and operating prisons in North America, Australia, Europe, and South Africa. And, as SBNation reported, “Not only was [this] a company that explicitly makes money off of incarcerating people, a moral quandary of its own, it’s drawn criticism from within that industry for several alleged incidents of widespread inmate mistreatment.” As could have been anticipated, the public outcry against the naming, the gift, the university, and the donor was swift, loud, and relentless. The stadium naming deal was dropped in April. Diagnosing the Issue At the root of this outcry was one fundamental issue: there appeared to be little alignment between the vision and values of a for-profit prison administration company and that of a student-centered institution […]

Is Your Spring Admissions Program Effective?

by Casey Hudson (opens in new tab), Cory Phare (opens in new tab)

With approximately 25% of students beginning college at a time other than the fall term (National Student Clearinghouse, 2012), the picture of the new student experience is becoming more fluid every day. Yet, many schools don’t provide customized support to assist with the differing considerations these students face. To ensure that you are investing appropriately in the success of this sizeable (and growing) group, you will need to consider several factors. In a recent online training from Academic Impressions, Chrissy Roth-Francis, director of new student services at UC Berkeley and Keith Lopez, assistant director of transition programs at Colorado State University, suggested best practices for meeting the needs of this special population of students. An Incomplete Picture Given the growing percentage of non-fall/spring admits, constructing programs and evaluating outcomes in a one-size-fits-all approach is obviously painting an incomplete institutional picture. One of the challenges to addressing this, however, is the lack of a centralized repository on resources and best-practice guidance. Roth-Francis makes the case for more focus on these students by highlighting the following areas with room for improvement: It Doesn’t End with Admission: Supporting Spring Admits Effectively While offering spring admissions may increase institutional enrollment numbers, you also need […]

How Data Mining Can Increase Direct Mail Acquisition

by Jessica Neno Cloud, CFRE (opens in new tab)

A NEW SERIES FROM JESSICA NENO CLOUD This is the first in a series on donor acquisition by Jessica Neno Cloud, CFRE, the author of Successful Fundraising Calls: A Phonathon Scripting Workshop. Cloud is the assistant director for fundraising initiatives and planned giving at the University of Southern Mississippi Foundation. She practices evidence-based fundraising with a focus on return on investment, and has a variety of innovative and effective techniques to share. Higher education fundraisers have the benefit of enjoying a natural constituency. We don’t have to go out like a small non-profit, buying the list for a niche magazine and hoping to build up a database mailing by mailing. Our industry graduates more constituents each semester and to one degree or another, they all have some built-in affinity for our institutions. This can be a bit of a double-edged sword though. While we don’t have to hunt for prospects, it is often true that we often have more people in our database than we can possibly reach. This is where data-mining comes in. It’s crucial to understand that blanket mailings to every prospect in our database can quickly become a money-losing strategy. We need to be smart and selective […]

Strategies for Recruiting and Retaining Alumni Reunion Volunteers

DO YOU HAVE A SUCCESS STORY IN ALUMNI VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT? Gwen Doyle, program manager at Academic Impressions, is looking for success stories to feature in upcoming events and articles. If you have tried something innovative and effective in managing your alumni volunteers, we encourage you to share your story. Contact Gwen Doyle at 720.988.1258 or email gwen@academicimpressions.com. by Casey Hudson (Academic Impressions) Volunteers are vital to the success of any alumni event—especially a reunion. And maintaining a large and enthusiastic volunteer pool requires a variety of recruitment techniques, appropriate training, and an engaging volunteer experience. During a recent Academic Impressions training, Andrea Petrie, director of development for Marquette University’s College of Nursing, and Taylor Schult, senior engagement officer at Marquette, discussed ways to make the volunteer experience more alumni friendly as a part of an overall plan for building better reunions. Here are several highlights. Using All the Resources You Have to Recruit Volunteers Is your advancement shop taking full advantage of the human and digital resources available for recruitment? Petrie and Schult recommend some simple techniques that can easily be adopted or adapted to fit into any recruitment strategy: Personally invite previous volunteers to volunteer again. Ask volunteers if they […]

Making Summer and Special Sessions Successful: 4 Key Factors

by Ken Smith (opens in new tab)

A NEW SERIES This is the first in a series of articles from Ken Smith, Virginia Tech’s vice provost for resource management and institutional effectiveness. Smith has both chaired and staffed multiple committees charged with overall improvement of special sessions operations at Virginia Tech. He holds a PhD in Educational Leadership from Virginia Tech. You may also be interested in Smith’s recent podcast, “Approaching the Academic Calendar More Creatively.” More colleges are considering offering special sessions outside the traditional academic calendar. In some cases, institutions are moving beyond summer and winter inter-sessions to provide condensed terms in May (immediately following spring term) or August (immediately preceding fall term). There are even “spring break” sessions that offer opportunity for very compressed but innovative courses. Special sessions not only provide the institution with financial gains by generating additional tuition revenues; they also offer opportunities to improve student success, completion rates, and job readiness. For example: For faculty, special sessions can offer not only extra pay but also an opportunity to try out innovative approaches to teaching a course. Because of the shorter time frame, many special session courses are delivered with a mix of on-line and in person instruction.  Certain types of […]

