Alumni Communications hand-out from Tracy's session at the Alumni Relations Institute 2015.

1. CONTENT PLAN
• Editorial and production calendar
• Distribution and promotion flow
• Call to action
CONTENT PRODUCTION
• Create, commission or curate?
• Production timescales
• Asset acquisition
DISTRIBUTION
• Cross-platform distribution
• Repurposing and reframing
• Third party influencer outreach
MONITORING
• Owned content and channel monitoring
• Third party platform monitoring
• Response
MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION
• Content
• Platforms
• Goals
REFINEMENT AND REVISION
• Understand
• Adjust
• Explain
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
• Organisational goals
• Communication goals
• Baseline testing and measurement
AUDIENCE (RESEARCH)
• Channels, platforms and usage
• Wants, needs, distractions and motivations
• Their relationship with you
CONTENT STRATEGY
• Overarching approach to all content
• Positioning and messaging
• Style, tone, voice
RESOURCE
• Budget
• Team and skills
• Management buy in approach
GOVERNANCE
• Quality control and approval workflow
• Content ownership
• Guidelines and training
CHANNELS AND PLATFORMS
• Selection and build
• Channel marketing plan
• Channel ownership
CREATING COMPELLING ALUMNI COMMUNICATIONS
BUILDING YOUR CONTENT STRATEGY
What do you want
your alumni to
think, feel & do
MAKE IT ABOUT
THEM
What do
you want
to say?
What do
they want
& need
from you?
What do they want
and need in the rest
of their lives?
Great alumni communication adds value to
our audiences’ lives by putting them and
their needs at the heart of your content
planning. It doesn’t just talk about “us”
Successful
communication relies
on creating great
content.
So, what makes great
content?
Evokes empathy
Offers relevance
Aligns with their interests
Topical
Timely
Funny
Controversial
Fun
Playful
Prompts surprise
Challenges
Educates
Entertains
Forms connections
Makes them feel good
Saves them time
Helps them do something better
Makes them more successful
Is from a credible source
Well produced
Concise
Captivating
Amazes them
Inspires them
Has clarity
Evokes nostalgia
SEGMENTING ALUMNI AUDIENCES
Sometimes we need to segment our audiences to make our
communications more relevant to them. How can we do this?
• Age
• Gender
• Year of graduation
• Course
• Department or faculty
• Hall of residence
• How “engaged” they are
• Interests or hobbies
• Clubs or societies
• Profession
• Work sector
• Seniority
• Where they live
• Where they work
• Aspirations
• Attitudes to you
• Political views
• Social connections
• Levels of influence
• Propensity to give
• Family circumstances
• Cultural difference
• Personal motivations
• Salary level
Excellent planning is the key to successful alumni communication.
To cut through the noise, your communication needs to add value to
your audiences’ lives. This wall chart produced by Pickle Jar
Communications sets out some of the important things to consider
as you strive to plan compelling alumni communications, and create
content that gains attention and action.
www.picklejarcommunications.com
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