Understanding Young Alumni: Your Next Generation of Donors

Young Alumni: Understanding Your Next Generation of Donors PRESENTED BY MARY KATHRYN DEMPSEY AND

JENNY COOKE SMITH

Young Alums: Slacktivists or

Future donors? You decide!

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Session Topics

1. Who are young alumni?

2. Why is it so important to engage this

audience?

3. What should you be doing in front and behind

the scenes?

4. Trends in young alumni giving

5. Metrics you need to evaluate

6. Trendsetters in the space

• Statistics are powered by donorCentrics service

• Target Analytics FY2013 Report on Alumni Annual Giving

• Private College Consortium Benchmarking Group (Undergraduate Alumni)

• Large Summit Benchmarking Group (Undergraduate Alumni)

• Sustainer Benchmarking

• All metrics are based on transactional “hard credit” giving data

Background on Data

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• Arizona State University

• Bowling Green State

University

• Carleton University

• Colorado School of Mines

• Colorado State University

• College of William and

Mary

• Dalhousie University

• Darden School of

Business

• Iowa State University

• Indiana University

• Indiana University of

Pennsylvania

• James Madison University

• Kansas University

• Kent State University

• Louisiana State University

• Loyola University Chicago

• McMaster University

• Michigan State University

• Montclair State University

• North Carolina State

University

• New Jersey Institute of

Technology

• Ohio University

• Oregon State University

• Pennsylvania State

University

• Queens University

• Radford University

• Rutgers University

• Simon Fraser University

• Southern Alberta Institute

of Technology

• Texas A&M University

• Texas State University

• The Ohio State University

• University of Arizona

• University of California,

Berkeley Haas School of

Business


Davis

• University of California, LA

School of Law


Riverside


Santa Cruz


San Diego


Santa Cruz

• University of Cincinnati

• University of Delaware

• University of Florida

• University of Georgia

• University of Guelph

• University of Houston

• University of Kentucky

• University of Maryland

• University of Michigan

• University of Minnesota

• University of Nebraska

• University of North

Carolina, Chapel Hill


Carolina, Greensboro


Carolina, Wilmington

• University of Northern

Colorado

• University of Oklahoma

• University of Oregon

• University of South

Dakota

• University of Tennessee

• University of Texas at

Austin

• University of Toronto

• University of Virginia

• University of Waterloo

• University of Wisconsin

• Virginia Tech University

• Washington State

University

• Western University

• Wilfrid Laurier University

• York University

Public Institutions

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• Benedictine College

• Boston College

• Boston University

• Brandeis University

• Carroll College

• Case Western University School of Medicine

• Colby College

• College of St. Benedict

• College of Wooster

• Columbia University

• Concordia College

• Cornell University

• Creighton University

• Dartmouth College

• Emory University

• Furman University

• Gettysburg College

• George Washington University

• Grinnell College

• Harvard Medical School

• Johns Hopkins University

• Luther Seminary

• Marquette University

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology

• Meharry Medical College

• Mount St. Mary’s College

• Northwestern University

• New York University

• New York University Law School

• New York University Stern School of Business

• Ohio Wesleyan University

• Oral Roberts University

• Point Loma Nazarene University

• Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

• Rice University

• Rockhurst University

• Saint Mary’s College of California

• Sarah Lawrence College

• Smith College

• Southern Methodist University

• St. Catherine University

• St. Joseph’s University

• Syracuse University

• Texas Christian University

• The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth-Hitchcock

• Union College

• University of Chicago

• University of Miami

• University of Pennsylvania

• University of Pennsylvania Law School

• University of San Francisco

• University of San Diego Law School

• Wentworth Institute of Technology

• Wake Forest University

• Wofford College

• Yale School of Management

Private Institutions

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• Within 10 years of graduation

(age 21-31) “Millenials”

• Transient

• Philanthropic pattern = minimal

Who are Young Alumni?

Education, Engagement and

tracking your data

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Future impact:

• Enrollment numbers have reached an all-time high. For many

organizations, this means that young alumni are taking up a larger piece

of your active constituent pie.

• This growing number poses the question, “how will we able to connect

with all of these individuals in order to ensure participation rates and

dollars raised are on point?”

Why take action now?

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38%

62% Active Alumni

Class of 2000+ All Other

Active Alumni

Alumni Distribution

80%

20%

Donor Distribution

Donors

Class of 2000+

All Other Donors

Helping young alumni understand the importance of supporting an entity

that has given them so much already is going to make the transition to

donor an easy one.

1. Don’t be afraid to throw out numbers

2. A smaller gift is still a gift

3. Keep your messaging catchy and consistent

The education continues…

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“Last year, gifts between $10 and $100

totaled $1.25 million. The value of your

gift is much greater than its dollar

amount. It sends a strong message that

the newest generation of alumni

understands the importance of giving

back and is invested in the University’s

future.”

“We need to prove that we are an organization worthy of young alumni’s

support early on, and keep them there, or young alumni will find another

organization to support” – Anna Louise Carter, Alumni Relations (Clemson

University)

1. Form a young alumni council

2. Start a tradition

3. Recognize your young alumni

4. Hub city exposure

Connection is key

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Gathering :

• email addresses

• employment information

• social influencers

• wealth indicators

Tracking:

• legacy

• student involvement

• post-graduate involvement

Use data analytics in house or from a vendor to build engagement models.

Having good data will only help your efforts!

What should you be thinking about?