Annual Giving: Building the Case for Support

by Heather L. Greig (opens in new tab)

PRACTICAL STRATEGIES IN ANNUAL GIVING This article is the second in a unique series by Heather Greig of the University of Florida. The previous article in this series was “4 Keys to Building a Stronger Advancement Team.” A strong case for support is critical to the long-term success of your annual giving program—whether you are fundraising for unrestricted or restricted funds. Your case for support should address the following key questions: By creating a robust case, you will be laying the foundation for a strategy that will maintain your organization’s place among the top philanthropic interests of your alumni. The competition in the marketplace is significant, and less complex non-profits can more transparently communicate the answers to these three key questions. Without a strong case for support, annual giving programs will continue to face challenges in acquiring and retaining donors. Building the Case for Support: Unrestricted Funds When developing a case for support for an unrestricted fund, most organizations face a challenge overcoming the “black hole effect”. Consider the following when building this type of case: Building The Case for Support: Restricted Funds When raising money for restricted funds, the challenge takes on a different form. In this instance, the […]

Saving on Administrative Costs through Shared Service Agreements: 2 Case Studies

by Mark Polatajko (opens in new tab)

Given depleted funding sources and scrutiny over the costs of higher education, institutions across the country are recognizing that traditional modes of operation are not sustainable; many are instead looking at more efficient models of shared operational and administrative services. The reality of established cultures and organizational structures at nearly all institutions make generating these efficiencies a sincere challenge. However, several institutions have successfully navigated these challenges to create shared delivery models that generate efficiencies and guarantee much-needed funding for the academic mission. Wright State University in Dayton, OH has developed a unique model for funding operational and administrative services. Here are two case examples illustrating their approach — and highlighting what you can learn from their model. Example 1: Enterprise Print CHALLENGEWright State was facing rising costs across its print production and office print footprint resulting from antiquated equipment, an outdated capital expenditure model, declining print production volume, idle capacity with heavy investment in fixed costs (i.e., labor and equipment), and decentralized, non-strategic deployment of print devices.SOLUTIONWright State led the development of a consortium for enterprise print services across multiple institutions that would leverage pricing and generate economies of scale. The key elements for deliver were quality, service, value, […]

Handling Footage in a Campus Crisis: Others’ Footage

by Cindy Lawson (opens in new tab)

THE NEXT LEVEL IN CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS This article is part of an ongoing series by Cindy Lawson on taking your crisis communications and response planning to the next level. The previous articles in the series include: Presidents’ Advice for Campus Leaders in a Crisis Social Media Triage: How to Create a Social Media Incident Command The crisis hits unexpectedly. My mind kicks into gear. My first thoughts are: get the facts, determine the messaging and identify who needs to receive which messages, how often and through what mechanisms. We know this drill. However, not once in all the myriad of crises I managed during my more than 30-year career have I ever asked, “What pictures do I need? Should I take any at all? For what purpose? Should we use them on a website or disseminate via social media?” I have posted pictures of vigils or presidents speaking at press conferences, but short of that, it’s been the farthest thing from my mind. Yet why should this be the case? If a picture says a thousand words, why isn’t it at the forefront of my mind? It should be. As I recently grappled with these questions, I interviewed Jamie Moncrief, […]

7 Tips for Effectively Managing an Admissions Team

by W. Kent Barnds (opens in new tab)

One seasoned enrollment manager offers practical strategies for making your admissions team high performing, high morale, and effective. When I took on my role in 1997 as director of admissions at Elizabethtown College, the extent of my leadership and management experience consisted of serving as captain of my college track team several years before. While I’d worked hard as an admissions counselor and was beginning to feel a genuine connection to admissions work and higher education, I did not think of myself as a leader. I suspect my experience is fairly common among those who find themselves (or will find themselves) in positions of leadership in an admissions office: lots of enthusiasm, little experience. Though I still make mistakes, I’ve learned a few things about leading and managing an admissions team. But for this post, I asked my own team for some feedback about what does generally work, and what doesn’t. Responses to my inquiry resulted in my first observation about self-management and reinforce how important it is for admissions leaders to solicit feedback from team members! I hope these observations are helpful. UNDERSTAND YOUR TEAM Understanding the characteristics and acknowledging the complexities of the team is a must. Most […]

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