No, viral dances were not performed to garner views and followers. Learn how harnessing the power of the individuals consuming your content can be transformative for your pages. Impactful organic and authentic content doesn’t need to be overthought. It’s time to lean on those who are consuming as much content as your social media managers. Hidden skill and talent can be found among your institution, and it will cost your department nearly nothing — well, perhaps just the cost of a mini mic.

Every institution has interesting stories to tell from their history and we'll share real-time example of how we are telling our story at the University of Vermont. We found a dusty old scrapbook in the basement of our building from 1924 and spun it into a year-long storytelling project (with a $0 budget). We'll share how we planned the project; how we developed strategies for creating content; and how we are tying it into our alumni engagement and fundraising goals. If you are out of ideas for how communications and/or marketing can help with your alumni engagement and fundraising, this session is for you.

Keeping it simple, doing more with less. In response to the pandemic, we fostered a culture of continuous communication that our community has come to expect and appreciate. To maintain and enhance this connection, we leverage diverse platforms to engage our audience and build stronger relationships. Our initiative highlights the stories of students, faculty, and staff through captivating video series, informative communications, and engaging podcasts. Join us to explore how these storytelling mediums have kept our community informed and strengthened our school’s sense of unity and shared purpose.

We’re all familiar with the donor cycle, but what about the volunteer cycle? Learn how to successfully recruit, onboard, activate, and steward your young alumni volunteers. This session is applicable to all volunteers, whether they focus on fundraising, engagement, or both. Maybe you have a longstanding GOLD committee, or you are just trying to build up your young alumni network; either way, you’ll leave this session with actionable ideas to not only cultivate your most recent grads, but to build the pipeline for a lifelong relationship with your institution.