HOW
HOW to ask your classmates to contribute to the Alumni Fund
Tips and timing for asking for a gift and saying "thanks" - email, phone, in person, text, or social media.
Tips on How and When to Ask for a Gift
The Alumni Fund relies on class agents from October 1 kickoff through our March 15 – our class-based campaign timeframe. Bring your personality, and, more importantly, the personal connections between yourself, Williams, and your classmates.
All Alumni Fund agents are expected to make a financial contribution to the fund each year (July 1 to June 30), preferably before December 31 – it is easier to ask for a gift if you have already made your gift. We recommend that all agents reach out to their classmates at least three times a year — not just in February and March when the heat is on to get them to make their gift.
On average, it takes seven touches to bring in a gift to the Alumni Fund, though we find the most common range is anywhere from three to ten. Every contact you make with your assignments matters — even, and especially, those that do not include a specific ask for a contribution to the Alumni Fund.
These touches can take various forms, including casual connections, pleases, and thank yous.
Casual connections: anytime for any reason or no reason at all. Ideas and conversation starters can be found on the What page and gift impacts can be found on the Why page.
Send an email or a handwritten note with an update on your own life and good wishes to them.
Pick up the phone to chat, with no set purpose or agenda other than to reconnect.
Text to say you’re thinking of them, or text a picture of something they’d appreciate (whether or not it has to do with Williams).
Engage on social media. Post something of interest on Facebook or Instagram, including your #whyephsgive statement, highlighting your #ephpurpose; share a story or feature from the Alumni Fund Facebook page (facebook.com/give2williams), the Eph Alum page (facebook.com/ephalum) or the Williams College page (facebook.com/williamscollege) or send a SnapChat, Tweet at them, or tag them in a post on Facebook or Instagram.
Pleases: actual asks for this year’s gift without arm twisting.
October: A quick note as the fund year kicks off, inviting them to be part of this year’s effort (and thanking them for last year’s gift)
November: An ask around Homecoming or the Athletic Challenge (classes 2022 through 1990)
December: A reminder of the tax benefit for gifts made before the close of the calendar year (primarily for leadership prospects: those being asked for a gift of $2,500 or more)
February and March: Additional multiple contacts as needed to get a gift or a “not this year, thanks”
Thank yous: stewardship and thanks for a previous gift
At the time the gift is made: check My Assignments or the Ledger in your online reports (williams.edu/myreports) to see new donors.
A little later: The Alumni Fund office will send out biweekly reports by email. Each is an updated PDF of your My Assignments report (or My Assignments and My Class for head agents). You may unsubscribe from these reports at any time.
Way later: after March 15th (trophy deadline) or June 30 (fiscal year end), send a note to each of your donors for the year, or a class-wide note of thanks to all donors. The Alumni Fund office can help produce these class-wide notes or letters.
Way, way later: Include your thanks in your kick-off note next October.
Email 📧
Timing, Subject Lines and Helpful Tips!
According to a 2018 survey, Williams alumni prefer to hear from their class agent via email. Getting them to actually give in response to an email can be challenging -- typical response rates are just 1-2%. For this reason, we recommend that each class consider sending multiple emails as part of their solicitation plans each year. (For digital natives / young alumni, this may mean a dozen or more email messages, coupled with personal outreach and texting.)
All told, during the 2018-19 fund year, 493 solicitation emails were produced across 60 classes (1959-2019), an average of 8 per class.
Additionally, the Alumni Fund office sends every alum at least one email per year!
Pro Tip - Have you heard about the Google Extension YAMM? Click here for a quick tutorial to learn how to send mass personalized emails. **Please note that Gmail private users are limited to 50 YAMM recipients per day**
Timing
Figuring out the right time to send your email to ensure it gets both opened and read can be both an art and a science. YesWare analyzed millions of messages sent by 60k users of their platform and shared their findings at a 2018 conference. The key takeaway is to send early in the morning or late in the afternoon to improve response rate. You can also check out the full (30 min) presentation from Yesware Founder and CEO Matthew Bellows.
For additional advice, please reach out to any of the class managers in the Alumni Engagement office for their opinion. We also welcome any anecdotal evidence that you are willing to share!
Subject Lines
Yes, you're emailing to ask alumni to support Williams through the Alumni Fund.
But guess what subject line is *least likely to be opened*? That's right: “Support Williams: Make Your Alumni Fund Gift Today!”
