Digital Communications and How It Draws Success Presented By Anne Lichtenberg Director of Annual Giving University of Kentucky Marc Whitt Director of Philanthropy Communications

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y raisING money online PART ONE: BUILD IT Process And Results Of The Recent Overhaul To The UK Giving Page PART TWO: MAKE THEM CLICK Emerging Trends In Social Media To Drive Traffic To Donation Pages U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

Challenges of the old site Not Mobile Friendly Organization/Search Features Could not take recurring gifts Multiple transactions for multiple allocations It was just a digital version of a reply card U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

Challenges of the old site U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y Why invest in a new site U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y Why invest in a new site U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

network for good capabilities Determined NFG met all our needs plus: Build a page for each fund, featuring detailed description and photo/video Vary suggested gift amounts by fund Social proofing through donor scroll and prompted social media sharing Ability to do crowdfunding projects Create team pages for DanceBlue U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y uky.networkforgood.com U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y results U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y results U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y WHAT DROVE THE Growth? Year One (October 2016 – June 2017) DanceBlue saw tremendous growth. 1,645 more gifts, average gift grew from $67 to $79 More Donors Used NFG to Make Major Gift Pledge Payments Non-DanceBlue platform saw growth in number of gifts and steady average gift once pledge payments were removed Year Two (June 2017 – July 2018) DanceBlue continued to grow but at a more moderate rate Non-DanceBlue saw more gifts and average gift on non-pledge payments grew from $278 to $345 Recurring giving tripled in donors and quintupled in dollars from year one Tax changes spurred end of year Athletics giving U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y What we’ve learned Overall We receive far fewer donor complaints about the giving site. Donors love the scroll. Almost all of them choose to be displayed on it and 25% write a personalized message about their gift. It’s not just for the young or for annual sized gifts. Email alone does not drive our web gifts. Big Takeaways For us, web giving is too significant to have a site that doesn’t work well. On-demand reporting has been a game changer. Giving site is now a true digital solicitation, not just a response device We must be able to make changes quickly to respond to donor and institutional needs. Set the stage for a big, university-wide giving day next spring. U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y For the past 20 years, social media has revolutionized the way we communicate and network… U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y approximately 2 billion users used social networking sites and apps in 2015. U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y with the increased use of mobile devices, this number is likely to cross the 2.6 billion mark by THE END OF 2018. - Statista U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y WHY AMERICA GIVES (Source: Classy, 2018) What Motivates People to Give Personal or family connections to a cause Recommendations from social media influencers Ease of donating Most Influential in Rallying Support 26% - Social Media Influencers 10% - Professional Athletes 9% - Hollywood Celebrities 9% - Local Politicians 5% - National Politicians U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y WHY AMERICA GIVES (Source: Classy, 2018) How to Encourage People to Give Make it convenient – 52% find it easiest to make online gifts Empower mobile users – One-third of all gifts are now made via mobile Leverage technology – Avoid lack of gift page or clunky online giving experience 54% of Millennials and Gen Zers depend on online or mobile device giving 43% of Baby Boomers and Silent Generation felt the same How Often Do You Give to Nonprofits 10% - Weekly 23% - Monthly 12% - Annually 46% - Randomly 9% - Never U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y Takeaways Your supporters are communicating with one another and their friends via social media 24/7. Nonprofits, including higher ed philanthropy and communications offices, must be active in the conversation. Social media provides your donors and volunteers ease of access to your organization and gives them the communication tools to be advocates for your cause. Content must be continually updated with fresh, relevant and engaging information that reflects the interests of your followers, including influencers. Websites are not dinosaurs. Your social media efforts should point followers back to the organization’s website and vice versa. U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y Takeaways Social media posts must be strategic to your organization’s messaging. Inform. Inspire. Engage! Social media will continue to heighten use of “live” and “in the moment” features. Be smart, strategic and professional in their use. Social media can’t reside in its own silo. Integrate with web, eMarketing, publications, news releases, direct mail, etc. for seamless, consistent messaging. Repurpose your best content. Video is quickly becoming king of online content. Include clips with social media posts that donors and volunteers can and enthusiastically wish to share. Integrate online giving services and opportunities with social media strategies. U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y Takeaways Don’t doubt Baby Boomers’ online skills! Research has found nearly 83% are using social media, particularly Facebook. Manage no more than 1-3 social media accounts and do all well. Be authentic in your social media messaging. You are competing with other nonprofits around the world. Don’t get caught up in the follower numbers game. Be more concerned with having “engaged” followers rather than “people collecting.” Remember, face-to-face interaction will continue to be the most important aspect of major and principal gift solicitation. Social media, however, can help dust off the welcome mat for your organization. U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y

U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y QUESTIONS? U N I V E R S I T Y O F K E N T U C K Y