By simplifying the user experience and delivering more targeted communications to our community, the NYU Alumni Association’s biggest event of the year had a substantial increase in registration and attendance. This was accomplished by using new tools such as the marketing automation platform Marketo and Google Ads, as well as optimizing previously used ones. The previous registration website was modified to be mobile-friendly, creating an easier user experience that only included sessions the user expressed interest in based on the day(s) they could attend. These innovations expanded Alumni Weekend to its highest levels of registration and attendance in recent history.
From the Judges
Strong results and a refreshing departure from the "spray and pray" saturation marketing of most alumni programs and events. Smart use of affinities to predict attendance. What most impresses us about this entry, however, is the detailed attention to UX. The decrease in abandoned registrations is the strongest metric in this entry. Strengths of this program included use of data to enable success, and achievement of key metrics. All in all, NYU is to be congratulated on implementing a number of best practices and measuring results.
