Are you worried that your #GivingTuesday campaign gets lost? Is your fall already packed with asks and events? If you feel that riding that wave isn’t the path for you, don’t give up on giving days. Donors are now embracing the concept of an online giving event, but with 364 other days available, maybe it’s time to find one that’s just for you. Hear the back story of collaboration, strategy, tough choices, and effort behind launching a first giving day.

How did a small comprehensive college increase their social media profile visits by 130% and their engagement rates by 45% in one semester? State University of New York at Old Westbury gave its students--past, present, and future -the chance to hear the authentic voices of their peers through a student takeover program on social media. We've all heard the nightmares of how this can go. Learn the steps, missteps, and lessons learned from a school that successfully ran this type of hands off social media campaign.

Launching a brand is not a departmental function. It is an institutional movement. How do communications professionals gain support and ownership for brand management from all university stakeholders, internally and externally? Consider new and different strategies designed to develop a strong brand that not only withstands institutional challenges, but also becomes stronger as the organization changes and grows. Through a combination of theory and practice, lessons learned from failed launches become the foundation for successful brands owned by the university, not just the marketing department.

Ever wondered WHY video is such a powerful engagement tool? Get to know your brain and learn the physiological reasons why video has the ability to create better open, click-through, and conversion rates than any other messages. Learn how to use this knowledge to create video content that is specifically designed to leverage the most compelling aspects of the medium. Spoiler alert: Effective video marketing and advancement communications can be cheap, easy, AND effective.

You've got great stories to tell. Now you have to decide which outlets are best to get the most eyeballs on them. This session serves as a practical how-to guide for getting the most out of your great stories. During this workshop you'll be working toward creating a checklist that will simplify your team's ability to maximize sharing your good news.

Digital alumni engagement tools are changing faster than most schools can keep up. But chatbots, once the sole province of tech and customer service websites, are on the verge of disrupting the alumni engagement paradigm with an "always on" approach that recent alumni have come to expect. Hear my story of success, failure, and learning how to love a chatbot in NJIT's alumni program.

Word of mouth is the most powerful influencer, whether you’re choosing a new pair of shoes, an independent school, or a college. In 2020, social media IS word of mouth. Someone likes something posted or tweeted by a school and all their connections see it and tacitly accept it as an endorsement. Find out how committing to a simple, easy social media strategy can allow a school to dictate word of mouth to thousands of potential students.

Texting has made its way into higher ed’s communications channels: it’s quick, simple, and breaks through the noise of a full email inbox. See how Cornell implemented a multi-month texting campaign that brought together digital offers, engagement opportunities, and solicitations. This session covers the strategic partnerships that had to happen to get the project off the ground, campaign content, results, and how to make the case for your own usage.

Take an in-depth look at using podcasts for engaging with alumni, for recruiting new students, and for connecting the university to alumni, parents, family, friends, and the community. Learn how to create your own podcast and discover the benefits it can have on your institution.

Tired of “batch and blast” emails? Want to avoid unsubscribes and being marked SPAM? Learn more about how NYU transitioned to an alumni-centric opt-in email strategy that empowers alumni to control the messaging they receive and the clubs they hear from. This session covers the opt-in strategy highlights, as well as execution of the preference center and opt-in communications campaign.