The Impact of Social Networks on Advancement: Competing with Facebook—and Winning!

e m p o w e r i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p s

NCCCF Symposium, October 15-17San Diego, California

Your Harris Connect Consultants:Susan Stewart-Kelley & Nichole Williams

NCCCF Symposium, October 15-17San Diego, California

Your Harris Connect Consultants:Susan Stewart-Kelley & Nichole Williams

Agenda:Agenda:

Getting Started: the nuts and bolts of Data Research About The Social Networking Model Unique to Community Colleges Facebook: facts

Growth & usage

Facebook: best practices Steps you can implement today

Taking things up a notch – Open API’s Building a bridge between Facebook & your Alumni Online Community and/or your Website Peer Results

Q & A Reserve One-on-One Consultation

Session Objectives:Session Objectives:

• Making the leap!

• Social Networking: Understanding and Leveraging

• Going, going, gone- GLOBAL!

• Ahead of the Curve with participation

• Share best practices for taking advantage of the popularity & rapid growth of Facebook

• 8 things you can do now that will enable you to reconnect

Using Data Research and Viral Marketing to

Locate and Re-Engage Your Alumni

A Quick History

Evolution of Alumni Outreach in Community Colleges

– No Interest/No Need (“Our alumni aren’t interested in us.” “The state provides all the money we need.”)

– Growing Interest/Growing Need (state funding beginning to dry up)

– High Interest/Growing Need but No Money or Leadership Buy-In

– High Interest/Great Need• Alumni Offices, Funding, Research and Outreach

Connecting with College Goals A Strategic Partnership

Increasing support through increasing alumni affinity…it’s not just for 4 years anymore.

1. Find lost alumni and update biographical data (mailing addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses)

2. Begin/enhance communications programs (i.e. newsletters, invitations to events, etc.)

3. Begin/enhance solicitations programs (i.e. mail appeals, phonathons, electronic emails to targeted alumni, online giving, etc.)

4. Engage via a web presence for alumni – start with Email Marketing, minimum.

5. Alumni directory program will increase reach brand, and data coverage.

The First Step

• The Database – who should you research?• Subset of alumni, based on…

Age Number of Credit Hours Program Certificate Holders Location

Building an Alumni Database How do I get started?

• Where is the data?– Foundation, Registrar, Development Office, boxes in the

basement?• How do I get it?

– Access to data (if elsewhere on campus)– Leadership Buy In

• Once I get it, where do I store it?– Fundraising database– MS Access– Etc.

Building an Alumni Database Plan of Action

• Newsletters – communicate, communicate, communicate…(before asking for $$$)

• Events – get alumni back on campus

• Broadcast Emails – e-newsletters, program advertisements (Admissions), short surveys

• Campaign Appeals

Available Research Services – what’s out there?

• Address updates• Telephone Research and Append• Email Research and Append• National Change of Address - NCOA• Keyboarding from paper/microfilm/fiche

Lost Trace - using SSN or LKA

• Use largest data source of it’s kind for this purpose - 29 terabyte database comprised of public records for every US resident

• Sophisticated algorithm requires DOB or last known address (high quality data in = better matches)

• Effectively locate lost alumni with data as old as 1940 with no SSN

• Single best candidate returned with confidence scoring

• Deceased Alumni identified

• Match rates 92 - 98% (should be at least this good.)

Telephone Research

• Multi-tiered approach takes advantage of the most comprehensive available sources – allows flexibility when determining who to research

• Data sources are refreshed weekly• Match rates up to 90+%• Proven partners and providers that use best

practices and and freshest data• “Do Not Call” flags available for return (state and

national)

Email Research

• Use a privacy-based, opt-in database with more than 75 million email addresses and growing daily

• Match rates up to 20% with use of additional sources

• Emails provided for the cost of two direct mail pieces

• Competitive advantages– Deliverability is tested before data is returned to client– Match at individual (not household) level

National Change of Address

• Research against the USPS mover database to identify recent movers (last 48 months), standardize address data and identify lost

• CASS certification available• Effective way to reduce mailing costs and ensure

deliverability• Generally very inexpensive• Quick processing time• Harris Connect runs at no cost in conjunction with

Lost Trace• Use NCOA as an augment to a true Lost search –

don’t use it exclusively…it’s not enough.

Keyboarding paper/microfilm/fiche

• Cost effective and hassle-free service to incorporate older/previously unusable populations

• Combined with Lost Trace research, this is a solid way to bring all data into electronic format

Data Maintenance

• Once is not enough.• Schedule regular research services.• If you communicate regularly, the initial

investment should be the largest.

The Social Networking Model

Defined…

• Conceptually: a social structure is made of nodes that are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as values, visions, ideas, financial exchange, friendship, kinship, or trade- all commonalities.

The Evolution of Social Networking to Social Utilities

Components of…

• Interdependence…– Easy way to keep in touch- global market– Linking people at low costs– CRM tool – Efficient meeting places– Not a replacement personal elements: blogs, pictures,

videos…• Embraced by…

– Small & Large Corporations– Healthcare professionals– Secondary & Higher Ed Institutions– Specialized Professional & Educational Entities– Affinity Groups

Facebook!

The Founding Father’s of Social Utilities….

