Building engagement with your alumni community is one of the main objectives of alumni teams at educational institutions.
Therefore, some of the most frequently asked questions are:
How do universities, business schools, and other higher education institutions keep their alumni engaged? How do they maintain this connection during this new phase of the student lifecycle? How do they build engagement with the alumni community?
There’s certainly no single, magic bullet to solve this problem, but a combination of factors can make it easier to maintain engagement and build a more committed community from the very beginning.
And thanks to our experience in various educational institutions with our Alumni app solution, we offer four recommendations to implement at your institution to build engagement with your alumni community:
1. Build a relationship with the alumnus even before graduation
It might seem logical to think that the alumni stage doesn’t begin until a student has finished their university studies, right?
But in reality, it shouldn’t be that way. The student’s relationship with the Alumni team should begin much earlier, even before graduation.
Waiting until they finish their studies, develop other interests, and lose the connection with the institution they built during their student years is, ultimately, a poor approach.
That’s why it’s essential to ensure that a high percentage of graduating students become alumni each year. And to achieve this, they must understand that it’s a natural step in their journey. While they were once students with a relationship with the institution, now they are alumni and maintain that connection even though their daily lives have changed and they no longer attend classes online or in person.
The university or educational institution must continue to be an ally for them and be perceived as such in this new stage they will begin after graduation.
2. Introduce the Alumni community
Alumni need to know what the Alumni community is, who the team behind it is, and what they’ll gain by joining.
It might seem obvious, but raising awareness of the Alumni community is key to fostering engagement.
And a great way to do this is through the alumni themselves. There’s no better ambassador for a student or another alumnus than someone like them—someone who studied at the institution and maintains a connection to their alumni life.
Ambassadors play a vital role in promoting your institution’s Alumni community and fostering a sense of belonging and pride.
This, in turn, facilitates alumni recruitment and ensures they are both more engaged and committed to the community.
3. Be part of their daily routine: be present in it
At this point, we need to distinguish between two approaches: one for current students and another for alumni who are not yet part of the alumni community.
- For current students: Attend and participate in events where students are present. Look for at least one or two opportunities each year to be naturally present. Use these opportunities to introduce the Alumni community, the team, and the value proposition you offer.
This will help students recognize and know who the key figures in the Alumni community are, putting faces and/or names to them from the start. - For alumni:
It’s difficult to imagine alumni proactively reaching out to your association if they don’t know you exist or are unaware of your existence, isn’t it?
Reaching out to alumni who have lost touch with the institution and getting them engaged with the community is the most complex mission and can seem almost impossible. You shouldn’t focus all your efforts on these alumni, but we recommend you don’t forget about them either.
Try to make one or two reconnection efforts each year that might be of interest to them. You could invite them to a networking event you’re hosting or simply try to get them together for a class reunion. Whatever you do, don’t forget that word-of-mouth is and will continue to be a powerful tool. So focus on reconnecting with a few alumni from each graduating class, spark their interest, and spread the word about the Alumni platform.
4. Offer a clear and concise value proposition
And the last recommendation, but undoubtedly the most important of all.
Your Alumni community must offer a clear and concise value proposition. In other words:
- It should be easily understood.
- It should directly benefit alumni.
- It should be vibrant and dynamic.
- It should not create false expectations.
And all of this should be aspirational for alumni and generate a sense of pride in belonging. Because let’s not kid ourselves, a group that has no activity or doesn’t provide any value to its members is of no interest to anyone.
So first and foremost, define your value proposition and build your strategy for attracting and retaining your alumni community based on it.
If you would like to learn more about other proposals for your Alumni community, please contact us please contact us and we will explain how our Alumni platform can be a very useful tool for building engagement with your alumni.
