What are the biggest roadblocks institutions face when it comes to adding/enhancing mobile donation options? "Nothing is more frustrating than getting to the end of a payment process only to have it fail. This experience could cause a donor to give up and schools to lose valuable dollars. Advancement offices need a secure and reliable […]
It's extremely challenging and costly to build an in-house mobile donation platform, not only because of the technology, but also because of privacy and compliance issues. That's why most universities choose to work with providers that have it all figured out, says Caryn Stein, vice president of marketing at higher ed consulting firm Ruffalo Noel […]
While direct mail and phone remain strong methods of courting donors, advancement offices face the reality that younger alumni may not even have a landline or use a checkbook. More than 1 in 5 online donations were made on a mobile device in 2017, according to research from the Blackbaud Institute for Philanthropic Impact. In […]
On the road from acceptance to enrollment, would-be students stray, often stepping off the intended path. However, led by admissions offices, higher ed institutions are enticing accepted students to officially enroll by using innovative communication approaches, developing peer connections and making students feel as if they are already part of the family. That process starts […]
As huddle rooms within academic buildings grow in popularity, what challenges—perhaps unexpected ones—tend to crop up for administrators and professors? "There are several challenges that administrators, professors and students face as campus huddle rooms grow in popularity. With busy schedules and heavy workloads, they may not know what huddle rooms are available or when they […]
Personalized learning has long been a "holy grail" in education. Ideally, we would love to be able to work with each student to achieve a more personalized level of learning that taps into individual interests, skills and desires. But doing so can take far more time than we have. Our education system was not designed […]
Stephen Wilson, director of annual giving at Virginia State University, identifies donor prospects at no cost on LinkedIn. Using keyword searches based on profile information such as college, industry and job title, he finds potential matches and requests the connections. About half will respond and show interest in happenings at the university. "With 20,000 alumni […]
In 2006, a group of small colleges was at a crossroads. The grant that the schools had received to pay for the license for its commercial Learning Management System (LMS) had come to an end, and the schools couldn't afford to continue paying for it. One attractive alternative was an open source LMS. Even though […]
If your marketing teams are not taking advantage of the multitude of ways to personalize digital content to increase lead capture, enrollment and retention, you may be seeing the impact in your acceptance and yield figures. In this piece, we open up the new playbook for finding the right student prospects. Who's calling the shots? […]
As textbook sales have declined, campus stores are relying on promotions to attract students who might not otherwise have a reason to visit. The wave of special events continues year-round in an attempt to drive business beyond the pre-semester rush.
