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TRANSCRIPT
Alumni & Mid-Level Donor Engagement
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ERIN MCHUGH SAIF
ENGAGEMENT COMES IN MANY FORMS…
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• O-H-I-O…8,708 acts of Buckeye pride• “It started out as a simple football cheer. But today, O-H-I-O means
the whole package: strong athletic traditions, major school spirit, academic achievements, and outreach efforts”
ENGAGEMENT AT EVERY LEVEL
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• Bowling Green State University• A rap about a capital campaign…
ENGAGEMENT AT EVERY LEVEL
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• …to a clear plan and way for mid-level donors to have an impact:
ENGAGEMENT AT EVERY LEVEL
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• Healthy competition to drive up participation
ENGAGEMENT AT EVERY LEVEL
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• Deliver your message through preferred technology
ENGAGEMENT AT EVERY LEVEL
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ENGAGEMENT CHALLENGES…AND OPPORTUNITIES
• Declining alumni participation
• Alumni behavior is difficult to gather, analyze
• Which areas of interest actually matter?
• Different ways to engage…which is best?
• Engagement is subjective
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• Communication preferences vary by individual
• How does engagement compare to likelihood?
• Engagement often proceeds giving
• Successful programs understand triggers
• Multi-channel communication
DEVELOPING AN ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT PLAN
• How do they communicate?
• How do they want to hear from us?
• Who are they?
• What are they engaged in?
Identify Communicate
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• What programs do they participate in?
• What is their giving likelihood?
• What’s the plan?
EngageCultivate
MODELING & DATA DRIVE PROGRAM SUCCESS• Provides a picture of what an engaged alumni looks like for your institution
• Helps you to clearly identify your next generation of supporters and class agents
• Utilizes a strict calculation based on giving, proximity and event involvement or a simpler grouping based on event involvement only
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• Provides ability to target individuals with the likelihood to offer gift support enabling you to build a stronger, longer-term relationships
• Engagement research is more subjective than giving analysis• In charitable giving analysis, the presence or absence of a gift, gift amount and
frequency give us a tangible base for analysis• Engagement involves a subjective determination of what constitutes an
engaged individual• For example, it may include a multitude of activities, from event attendance
to “follow on Twitter”• Once engaged data variables are identified, a simple scoring system may
ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT SCORING AT YOUR INSTITUTION
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• Once engaged data variables are identified, a simple scoring system may be devised
• +1 for each engaged variable present• 0 if they do not engage on that variable• -1 if they participate in “negative” activity • Higher positive scores are your engaged individuals
• The best way to gauge success to is test the scores and tweak as needed• Test, test and retest
UTILIZING AN ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT MODEL • Predictive models provide a numeric likelihood score based on a
variation of statistical modeling techniques
• Scores rank each donor according to their propensity to become engaged with your institution
• Collection of all alumni and exports engagement calculation variables, giving information, and additional internal variables
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• Major, Minor, Degree, # Degrees• Dept., Athletic, Greek• Financial aid, campus employment, others
Pre-Grad
• Event attendance, reunion participation• Young alumni committee, admission volunteer• Twitter, Facebook, Ticketholder, Parent, others
Post-Grad
HOW MODELING WORKS: IDENTIFY THE ACTION TO BE PREDICTED
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ORGANIZATION-IDENTIFIED ENGAGEMENT VARIABLES
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PREDICTIVE ENGAGEMENT VARIABLES
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MEASURABLE ENGAGEMENT IMPACT
Visibility
• Better insight into alumni affinity and capacity to give• Alumni communication channel strategies
Data
• Customized model based on individual institution parameters• Vast array of data parameters and easy reporting to determine
strategies
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Actions
• Statistically accurate and actionable data provides unique engagement and communication channels based on defined profiles
Knowledge
• Expertise provides predictive analysis to help better define your strategy
• Launch an Engagement Plan on campus by:
• Understanding the many ways young alumni engage
• Connecting engagement with key alumni behaviors
• Predicting the most likely to become more engaged
ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT PLAN
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• Efficient use of cultivation techniques and strategies
• Knowing who to target and by which method
• Identifying who is not yet ready to become more engaged
• Integrating online and social media into your engagement strategy
FUNDRAISING BASICS - TODAY’S DONOR PYRAMID
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WHAT SHAPE IS YOUR PYRAMID?
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• How do you define your mid-level donors?• Do you have a specific strategy and plan to attract and retain them?• What internal policies/procedures ensure great cultivation?• Do you avoid…
MID-LEVEL DONOR MANAGEMENT
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THE SILO SAGA
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• Donor Profile- Mid 30’s, married dual young professional household, no kids- Has given $50 a year for 9 years- Gave at the $1,000 Leadership Circle level for 10th reunion- How does your organization engage?
