BUILDING SOLID FOR FUTURE GROWTH
reconnectors (27 percent). Identifying your alumni through these personality categories can provide a snapshot of likely donors. Dig- ging deeper you can also understand each alum’s stage of life and his or her affinity to your institution. Affinity Clusters help campuses effectively
engage alumni at different stages of life. Map- ping affinity clusters begins with primary research of alumni, and then uses the data to forecast perceptions and interests. Universities like Carnegie Mellon University and the Uni- versity of Wisconsin are increasing participa- tion across alumni by painting an increasingly clear picture of exactly who their constituents are—and their stage of life. More than 40 clusters have emerged on those campuses based on life stage and lifestyle, with designa- tions like Urban Arts, Distant Admirer, young Guns and Rural Wealth. This approach builds target clusters based on alumni perceptions of the institution and interests that can be leveraged to improve engagement.
Audience Segmentation in Action Marilyn Rossa Kail, Associate Vice President of Marketing at Carnegie Mellon was an early leader of the initiative to better understand and connect with alumni. “We wanted to know how to be more relevant to our own 84,000 alumni, to engage them, open a dia- logue and create a deeper connection,” Rossa Kail says. “We collected and analyzed qual-
itative data to understand what our alumni segments care about and the nature of their relationship with the university. Our goal is to lead with the right message to generate the most positive results in all of our alumni outreach.” Rossa Kail’s team uses affinity clusters for
newsletters, events, and most recently, the university’s annual giving campaign. They segmented the creative material, tailoring the concept, messages, images and presentation for each audience. “The clusters we’ve tested have performed exceptionally well overall,” Rossa Kail says. “That includes increased giv- ing, renewing lapsed donors, and changing restricted to unrestricted giving.”
Understand Needs To engage alumni on a number of levels you must determine what they need, what your campus needs, and where those needs overlap. By segmenting your audience into
detailed clusters, you will better understand each group’s attributes and needs, and then be able to use targeted messaging. Targeted messaging increases the likelihood of making a connection. The personal needs of your alumni are
intellectual, social, emotional, financial, inter- personal and career. The needs of your insti- tution may include financial support, participation, engagement, volunteering, endorsement and influence.
Realize that Needs Change As alumni move through phases of life, their needs change, sometimes drastically. Here are some examples.
20s: young alumni may not be ready to engage financially with your campus, but they probably crave engagement. They want social connections and help getting started in a career. They may be seeking a life partner. They’re doing a lot of it online, many of them in a frenzy of tweeting, friending and linking-in. They tend to respond well to connections via social media.
30s and 40s:They are focused on career enhancement and personal striving. They may also be involved in a career transition.
40s, 50s and 60s:Many are seeking intel- lectual personal enrichment, a focus that extends into their 70s and beyond.
Segmentation can help you chart a path
toward matching the personal and institu- tional needs as your alumni audience evolves, resulting in more targeted tactics, more engaged constituents, improved ROI and stronger results.
TC
Andrew Reeher is president of Reeher LTD, a software services company that helps universities improve the effi- ciency and effectiveness of their fundraising efforts.
18 Today’sCampus
subscribe at no charge at
www.todayscampus.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68