Personal outreach to donors is labor intensive and can drain resources if gift officers are not engaging the right prospects. Morningside University combined behavioral characteristics and wealth screening to uncover prospects with both the passion and capacity to give. Overlaying AI with the process provided a higher level of precision and the ability to update the data through machine learning . The private university was able to quickly put the data into action to pinpoint priority major gift prospects, personalize cultivation and outreach, streamline portfolios, and forecast donor potential and overall ROI for their advancement program.

There’s no shortage of projects, priorities, and stories to share. How do you make the most of your limited resources and focus on what matters most to your institution? In this presentation, Mike Barzacchini will share a planning process and tools to help organize your marketing, communication, and other advancement efforts to move your institution’s strategic priorities forward. The session will also include tools to help you share your story with internal stakeholders to gain buy-in and support.

Overview
University fundraising campaigns often heavily rely on the generous contributions of prominent leaders and high-net-worth individuals. These major donors can significantly impact the campaign's success by providing substantial financial support. However, it's crucial to recognize that the dedicated advancement staff working behind the scenes are equally vital to achieving fundraising goals. In this session, we will explore strategies universities can implement to ensure that their advancement staff remains engaged and motivated during leadership-driven fundraising campaigns.

These strategies will include:
1. Internal Strategic Communication
2. Goal Alignment
3. Involvement in High-Profile Campaign Components
4. Celebrating Milestone Achievement

Come and learn from Ava Wills-Barksdale (VP Advancement-Lincoln University) and Darrell Bell (VP Advancement-Nazareth University) as to how they partnered with Scott Lange (President) and Michael Shippam (Principal) of Visionary Philanthropic Consulting to best utilize advancement data analytics for enhanced prospect identification, portfolio rebalancing, campaign goal setting, gift officer work flow, budgeting rationales for new gift officers, and Board communication on Advancement objectives and ROI.

The Enrollment Cliff. Rising costs. Soaring student debt. High-paying jobs that don’t require a degree. Political inference. Declining public trust and value perception. It’s easy to list the many challenges facing higher education, but what role do we as advancement professionals play in overcoming them? Join us to hear about and share examples of how advancement teams have leveraged their alumni, donors, communication platforms, and philanthropic resources to help their institutions meet today’s challenges head-on.

Has your phonathon or telefund program lost momentum over the last decade? Are you alienating more of your constituents rather than engaging with them? If so, you do not have to hang it up. In this session, learn how Kent State University took their struggling phonathon program and transformed it into a multichannel engagement center that will have long term, positive impacts on Kent State’s pipeline health.