1. 30 Ideas to Amplify Your
Millennial Participation
Josh Robertson and Brian Gawor

2. Are you ready?

3. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Targeted Digital Advertising
Reach your supporters where they spend their time
1
Source: M+R 2016 Benchmarking Report

4. Ruffalo Noel Levitz

5. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Geo-Location
Make their place – your place
2 Buildings
Stadium
Graduation Facility
Deliver Custom Mobile Ads
Campus App
Give Now
Update your Information

6. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
WAY FIRST Data Enrichment
Reaching out to say we care about keep in touch
3
12% Click
to Open Rate

7. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Cellular Data Append
Get those mobile numbers
4

8. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Recent Grad Engagement Campaigns
Special communications
 Partner Across Campus
Alumni Association
Athletics
Career Services
 Survey First
 Invite back to Campus
 Remember when they miss you the
most…play off the nostalgia
5

9. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Advanced Address Research
Not your grandma’s NCOA
6 Estimated that
40% of Americans
don’t file a change-
of-address form with
the Post Office

10. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Social Media Stewardship
Make gratitude social
7

11. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Direct mail is not dead
Stop measuring in silos
 Think Beyond
solicitation
 Take a trip to
admissions
office
 Personalize
8

12. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Snapchat
Disappearing conversations  massive conversion
9

13. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Student Philanthropy Programs
Build the Culture of Philanthropy Before Students Leave
Campus
10

14. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Student Philanthropy – Phonathons
Asking  Giving
11 of student fundraisers
(phonathon) indicate
that because of their
experience, they are
more likely to give.
RuffaloCODY 2014 Survey
USA, Canada, Australia
n = 714
94%
http://www.ruffalonl.com/fundraising-management/white-paper-developing-phonathon-callers/

15. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Engage Millennials as Volunteers
They will be more likely to give
12
of Millennial alumni who
have volunteered with
their alma mater plan to
donate.
2014 Millennial Alumni Survey,
themillennialimpact.org
82%

16. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Crowdfunding Engages Millennials
And builds on peer connections
13

17. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Giving Days
Answer: “Why Give Now?”
14

18. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Ambassadors
Peer to peer is the Millennial authenticity engine
Recent giving
day:
$393,681
1,781 gifts
837
from direct
ambassador influence
15

19. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Enable social sharing after gifts
For online AND offline giving.
16

20. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Use Video
It makes a difference
17
A message to my donor:
“I won’t let you down.
I promise I will make a
difference.”
- Sydney scholarship
recipient.
https://youtu.be/7nXkPVHimpE

21. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Ungray your donor stories
Annual, leadership AND major gifts
18

22. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Mobile optimization
If it’s not mobile optimized, it’s dead to them
19

23. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Stop Asking for Everything
Reduce Giving Page Friction
20 How many clicks does it
take to give?
3 minutes and 58 seconds on
average for an online purchase.
4 minutes and 15 seconds
for online donations*.
Ask your team: “What do we actually
need to accept a gift?”
How long does it take to make a gift to Charity
Water on FB?
(*Nielson Norman Group Study)

24. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Retargeting
Bring that traffic back
 Giving Page
 Event Page
 Info Update
21

25. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Customized Giving Pages
If you are using just one page, you’re doing it wrong
 Customized ask amounts
 Theme to match
related appeals
CYE-Holiday
Phonathon fulfillment
Recurring Giving
Campaign
Matching Challenge
22

26. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Build on the relationship
Why are you using a shotgun?
 Target based on
identified passion.
 Use the data
you have.
 Get data you
don’t have.
23

27. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Connect with Millennial passion
“It’s not about you.”
24 of Millennials say they
would donate to their
alma mater.73%percent who would
donate to another
cause first: 75%

28. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Online Degree Young Alumni
Growing number of online students
 Different experience
 Unique segment
 Unique message
 Different results
25

29. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Create Cool Events
Drinks with the president is so 1982
26
YOU HAVE THE PEOPLE AND IDEAS
TO POWER THE BEST EVENTS
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO – CASE
AWARD

30. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Recurring Giving
The Forever Donor Engine
27
Source: Network for Good

31. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Emulate Top Causes
Higher Education Donors are Donors
28

32. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Develop Actionable Surveying
Feedback is the Millennial mindset
 Stay focused
 Keep it short
 Recognize their
participation
 Enable Social sharing
 Don’t ask and ignore
29

33. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Partner with Career Services
Young alumni want and need help
 Only 14% of Millennials say they have
received help from career services.
 43% of young
alumni who
received help
had donated.
30
Source: 2014 Millennial Alumni Survey

34. Ruffalo Noel Levitz
Brian Gawor, CFRE
Vice President
Research
Brian.Gawor@RuffaloNL.com
Twitter: @BrianGawor
Josh Robertson
Vice President
Product Strategy
Josh.Robertson@RuffaloNL.com
Twitter: @JRobertson207
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