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NEC Madness Case Study

Case Study Download: NEC Madness Yields Successful Results

“One of our goals for our FY17 Annual Fund was to increase participation rates among alumni. Our plan was to create a competition that could flow across channels to engage the largest number of alumni, faculty, and staff as possible. BCG CONNECT worked with us from the brainstorming phase to the execution of the project. They connected us with another school who had done a similar campaign, designed a bracket logo and mailer that served as a solid foundation for our challenge, and created some great social media graphics that were flexible and useful throughout our two-week campaign. BCG CONNECT was helpful in both developing and designing the concept and content for our NEC Madness campaign. Looking forward to working with them on our FY18 projects!”

                  -Genevieve Andress, Director of Alumni Relations and Annual Giving, New England College

In preparation for New England College’s (NEC’s) FY17 annual fund, they partnered with BCG CONNECT for their annual giving direct marketing campaign. One of their initiatives was a March participation challenge with a goal of 400 donors.

Participation challenges are a great way to engage donors and raise money simultaneously. It brings out the fun and competitive spirit in individuals while supporting a great cause. By incorporating a theme into a challenge or giving day, constituents can really captivate themselves into the event and participate in something entertaining that they can relate to.

New England College’s challenge took place in March of 2017 and took the theme of March Madness by being branded as NEC Madness. Most people associate March Madness with the “basketball-packed” month full of strategic brackets and friendly competition. By having a challenge branded as NEC Madness, BCG CONNECT aligned with that theme and designed a bracket logo, mailer, and social media graphics that were enticing to constituents.

Did NEC reach their goal of 400 donors? How did they do it? What was part of their campaign? Download the case study to get these questions answered and learn how NEC generated successful results.

View Case Study Here

As a leading provider of creative direct marketing services, BCG CONNECT can partner with you to optimize your campaign creatively and strategically – connect with us to learn more!

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BCG Staff Writer
Bentley University's Philanthropy Week

Spotlight: Bentley University’s Philanthropy Week

#bentleygives
Bentley created a week of on-campus activities, all centered on philanthropy.

For 2015, this week of events was creatively branded with the slogan, “Bentley Runs on Philanthropy,” a spinoff of the Dunkin’ Donuts “America Runs on Dunkin'” slogan. This played well into the week’s events, which were full of coffee and running.

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Above: Branding the campaign: “Bentley Runs on Philanthropy”

Calling all coffee lovers and do-gooders…
To kick off the giving week, students were given free coffee and donuts. Then, it was their turn to “pay-it-forward” by buying a friend’s coffee. Next, they were asked to donate to Relay for Life with spare, coffee-cup change – every penny counts!

This all led up to the final event – the “Neon Run,” an organized race where students dressed to match the neon theme in glowing garb. It was a chance to show their school spirit, run with friends, and of course enjoy a cup of coffee (waiting for them at the finish line). This was a way to get students involved with supporting the Bentley Annual Fund – their registration fees were donated to the Annual Fund.

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It just goes to show – giving back can be fun too!

Success!
Bentley has had great success with this strategy over the past couple of years. In addition to getting students involved in their annual fund even before they become “young alumni”, Philanthropy Week continually:

  • Raises awareness of the Bentley Annual Fund – teaching students why it’s important to give back
  • Fosters a philanthropic culture among students
  • Provides a fun incentive for students to make a donation

View complete portfolio of event materials (crafted by Boston Color Graphics) here.

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Milton-Nobles Challenge

Teaming Up With Your Rival School to Boost Young Alumni Participation

Noble and Greenough School and Milton Academy are rival schools that team up for an annual young alumni challenge to boost participation early in the fiscal year. The competition between the two schools athletic teams is an event that attracts many young alums back to campus. Nobles and Milton saw this as an opportunity to engage them in giving.

After the first couple years of running the challenge, both schools took a step back to the drawing table. They wanted to find new ways to make it easier for their young alumni to give and take their numbers even further.

The solution was:

  • More social media
  • More peer-to-peer asks
  • Mobile Giving option
  • “Click to Pledge” landing pages

With BCG Connect’s help, the schools rolled out a new direct mail and email plan that worked in conjunction with their social media, text-to-give, and on-campus student volunteer efforts.

First, a postcard with a QR code and personalized URL to click-to-pledge page was mailed.

Second, an e-mail, mirroring the postcard design, was sent with the link to their personalized click-to-pledge page, which included a targeted ask array.

Third, weekly follow-up e-mails, including the link to the click-to-pledge landing page and updated stats tracking each schools progress and lead in the competition, were sent out.

Nobles direct mail and email plan download!

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