It is all hands on deck for university advancement offices across the country for the annual Day of Giving. We recently outlined six strategies to remember when preparing for the big day and they all share one commonality — technology.
Over the past several years, Day of Giving events have become an increasingly important part of the fundraising strategies in higher education. And it’s certainly no coincidence that the emergence of these 24-hour fundraising challenges has had a direct correlation with the emergence of online giving and the prevalence and importance of digital engagement.
In fact, the success of these events is largely dependent on an institution’s website and digital presence. Most universities have their own Day of Giving web page on their site and develop social media and digital retargeting campaigns to increase awareness around that day.
But what about the other 364 days in the year? Technology has brought so many tools to the advancement arsenal that not implementing a year-round digital strategy can be costly. Why did Cornell host the “AI in Advancement” conference? Why did Stanford reallocate resources away from the phoneathon? Because engagement channels are changing along with donor behaviors and expectations. Giving days could not come about without the perfect convergence of alumni expecting to give online and technology allowing them.
These same alumni expectations exist year-round. How many alumni write in to ask when the next basketball game is scheduled or call to ask for an update? Your website is your billboard on the digital superhighway and alumni are driving by every day. Marketing automation allows you to meet alumni, on the website, where they are engaging the institution today. Want to know more?
We wish you the most successful Day of Giving and (after a short breather) encourage you to consider the other 364 days a year when technology can be the difference-maker for your team.
By Kevin Hyde, Senior Content Writer, Capture Higher Ed