About Facebook

• 2004 as a Harvard student only service

– Quickly expanded to include other colleges

– Used Globally

• 100 Million active users

• Schools; Companies; Organizations; Geographic Users; Social Groups

• More than half of active users visit the site daily

• People spend an average of 30 minutes per day on the site

• Most popular website for uploading photos: 14 million uploaded daily

• The fastest growing demographic is people 25 years and older

What do your peers think?

•Fred Stutzman--a PhD student at the School of Information and Library Science at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who has researched identity, social software, social technologies, computer-mediated communication, and more specifically Facebook--thinks social networks are key media through which students can be engaged. Conversations that level the playing field among students, academics, and administrators can occur. In other words, students and faculty/staff are equals on these sites. "Part of college is building successful relationships with those in power, and the humanizing aspect of communication in a space like

Facebook goes a long way," he says. (I’ll get the e source)

The University of Florida also started to use Facebook groups last year to promote: three graduate programs to undergrads. The

decisionThe University of Florida also started to use Facebook groups last

year to promote: was based on plans developed by a graduate-level public relations

class, on assignment for the University Relations office. Course descriptions, faculty and student bios, and research information

were included on Facebook. Grad students and faculty members posted comments and responded when undergrads inquired about

the programs. Each program was seeking 10 to 12 additional graduate students, and with that goal met by all three, Joe Hice, associate vice president for Marketing & Public Relations, says,

"We believe the Facebook outreach helped."

Northampton CC Facebook Community

Facts:

• 1620 Students/Staff on Facebook

• 3500 Alumni on Facebook

• 6 Groups (Classes, Sports, Students, Honor Societies)

• 3 fan pages

How about results (trending)?

Sept 23: no marketing, 29 users

Sept 24: email campaign deploys, 1,469 adds

Sept 25: 2,165 adds, with 900 linking to the community

Sept 29: 2,717 adds, with over 1,000 linking to the community.

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How did they market it?

Branded, targeted email messages.

A step-by-step, downloadable guide to adding the application via “New” Facebook.

Link for login assistance.

What did that do for their Online Community Activity?

120% increase in weekly profile updates.

100% increase in weekly new registered users.

Increase of over 1100 unique visitors from the prior week.

Want to know how many Facebook users are associated with your institution?

Let’s get started

Building a Group

http://www.facebook.com

Building a Fan Page

http://www.facebook.com

Engagement

What are & the importance of “Groups”• Keeps people engaged in what they participated in when they were

at your college and makes them aware of current College “happenings” that are taking place in their geographical area and on campus

• Allows alumni to post opinions and concerns as well as praise the university for accomplishments

• Alumni can post pictures

What are & the importance of “Fan Pages”• Provides College alumni the opportunity to be aware of special

events that may arouse their interest• Alumni logo shows up on your alumni Facebook profile to let other

people know that your College is important to them and helps brand our logo

Features used by Other Colleges

• The Wall Post messages about what is happening on campus People advertise general and University information

• Photos Upload photo albums of alumni events and comment on photos

• Gifts Send "gifts"-- small novelty icons when alumni attend an event as a

small thank you for their participation

• Events Use “Events” to let alumni know about upcoming programs and social

gatherings in their area

 

What else?

Class/Student AA Groups

• Creates awareness about the Alumni Association

• Allows communication with Student Body

• Foster relationship through events with alumni

• Shows students that it is advantageous to be involved (networking,etc.)

Alumni Chapter Groups

• Helps us learn what alumni are interested in doing in their area

• Helps us know the areas where alumni are active and interested in being involved

• Enables us to send specific marketing messages to a niche market

Are you getting?

• Alumni data updates?• Email addresses?• Participation in your events?• Job postings? • Gifts?• Class Notes?• Career Advisors?

Where’s the Facebook connection to you & your online community?

Taking things up a notch Open API’s

How are they engaging with you?

Your Online Community

&Website

By going where your alumni are today, you can win them back for a lifetime.

The Opportunity

Leverage Open API’s To Build a Secure Bridge

Consider the possibilities

• By providing a secure, seamless integration from Facebook to your own Alumni Community, your alumni could:

Keep their Alumni Community profile data in synch with the profile data on Facebook (email, address, job, education)

Upload their resume & search for Career Advisors on your Alumni Community Read and post class notes on your Alumni Community Keep up to date & register for events Make gifts

• Increase overall Alumni Community engagement• Improve your staff efficiency

Steps you can implement today

Facebook Best Practices

Alumni ConnectionsTM

How about results?

• Email sent to 776 members of official Emory Alumni Association Facebook Group on June 16, 2008

• In first 24 hours, 512 members added the application

• That’s 66% of the recipients in the first day alone

• Within 4 more days, the number climbed to 733

22% of the growth was viral; saw that a friend had it (via a news feed or mini feed)

• Today more than 1,100 constituents (and that number continues to climb) on Facebook have a seamless connection--a bridge--to the Emory Online Community

EMORY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

The email that was sent:

EMORY ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

More results…..

Wrap up

8 action items you can do now:

1. Get a Facebook profile and reconnect with your Alma Mater, your work, and friends

2. See how many Facebook users are associated with your institution (students/alumni/faculty/staff)

3. Identify all the Groups and Fan Pages associated with your institution

4. Create Groups for your local Chapters and Clubs

5. Build Fan Pages for your Alumni Association

6. Pursue a secure seamless bridge between Facebook & your Online Community/Website

7. Be ready for an increase in participation and enthusiasm from your alumni and students

8. Explore other Web 2.0 options that will bring you closer to your alumni (LinkedIn, Tweeter, etc.)