Boosting engagement with young alumni can help you tap into a powerful force for increasing enrollment and boosting donor relations. If your higher education marketing campaign has experienced a lag of late, try these strategies for connecting with recent grads and young alumni.
Keep Alumni Thinking About Your School
Some news outlets would have you believe that charitable giving is at an all-time low, but the statistics don’t support that theory. According to Inside Higher Ed, colleges and universities received more than $37 billion in donations in 2014, which constituted the highest number yet. People are still giving to colleges and universities, but it all comes down to how you engage with young alumni.
Create a system that allows you to track contact information for recent graduates. Capture information such as social media handles and email addresses as well as the standard contact data. Use that information to stay in touch by reaching out through regular mail and email as well as on social media.
Connect in Person
In-person events are a great way to keep in touch with young alumni. They allow you to shake hands with past graduates, talk to them about their future plans, and help them celebrate their successes.
Consider creating an accessible online calendar that lists future meet-ups and gives extensive details. For instance, Boston University organizes more than 1,000 alumni social events each year. Past graduates can visit the website and find events that spark their interest and fit their schedules, from sporting events to service projects.
Honor Successful Graduates
Your social media channels and blog offer an excellent resource for highlighting young alumni and their efforts after school. Keep in touch with them so you’ll know when they experience great achievement, then profile those successes on your website.
Everyone loves recognition. Not only will potential students see how well you value your alumni, but your past graduates will appreciate the sentiment and keep your school in mind for future donations.
Take an Active Role
Your school’s career counseling department doesn’t have to limit its services to current students. Consider extending the services to young alumni. Offer help with scouting potential jobs, writing resumes, attending interviews, and comparing job offers.
This is an effective way to keep in contact with alumni and to allow your school to be of service to the students who have kept you in business. People remember the organizations that lent them a helping hand when they needed it most.
