I recently attended the 2013 Sizzler conference, a national conference for users of iModules – a software developed for higher education institutions that helps organize databases and provides tools for email marketing, event management, online directories and more.
Many of the sessions at this conference focused on best practices for the software’s use and featured speakers from institutions that had implemented new email marketing strategies, hosted successful fundraising events and more. As I listened to these individuals speak, I realized there was one thing many of them had in common – great content.
Content is King
While many speakers’ presentations included examples of their institution’s creative content – video parodies, conversational emails and innovated designs to display content – there was one presentation that truly stood out to me. It was a presentation by Hart Larew of Arizona State University about how his school used clever, purposeful and engaging content to help their university raise more than $170,000 in 37 hours. Take a moment to let that sink in… Impressive, right?
I mentioned that ASU’s campaign content was clever, purposeful and engaging. It was that content that helped them achieve this feat.
Clever:
Many organizations, nonprofits and institutions ask individuals for financial support every day. Arizona State is unique and was successful, in part, because they asked in a creative way. ASU asked their community to help them match their student enrollment for the 2012-2013 year by raising one dollar per student, setting their goal at $73,373. In addition, they tied their request to another clever and ambitious goal – raising the money in a day. They named the day “Mark It Day,” encouraging their community to make their individual marks on Arizona State through financial support.
The success ASU had by asking the same question many people ask, but in a different way, is a great reminder that creativity and thoughtfulness make a big difference on the impact of a message. In this case, it helped the university more than double their goal.
Purposeful:
During his presentation, Hart Larew mentioned that ASU has a large commuter population and that many of their alumni and students aren’t receptive to appeals to loyalty (e.g. You should give to Arizona State because you went to Arizona State). Consequently, they decided to change their focus and make their campaign appeal to individual interests and motivations instead of general loyalties.
Arizona State made videos from the perspective of individuals who were a part of different constituent groups, who would each have different motivations for giving. Groups included young alumni, international students, students benefiting from financial aid (paired with the donors supporting them), University staff, parents of current students, athletics fans and more.
The key here is that ASU took the time to understand their audience and crafted the content of their campaign with their audience in mind. The videos they made were purposeful and meant to connect with specific individuals. This purposeful action made all the difference in their success.
Engaging:
When you open the “Mark It Day” website, one of the first things you’ll notice is how interesting, entertaining and engaging it is. The website features videos, a philanthropy timeline that has the Markie mascot edited into historical photos, links for social engagement and more.
During the campaign, the website featured a dynamic map showing alumni gifts from across the country that thanked donors by name. The feature has since been updated to tell the story of the success of the campaign and facts about where donations came from and went to.
To enhance engagement and communication, ASU actively utilized Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social sites to connect with their audience and encourage giving. Beyond “Mark It Day,” their social sites support a general culture of philanthropy and generosity, rather than consistent calls to action for giving to the university. These social interactions again help tie to individuals’ personal motivations rather than general loyalties.
The engaging nature of Arizona State’s website and campaign for “Mark It Day” is a reminder that presenting a message in a variety of ways and allowing audiences to interact with it can make a significant impact on how the message is received and what actions individuals ultimately take.
What stood out to me during the iModules conference was that Arizona State University’s “Mark It Day” campaign was not only a great example of the software’s usage, but a great example of the power and effectiveness of great content.