Managing the Journey from Print to Digital; Reinventing a Beloved Publication Mary Monigan Advancement Editorial Associate mmonigan@skidmore.edu Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Culture and Context Small private liberal arts college; old campus (1911-1966); new campus 1967 to present. Current enrollment approximately 2500 students Lifelong connections among older alumni classes; strong sense of community continues today Long history of a solid, highly valued class secretary network and voluminous class notes The “little engine that could” mentality; financial prudence; minimal endowment until 1987; “do more with less” Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Rising status as one of “New Ivies”; “Most Entrepreneurial” ( Forbes ); ranked #41 among national liberal arts college ( US. News & World Report ); “most committed to socioeconomic opportunity” ( The New York Times); “ One of top liberal arts colleges for return on investment (Money Magazine) Desire to maintain momentum and reputation as a premier national liberal arts institution Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
1966-2016 Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Decision & Process Rebranding starts in 2015; consultant hired to serve as interim head of Communications Department In spring 2016, a decision to discontinue Scope alumni magazine was made. Money budgeted to print and mail three issues of alumni magazine (approximately $50K each issue) used to fund new marketing component of restructured Communications & Marketing Department. C&M separated from Advancement Division and headed up by new cabinet level VP. A total of five new hires, including three managerial roles focused on content, advancement, and alumni engagement marketing, an additional social media specialist and a second photographer/ videographer Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Roll out Roll out just three months later. Letter from interim VP announces “final issue.” Messaging to alumni stresses: 1. Fiscal responsibility and good stewardship of limited college resources; 2. Sustainability core value 3. Promote Skidmore’s brand among top tier national liberal arts colleges Feedback accepted but no survey done; a fait accompli Alumni promised a new print annual that would be “dynamic, splashy, wow-factor” (without class notes) and an expanded, redesigned monthly alumni e-magazine ( Scope Monthly ) with video and other interactive features that includes class notes four times a year. Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Response • Angry, confused older alumni both older and middle aged, along with some younger alums • I want something I can keep on my coffee table and read at my leisure • Where are class notes? First place I turn to (backed up by CASE Readership Survey) • We feel cut off from classmates, college. Compromises class spirit and pride in institution • Shock to class secretary culture; many on the job for decades. • My friends and I will no longer donate • Why can’t you find a philanthropic alum to pay for a few issues of print magazine? • Confusion; did you lose my address, think I died? • Six conference calls with secretaries from diverse SCYs: “I understand rationale but I’m not happy.” Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Solution: Printed Class Notes Newsletter Color cover; black and white guts Three issues a year Cost per issue, including mailing: $8K Mailed to all alumni who graduated prior to 1970 Available upon request to others Favorable response Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Today’s Higher Education Landscape Highly competitive marketplace Smaller institutions closing, merging, or re-envisioning mission as technology changes career readiness profile Move to digital communications; majority of applicants submit online/rely on social media; necessary for young alumni engagement, critical to future stability of college Skyrocketing cost of printing and mailing Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Are class notes published in your printed alumni magazine? No, just online, No, published in 10% separate printed publication, 3% Yes No, just online Yes, 88% No, published in separate printed publication Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Have you reduced the number of issues of your printed alumni magazine; by how many issues ? 60% I issue 50% 2 issues 40% 30% 20% discontinued entirely 10% 3 issues 0% 1 2 3 discontinued entirely Percentage 53% 42% 5% 0% Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
How would you characterize reader response? Response Surveyed? # Issues Cut Comments We recently conducted a survey as part of a overall redesign and continue to have very strong preference for print. We asked alumni which way or ways they preferred to read the magazine: 97% said print; 13% said on web; 4% as an ePub; 4% as an online flipbook; 3% via social media. We did have better response to whether they would go to the web if there were additional content such as a video, and nearly half said they would. A colleague at a peer institution received a few queries after dropping Negative Yes 0 their summer edition, so the cover was changed to Spring/Summer and they had no more complaints. We had gone to digital for a couple issues and lost alumni input in the Class Notes columns. We've been printing again for three issues and have already increased our magazine page count by 8 (meaning Negative No -3 many more people are contributing). Since we have reduced the number of times we publish, we get a fair amount of older alumnus that think we don't have their current address; they feel they've missed alumni magazines or have stopped Negative No -2 getting them. Readers of all classes, even with five years, prefer receiving the magazine in print. They either don't care Negative Yes 0 about a digital version or they see it as a supplement of the print. Reader surveys show that people value the print edition above all -- nearly 80 percent want print . Negative Yes 0 Discontinuing the print magazine would not project a University that is increasingly prominent nationally. Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
How would you characterize reader response? Response Surveyed? # Issues cut Comments When we have done reader survey response rate is very low . Neutral Yes -1 We reduced our frequency from 4/year to 3/year after the national financial difficulties of 2008. Neutral No -1 No complaints our readers about the change. We made this move about three years ago. No reader complaints . Our constituency seems to be supportive as there were anecdotal concerns shared in a reader survey about associated costs of production and use of environmental resources . Both of these concerns link to and are Neutral No -1 substantiated by longtime core values of the university and the denomination. Not as bad as we feared . We dropped the summer issue and kept a spring and fall and honestly, Neutral No -1 no one seemed to notice. Neutral No -1 Much to our surprise, no one really said anything. Neutral No -2 I think some people wonder where the magazine is while others don't notice. Neutral No -1 Minimal Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
We increased the page count and quality but now print only twice per year. Our readers still love the magazine. We haven't Positive Yes -2 received any negative feedback. We cut our number of magazine back to one per year, publishing in the fall. Reader response has been fantastic because they feel they are getting a "yearbook" or annual report. We overhauled the design and added a lot of tips to additional content on our magazine website. The donor envelope included, as well as the donor lists published, has brought in more money than the magazine ever did before. In between magazines we offer a ton of feature content on our website and updates throughout all Positive No -3 our social media platforms. People seem to really enjoy one larger magazine - containing many alumni features. We also do an interactive digital version Positive Yes -3 that lives on our website and social media. Younger alumni and millennial parents seem to enjoy both. Good. We went to 2 issues a year and we also announced that those making a donation of $25 or more to the College would receive a printed magazine. Class notes are included in the printed version. We do have an online version, but class notes are not included online. We did a readership survey prior to reducing the issues from 3 a year to 2 a year. We have not had much kick Positive Yes -2 back from our decision. I believe we actually gained a few more donations. Too Soon No -1 We are in the process of going from two magazines a year to one. I'm not sure how alumni will respond yet. Too Soon No -1 We are currently in the process of reducing the number of printed issues by one, so we do not yet know the response. The change is recent, so we have yet to receive much feedback from readers. However, development officers have voiced concerns about prospects--such as older alumni and parents--being less receptive to an online magazine. Colleagues also liked Too Soon No -2 using the magazine as a "leave behind" on donor visits. Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
Have you taken steps to address reader concerns ? 41% Yes 59% No Of f ice of Alumni Relations & College Events
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