Better luck has been found with things like "Can you spare 5 min for Williams today?"
For more email subject line tips and tricks, check out this blog post from Yesware: Email Subject Lines: How to Perfect Yours (Backed by Research)
Phone Call 📱or In Person 🗣️
Recommendations from the pros!
How to ask your classmates to contribute to the Alumni Fund?
On the phone or in person
For many Ephs, the phone call they receive from their Alumni Fund agent is the one personal connection to the college that they'll have in a year. And many donors report that they intentionally wait for the agent to call to make their gift.
Unlike basically every other college or university, Williams does not have a student calling program or phonathon. We rely on our alumni volunteers to keep in touch with their classmates to relay news and information -- and to ask for financial support of the college.
So what are you waiting for? Pick up the phone!
Consider the following when preparing to make your Alumni Fund calls or have a gift conversation with a classmate
1) Lead by Example-One of the easiest ways to ask someone to support Williams is by sharing that you've already made your own gift. Invite them to join you in renewing their support after you make your own gift online.
2) Don't Beat around the Bush - Be upfront with your classmate - you're calling to ask them to support Williams. You can catch up in the same conversation, yes, but be upfront about the fact that your objective is to ask them for money. They'll appreciate your candor.
3) Leave a Message after the Beep - There was a time when fundraisers were encouraged to never ever leave a message because then your prospect would know you were calling to ask for money. That was before caller ID, mobile phones, and robocalls. Now, we strongly encourage you to leave a message so that your classmates know you're a real person who wants to talk to them, not a scammer spoofing your phone number. In your message, be direct and enthusiastic about their support of Williams, and indicate when you plan to try calling again. You may also wish to follow up via email or text -- perhaps they were driving, putting their adorable small child to bed, or binge watching something addictive and unable to answer.
Print Mail 📬
Reach out or say thanks!
While class letters are usually coordinated by Head Agents and mailed by the Alumni Engagement staff, a physical letter from a class volunteer can be a meaningful and deeply appreciated form of communication. Whether writing to solicit your classmates for their Annual Fund contribution or thanking them for their thoughtful participation, a physical letter goes a very long way.
A few tips for sending mail:
Check and double check the recipient's address - please reach out if you have any questions!
Make sure to include your return address!
If you are writing to a classmate who you do not know as well, consider signing your full name and include your class year so that they know who they are hearing from.
Need supplies?
We are happy to help! Please reach out if you need the following:
Purple pens
Williams themed greetings cards
Social Media/Texting 💬
Tips and tricks!
Social media can be a good way to find an otherwise-unreachable classmate. Over half of alumni report using social media daily, and that figure jumps to 87% for young alumni (2016 alumni survey). And in 2018, young alumni cited connecting with other alumni via social media (particularly Facebook) as their 3rd most valuable source of information about what's happening at Williams.
For that reason, we encourage the use of social media to your own comfort level, on your preferred platforms. A good place to start is by following and reposting from Williams College and EphAlum:
WILLIAMS COLLEGE
Facebook - Instagram - Twitter - Social Media Aggregate Stream
EPH ALUM
Facebook - Instagram - Twitter (EphTweets) - LinkedIn (Williams Alumni)
Consider the Following
Privacy and Public Shaming: For many people, their social media presence is a representation of their personal brand and public self. DMs are fine; tagging other AF agents in a public post about, say, the AF deadline is fine. Public shaming, not so much.
Hashtag Headline: Active on social and want to give a shoutout? Here are some hashtags to use and/or search for.
#EphsBuyTheBook - used in the Fall and Spring for Buy The Book
#BiggestLittleChallenge - used during the Biggest Little Challenge in the fall
#WilliamsAF - used for Alumni Fund posts
#Give2Williams - used for Alumni Fund posts
#WilliamsCollege - used for anything and everything related to Williams
#MtnDay - used for Mountain Day
#EphNation - used for Homecoming
#EphReunionYYYY - (where YYYY is the current year, in four digits, e.g. 2020) used for Reunion each year
#WilliamsYYYY - (where YY is the four digit class year) used for each class year
#beautephful - used for campus and Williamstown shots
#ephpride - used for moments around LGBTQ+ programming and moments of pride for Williams
Remember to say please...AND thank you!
Here are some resources to help you thank and steward donors.
Here are some resources to help you thank and steward donors.