Gathering Time and Talents

Best practices for alumni participation, Part I

By Stephanie Keene Fox '89
and Larry Taylor '73

Cornell's alumni organizations rely on a steady base of active volunteers and membership dues to serve their constituents. But we alumni are a diverse, dispersed group--and that often presents a challenge for the organizations that serve us. What are some of the best ways for alumni groups to encourage membership and galvanize volunteers?

To find out, we surveyed all groups belonging to the Cornell Alumni Federation, from regional clubs to collegebased groups, as well as some classes. The survey was not intended to generate statistics, but to gather feedback about what works well. We collected the responses and distilled them into the following "best practices." These tools and ideas may enhance membership and participation in your own alumni organization.

Collecting Membership Dues

The annual newsletter

The University provides the tool that regional clubs use most widely to collect membership dues: an annual newsletter, mailed in late summer or early fall by the Office of Alumni Affairs. This mailing is unique: it goes to all alumni in the area, regardless of whether they have ever paid dues or attended an event. The newsletter is the most far-reaching communication piece for capturing new and renewed regional club memberships; it includes compelling content such as a calendar of events and the club president's letter highlighting reasons to participate. Most clubs make a strong pitch for membership in the newsletter. Many add a solicitation in the president's letter for their local scholarship or book award program; those who wish to support the organization in addition to dues may fund programs focused on students.

Timing is crucial: an early mailing is most effective. As Chuck Schilke, JD '88, of the Cornell Club of Washington says, "In years when we get the mailing sent to D.C. alums by August 1, we attract significantly more new members than when we have it sent after August 20." Using first-class postage for any mailing ensures the correspondence will be forwarded.

Follow-up postcards and letters

Typically, only some 50 percent of active regional club members renew in response to the newsletter. Our alumni are busy and inundated with mail. A reminder letter or postcard in the fall helps capture their attention. One-third of the organizations that responded to our survey include a return-addressed envelope, which improves the response rate. Another effective strategy is to send a letter in the spring to remind alumni of an event in the Cornell Alumni Federation Speaker Series and bundle it with a membership reminder. Late-joiners are often given an extended membership or a half-price deal. All clubs using reminders said they would like to use them more often.

Lifetime memberships

Some Cornell groups offer eligible alumni a lump-sum payment option that covers membership fees for life. In general, these groups charge ten times the annual dues for a lifetime membership. The Cornell Club of Washington has a separate bank account for its lifetime membership dues and finds that the interest alone covers the annual membership cost of the life members. One tremendous benefit of a lifetime membership program is that it allows the club to focus on recruiting new members rather than reminding current and lapsed members to renew. Groups that offer this option recommend aggressive marketing: they include lifetime membership in all solicitation mailings and acknowledge new lifetime members in newsletters and other communications.

The Cornell Law Association offers a variation: it considers all Law School graduates to be members and does not collect dues. Rather, it charges attendance fees at its events. Other options include multi-year membership discounts; free memberships for current students, their families, and recent graduates; broadening the standard membership to include family members; and "patron" or "premium" memberships for those who choose to support the club's work at a higher level.

Simplify payment

Over and over we hear alumni say it's not the cost that prevents them from paying dues (usually around $30 per year); it's the hassle. Make it easy for alumni to join and renew membership. Increasing participation through dues can be as simple as mailing out a bill to all members from the previous year. In this way, paying dues becomes part of the member's normal bill payment process. Again, a return-addressed envelope yields great results. Some groups include a membership expiration date on the fall mailing label so alumni will know when they are up for renewal. An automatic renewal option has been highly successful for organizations that offer credit-card payment.

Websites

Different groups use websites to varying degrees. For some, a website is becoming the standard method with which they collect dues and enroll members. Payments are secure and accepted via credit card or PayPal, a popular service that enables an individual or business to send and receive payments online. The Cornell Club of Boston charges a higher fee for memberships purchased by mail and paid by check. The Cornell Club of Austin, Texas, collects more than 50 percent of membership dues and event fees via a PayPal link embedded in the Club website.

Organizations that do not offer online membership services say the most important improvement they could make to the club would be to offer website enrollment and online dues payment. However, remember that websites require upkeep. Outdated information on a website presents a negative image.

New recruits

Many groups act to recruit new members when they are notified an alum has moved to their area. (Be aware that an address change can also indicate simply that an alum has moved to a new home in the same area.) A timely and personal invitation to Cornellians who are new to the area is effective--especially before they become over-committed in their new community.

Premium programs

Many groups have offered specials in order to provide value to dues-paying members. The Cornell Club of Rochester, New York, offers a drawing for two tickets to local theater for people who renew within thirty days of receiving the annual newsletter. The Cornell Alumni Association of Central New York has offered new members photographs by Dick Welch of Cayuga Images, stipulating that the member must pick up the print at a Club event. The Cornell Club of Austin's latest initiative is to have a few members-only events. The Sarasota, Florida, club picks up the tab for taxi rides to events for alumni who are no longer able to drive. The Cornell Club of Chicago has used a free event to encourage non-members to join. As you can see, this wide array of programs demonstrates that your group can get creative with premium options.

In our next installment, we'll offer more ideas for encouraging participation in alumni organizations.

Ed. Note: If you have specific questions about the survey results, please e-mail Donna Carl at dc37@cornell.edu and the authors will respond.

Stephanie Keene Fox is a Cornell Alumni Federation director from the region (Southwest/Mountain). Larry Taylor is a past president of the Cornell Club of St. Louis and a Cornell Alumni Federation director from the region (Midwest).