Face-Off: Alumni Outreach and Development - Best Practices for Facebook
12
AUTHOR: AMANDA KOHN PUBLISHED: SEPTEMBER 2015 Face-Off: Alumni Outreach and Development Best Practices for Facebook
-
Upload
corporate-insight -
Category
Education
-
view
562 -
download
0
Transcript of Face-Off: Alumni Outreach and Development - Best Practices for Facebook
AUTHOR: AMANDA KOHNPUBLISHED: SEPTEMBER 2015
Face-Off: Alumni Outreach and Development
Best Practices for Facebook
ABOUT ALUMNI MONITOR
Corporate Insight’s latest monitor service, Alumni Monitor, examines the online and offline experience for alumni of leading higher education institutions. Focusing on actual data and live sites, our research service provides higher education institutions with a unique, first-hand look at the online resources and mar-com materials that constitute the alumni experience.
ABO
UT:
ALU
MN
I M
ON
ITO
R
BACK
GRO
UN
DBACKGROUND
Social media has grown from an afterthought to a key component in alumni outreach, offering schools a new channel to reach out to graduates
Facebook provides a flexible outlet for alumni development offices to reach university communities
The wide scope of instantly publishable content raises the question: What is the best way to reach and stay in contact with alumni on Facebook?
We offer recommendations that any higher education institution can implement to improve their usage of the social media outlet
Our Face-0ff: Alumni Outreach and Development report examines how universities are using Facebook, and considers (among other things):o Common trends in posts
o Use of video and imagery posts
o Popular shared story types
4
COVERAGE GROUPBA
CKG
ROU
ND
: A
LUM
NI
MO
NIT
OR
COV
ERA
GE
GRO
UP
Our full Alumni Monitor coverage group features 39 colleges and universities. For this report, we focus on Facebook-based alumni outreach from five institutions. The colleges and universities listed are not the only ones to offer compelling social media content, but represent exemplary cases.
RECOMMENDATION #1: DISTINGUISH ALUMNI VS. GENERAL PROFILES
RECO
MM
END
ATIO
N #
1
Create a devoted alumni association or alumni-focused Facebook profile
o Alumni want to remain connected to their alma maters, but often are not interested in the same on-campus information as current students and faculty
Promote the alumni Facebook page on the alumni association website
A devoted alumni Facebook profile can promote content about the following:
o Alumni giving campaigns
o Alumni accomplishments
o Alumni events
Cornell Alumni Facebook Profile
RECOMMENDATION #2: CELEBRATE ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT
RECO
MM
END
ATIO
N #
2
Former students can learn about the accomplishments of their peers
Alumni profiles add a human element to social media outreach
o Help to promote the university as a place where skill and talents are nurtured
Posts should incorporate images and links to articles
o Helps draw users’ attention and encourage followers of the school to learn more about alumni accomplishments
Kenyon Celebrates Alumni Achievement
RECOMMENDATION #3: PROMOTE GIVING CAMPAIGNS
RECO
MM
END
ATIO
N #
3
Use imagery to help boost the visibility of giving campaigns o When a campaign is
underway, change cover photo to include campaign logos
o Post regular updates to include image-based posts
Use specific hashtags for alumni events to help tie posts togethero Visitors can find related
resources in other mediums
o Administrators can see how a campaign is being discussed in the broader social network
GW Making History Campaign on Facebook
RECOMMENDATION #4: INCLUDE IMAGERY AND VIDEOS
Diversify Facebook posts with regular image and video posts in addition to text updates and posts o Users are bombarded with advertisements and posts designed to grab
their attention; image and video posts can help grab alumni attention
Facebook offers a visually-oriented medium, and universities that best leverage this feature of the site stand out
RECO
MM
END
ATIO
N #
4
NYU Video Post
RECOMMENDATION #5: ANNOUNCE SPECIAL EVENTS AT YOUR UNIVERSITY
RECO
MM
END
ATIO
N #
5
Provide updates about special events and occasions within the Facebook profile page (e.g., sporting events, alumni-specific events, national holidays and campus celebrations)
o Don’t forget to designate a hashtag (e.g., #WMAlumni)
Help generate enthusiasm and a sense of connection to the user’s alma mater around various celebrations (e.g., homecoming)
Special Events can help schools create visually appealing Facebook pages
William & Mary Homecoming Photo
LOO
KIN
G F
ORW
ARD
As the social media marketing environment continues to evolve, universities will follow the lead of their alumni, and will need to create networks and resources that align with alumni’s interests and preferred platforms
By effectively leveraging the tools offered on Facebook, alumni outreach and development offices can speak directly to their graduates to keep them engaged and connected to the school
FUTURE OF FACEBOOK: WHAT’S NEXT?
11
FULL
REP
ORT
FULL REPORT
Face-Off: Alumni Outreach and DevelopmentBest Practices on Facebook
Report Summary
Pages: 12
Universities Reviewed: 5
Published: December 2014
To access the full report, either contact Dana Peterson at 646-454-2664 or visit the Alumni Monitor website.
ABOUT CORPORATE INSIGHT
Connect With Us
Corporate Insight provides competitive intelligence and user experience research to the nation’s leading academic
and financial institutions. For over 20 years, the firm has tracked technological developments in the financial services
industry, identifying best practices in online banking and investing, online insurance, mobile finance, active trading
platforms, social media and other emerging areas. There are no assumptions in Corporate Insight’s work – we use
live accounts at all of the institutions we research, providing our clients with unparalleled, unbiased intelligence on
the competition.
For ALUMNI MONITOR inquiries, please
contact:
Dana Peterson, Vice President – Monitor Services
(646) 454-2665
For MEDIA INQUIRIES, please contact:
Joshua Grandy, Director of PR
(646) 876-7524 | @CInsightNews
[email protected]@corporateinsight.com
Press Coverage
ABO
UT:
CO
RPO
RATE
IN
SIG
HT