• In small shops, annual giving, membership, and special events are the fundraising channels of choice
THE FORGOTTEN MIDDLE DONOR
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are the fundraising channels of choice
• Large national and international nonprofits have a direct marketing legacy
• Both types of organizations are interested in growing mid-level, major, and planned giving programs- Not staffed to handle high-touch fundraising cultivation- More likely to use direct mail/direct marketing- No one to cultivate at the mid-level
• In more sophisticated operations, a strong mix of fundraising science and art is used to facilitate personal contact and relationships
- Mega gifts come from the middle to top of the giving pyramid
- Mid-level donors are tomorrow’s major donors
HIGHER ED ADVANTAGE: MID LEVEL DONOR CULTIVATION
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- Enhanced cultivation and stewardship is critical and ongoing
- Planning across the silos empowers you to engage with prospects and donors in a comprehensive and coordinated fashion
• Number one priority : cultivate and solicit!• All other activities are ancillary or contradictory
- Calls per week?- Meetings per month?- Step evolution?- Closed gifts?- Ratio of planned to actual?
HELP YOUR DEVELOPMENT OFFICERS PRIORITIZE
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- Ratio of planned to actual?
• Not special event planners • Not meeting mavens• Mid-Level Gift Management
- Included in major gift portfolios?- Associate Major Gift Officers?- Set real and measurable goals
• How often do you• Solicit?• Thank?• Inform?• Invite?
• Look at entire
COMMUNICATION BEST PRACTICES
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• Look at entire communication stream- Not only development
communications
• Look at all communication channels- Including social media
ORDER TO CHAOS: TRACKING PURPOSE AND FREQUENCY
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• Major Gift staff vs. Annual Fund Staff vs. Peer Managed• Reunions and Events – what tools are in your toolkit?• Data in, data out.• Technology preferences – newsletter vs. mobile
MID-LEVEL DONOR MANAGEMENT
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Techniques for using scores for assignment- Mid-Level Prospects have a high mid-level likelihood and capacity fits in mid-range - Prime Upgrades are highly likely but capacity is just below mid-range- Transitional giving prospects have high likelihood and capacity just below major
giving threshold - Use results to identify prospects unlikely to make these gifts, concentrate on prospects
with greater potential
MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #1: SEGMENTATION AT $1,000-$25,000+
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Capacity in Mid-Level Giving Range - 12 months
Mid
-Lev
el G
ivin
g Li
kelih
ood
$501-$1,000
$1,001-$2,500
$2,501-5,000
$5,001-$10,000 $10,000+
Very Good+
Good
Average
Below Average
MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #2:BUILD A PIPELINE OR A PYRAMID
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MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #3:CONNECT THE COMMUNICATION PLAN TO THE PYRAMID
• Ensure that all mid-level prospects in the lower tiers are, at the very least, receiving differentiated or high-touch solicitations
• Review the entirety of communications to mid-level prospects
• Don’t over solicit
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• Don’t over solicit
• Assign a staff member to each prospect to act as a stewardship liaison
• Through surveys or personal contact, gauge the interests of mid-level prospects to determine content of communication and cultivation
MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #4:USE CULTIVATION EVENTS TO BUILD PIPELINE
• Likely to have more prospects than staff assignments will allow
• Maximize face-to-face opportunities• Design events around identified interests• Invite prospects to “insider” events
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• Invite prospects to “insider” events• Use other major or mid-level donors to invite
and cultivate new prospects• Whenever possible, solicit gifts in line with
identified interests
Research indicates that donors are more likely to restrict gifts as the level of giving increases
• Direct cultivation by a development professional
• Measures when a donor is looking to “take their relationship to the next level”
• Potential to outsource depending on your resource capacity
MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #5CONSIDER AN ELITE DONOR PROGRAM
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Goals:
• Identify and qualify mid-level donors with both passion and capacity
• Grow the donor’s overall value and loyalty to the organization through increased giving and participation in programs or events
• Prioritize and cultivate those donors ready to take their relationship with the organization to the next level, by moving to MGO’s portfolio
• 2,474 mid-level donors identified through predictive modeling– 62 donors with $5M+ capacity immediately handed to MGO’s– Test and control group established – “flying below the radar”– Test group contacted through a variety of highly personal channels– Control group got “typical” communication
• Test Group (1,237 prospects):
MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #6:TEST, TEST AND RETEST
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• Test Group (1,237 prospects):– 50 Prospects elevated, total estimated giving capacity $19.7M– 44 to MGOs (includes 2 affiliated with large family foundations)– 6 to PGOs (includes 2 new bequest notifications)– Additional 21 under review by MGOs, Local staff
• Control (1,237 prospects):– 11 prospects elevated, total estimated giving capacity $6.6M– 7 to MGOs– 4 to PGOs (none show signs of active engagement)
MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #7BE A GOOD LISTENER• Do you survey your donors?• What do you do with the results?
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MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #8:CELEBRATE WHY SOMEONE LIKES YOU…
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MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #9:RECOGNITION IS IMPORTANT
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• Survey the landscape
• Share best practices with peer institutions
• Engagement/Communications Audit
• Identify potential alumni engagement triggers
MID-LEVEL GIVING BEST PRACTICE #10:GET STARTED TODAY
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• Score/prioritize your database
• Identify a cultivation/stewardship test
• Measure results
• Major gift officer assignments
• Call, Visit, Mail, Email, Call, Visit…
Erin McHugh SaifProduct Line Manager, Enterprise [email protected]
Recent Articles:• Philanthropy Journal: “Ideas that work: building a strategy for
QUESTIONS?
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• Philanthropy Journal: “Ideas that work: building a strategy for prospect research”
• The NonProfit Times: “Passion matters when it comes to raising money”