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Young Alumni Giving Trends

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Participation. . . not getting easier

Source: Higher Education Annual Report for Alumni Fundraising, Target

Analytics

23%

8% 11%

22%

7%

11%

20%

7%

9%

Private Public Overall

2011 2012 2013

1980’s-2000’s: Large Publics

Class of

1980-1989

Class of

1990-1999

Class of

2000-2009

1980’s-2000’s: Private Colleges

Class of

2000-2009

Class of

1990-1999

Class of

1980-1989

Young Alumni Trends in Giving

• Donors who graduated 1-9 years ago make up a larger portion of all

active donors than they did in 2009:

• 14% increase in Private Colleges

• 23% increase in Public Universities

• Where proper coding is available, Paid Caller programs continue to be

the largest source for Young Alumni (though web giving is certainly

increasing)

• Value grows over time (the payoff on the investment doesn’t happen

overnight!

% o

f L

ife

tim

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on

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giv

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Life

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The Key Metrics for evaluating your

Young Alumni Program

Retention

Reactivation

Acquisition

Donor Migration (i.e. pipeline to major giving)

Powered by donorCentrics Metrics

» 500+ organizations are using donorCentrics throughout North America, South

America, Europe, Australia, and Asia

» Benchmarking sectors include arts and culture, healthcare, environmental, societal

benefit, public broadcasting, human rights, human services, colleges and universities,

animal protection, international relief, and secondary schools.

» Transactional (not self-reported metrics)

» Hard credit giving, gift caps applied

Retention Rates

68%

58% 62%

68%

58% 62%

67%

58% 61%


2011 2012 2013

Retention Rates

• Compare Retention Overall to Retention for Young Alumni

• Find your best young alumni donors to retain: giving levels, loyalty,

frequency

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Large Publics:

Overall Retention Rate (median): 58%

Private Colleges:

Overall Retention Rate (median): 70%

Reactivation Rates (1-5 years lapsed)

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19%

14% 16%

18%

14% 15%

18%

13% 14%


2011 2012 2013

Reactivation Rates (1-5 years lapsed)

• Compare Reactivation Overall to Reactivation for Young Alumni

• Find your best young alumni donors to reactivate: giving levels, loyalty,

frequency

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Large Publics:

Overall Reactivation Rate 1-5 years

lapsed (median): 11%

Private Colleges:

Overall Reactivation Rate 1-5 years

lapsed (median): 18%

Median Revenue per New Donor

$119

$125 $123

$106

$119 $116 $114

$130

$116


2011 2012 2013

Young Alumni: Revenue per New donor

Graduation Revenue per Donor

2000-2009 $85

2010-2013 $25

Seniors $14

Large Publics

Private Colleges

Graduation Revenue per Donor

2000-2009 $84

2010-2013 $48

Seniors $25

Trendsetters

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Case Study: University of Chicago

• 5 years ago implemented program:

• Specific branding and short bursts of activity for young alumni

• Found cell phone numbers

• Executed more digital solicitations overall for young alums and utilized more challenges.

• Young alumni branding was more casual, graphic, and goal oriented.

• Added in a strong student philanthropy program

• Expanding the program: so successful with Young Alumni that the definition is changing.

• Found that when alumni moved from 10 years out to 11, there were precipitous drop-offs of participation—more than would have been expected from post-reunion drop off.

• Attributed this to changing them from a mostly digital program to a mostly mail program that was now addressing them as “Mr/Mrs” etc.

• Expanded the young alumni to 20 years out and have now seen significantly renewed giving amongst those in the 11-20 year out range.

Results: University of Chicago

• Increased participation each year!

• Increased retention rates each year!

• Young Alumni are boosting totals overall, not “dragging them down”

Overall 66% retention rate

Class of 2000-2009 61% retention rate

Class of 2010-2014 53% retention rate

Seniors 45% retention rate

Case Study: Columbia University

• Giving Day Social Ambassadors (Columbia SOCIAL)

• Used the Columbia Alumni Association's Facebook page to start a pilot program

• Partnered with SocialToaster to share content via e-mail with ambassadors to post

on Twitter and Facebook.

• Sent E-mails 2-3 times a week (with a link to automatically share on social sites)

• Incentivized with prizes

Results: Columbia University (2013)

• 83 alumni, friends, faculty and staff members were ambassadors (over 6

states and 7 countries!)

• Average age 31.18 years old

• 61 were “active”

• 13 schools represented

• Reached 74,091 constitutents:

• Facebook: 59,961

• Twitter: 10,557

• Instagram: 3,436

• $7.8M Raised!!

• As of September, have recruited 333 ambassadors for Giving Day 2014

Case Study: Clemson University

• Implemented a Young Alumni fundraising campaign in conjunction with

the 1B “Will to Lead Campaign”

• Spearheaded by the Young Alumni Council and funded with help from the

office for advancement

• Initiatives:

• Host smaller scale campaign kickoffs in hub cities for young alumni specifically

• Release marketing material that pulled on heart strings

• Educate young alumni as to why giving back is important

• Results:

• Over a 4 year period, young alumni giving has increased over 217%

• The average young alumni gift has increased to $103.55

• More young alumni are active donors and sustainer giving is increasing

What is your reason to give back?

“The future of alumni engagement is fueled by young alumni, so I want to help my alma mater stay cutting edge in its engagement efforts by relaying the thoughts of a young alumni” – Harrison Trammel, Lawyer (Clemson, UNC)

“I want to acknowledge the great experience I had during undergrad. The 4, make that 5, years at UGA determined the steps I took in the next stage of life. If every alum can make some type of gift or volunteer for their alma matter it will drastically improve the experience for future students” – David Seifert, Director of Sales (UGA, Citadel)

“I want to remain connected. For me, it's important to know that I am still a part of Duke's current operations, even if it's just in a small way. Duke sends me magazines, emails, and keeps me in the loop - it is my way of holding up my end of the "keeping in touch" relationship” – Caroline Mix Stapleton, Lawyer (Duke)

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Understanding Young Alumni: Your Next Generation of Donors

Education

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