# Presentation: 312148

## Start Here...Go FurtherHelp Implement a National College Access Initiative

**Session 6**

## The Need for Communication

- What students and families know about financial aid
- What are we doing to communicate and how well are we doing it?

## Limitations of existing outreach efforts

- Information/awareness-focused
- Lack of clear, compelling messages to action
- Insufficient understanding of the audience
- No message delivery in popular culture
- Targeting parents is often not a priority

## CAM – a model of successful communication

- Social marketing is the application of marketing concepts and tools to causes that advance the social good (anti-smoking campaigns, designated drivers, get out the vote)
- College access marketing is social marketing that persuades people to engage in college-going behaviors.

## Core principles of college access marketing

- Know your audience and look at everything from their point of view.
- Build on your audience’s existing beliefs, attitudes, values, and motivations.
- Be very clear about what you are encouraging people to do.

## Core principles of college access marketing (continued)

- Remove unnecessary barriers (make it as easy as possible).
- The best techniques aren’t necessarily the flashiest.
- Remember that success depends on getting your audience to act.

## College Access Marketing website

**www.collegeaccessmarketing.org**

## Create a Campaign – College Access Marketing

**Define** the purpose and focus of your campaign: what problem are you trying to solve?
**Identify** your target audience and their primary influencers
**Set objectives**: what do you want your audience to do?
**Research** your audience as a reality check

## Create a Campaign - College Access Marketing

**Plan: **Build a strong marketing plan (resources, strategy, tactics, messages)
**Implement** your plan
**Learn** as you go: track results and make adjustments
**Evaluate** results and share your efforts with the field

## FUNDRAISING BASICS

- Securing Financial Resources for Your Program

## PROCESS

**Identify** prospects through research
**Educate** prospects through appropriate materials
**Cultivate** prospects through relationship-building activities and events
**Engage** prospects through meaningful involvement
**Solicit** them through personal contact

## PROCESS – Essential Elements

**LEADERSHIP** – Who in your group will take charge?
**CASE** -  Tell your story!  Why is your program important?

## PROCESS – Essential Elements

**PROSPECTS** – Who might be interested in this program?
**RESOURCES **- Commit a sufficient level of resources to the effort.  Form a special fundraising/sponsorship group.

## PLAN – An essential tool

- Gives you a road map so you know where you’re going and when you’ve gotten there.
- Helps to build ownership among all participants.
- How will money be spent?

## PLAN – An essential tool

- Tells everyone what their role is; assigns responsibilities.
- Tracks what works 			     and what doesn’t.
- Saves time and reinventing the wheel at each meeting.

## PLAN – What’s in it?

**Mission-Drive Programs** – What needs funding? How do those programs relate to your mission?
**Diverse Sources of Funding** – Take advantage of the many sources for funding.  One contribution or ongoing?
**Dollar Goals** – How much do you plan to raise?

## PLAN – What’s in it?

**Staff Assignments** – Who is responsible?
**Volunteer Assignments** – Who will be in charge?
**Monthly Tasking** – What tasks need to be done when?
**Costs** – What is the time and energy level volunteers have to put into a plan and implementation?

## PEOPLE

- Fundraising is all about **RELATIONSHIPS.**
- This applies to individuals, corporations, foundations – everyone!
- Everybody knows somebody.
- The main reason why people give
- The right person asked them for the right gift at the right time in the right way.

## Create a Campaign – Fundraising

**Define** the purpose and focus of your campaign: what initiatives are you trying to fund?
**Identify** your potential donors, sponsors or partners, as well as their primary influencers
**Set objectives**: what do you want these prospects to do?
**Research** your prospects as a reality check

## Create a Campaign - Fundraising

**Plan: **Build a strong fundraising plan (resources, strategy, tactics, messages)
**Implement** your plan
**Learn** as you go: track results and make adjustments
**Evaluate** results and share your efforts with the field

## Recap:PROCESSPLANPEOPLE

- For more information, visit _[www.capdevstrat.com](http://www.capdevstrat.com/)__ _

## Slide 22

## College Goal Sunday

- Free assistance to low-income families and first-generation students to complete the FAFSA.
- Funded by Lumina Foundation for Education; managed by NASFAA.
- 25 states plus DC.
- Additional nine states in 2007.

**www.collegegoalsundayusa.org**

## Create a Campaign – College Goal Sunday Marketing

**Define:** Increase FAFSA filers within the target population.
**Identify: **Ex. Urban low-income youth. Primary influencers: Parents, religious leaders, peers
**Set objectives**: Get them to attend prepared to complete the FAFSA.
**Research: **Knowledge of this population, i.e. attitudes, incentives and barriers.

## Create a Campaign - College Goal Sunday Marketing

**Plan: **Using marketing toolkit, include partners, develop working groups, develop messages outreach plan.
**Implement: **Develop timeline, responsibilities, follow up and accountability.
**Learn:** Report back to working group and task force, respond to opportunities and challenges.
**Evaluate: **Who came? Who didn’t? Attendees prepared? Participation by site?

## Audience Research

- Trends in Youth Culture
- Where they hang
- Where they spend their money
- Popular technology
- What they listen to
- Where they spend most of their time
- Adult Population
- Where they work
- What are their day-to-day lives like

## Create a Campaign – College Goal Sunday Fundraising

**Define:** Sustainability of program following Lumina grant; diversification of funding sources.
**Identify: **Identify prospective donors in the state, i.e. businesses, foundations, individuals.
**Set objectives**: Secure financial support, in-kind support, sponsorships, recruit volunteers.
**Research: **Market to the needs and motivations of the donor. For example, the wealthy self-made man who “made it” because of education.

## Create a Campaign - College Goal Sunday Fundraising

**Plan: **Using the fundraising toolkit, establish a fundraising working group; set dollar goals.
**Implement: **Develop timeline, responsibilities, follow up and accountability.
**Learn:** Report back to working group and task force, respond to opportunities and challenges.
**Evaluate: **Dollars raised, sponsors and volunteers recruited, in-kind gifts secured, etc.

## For More Information...

- Karen Cheng, Project Manager
- Pathways to College Network
- _[cheng@teri.org](mailto:cheng@teri.org)_
- Marshall H. Ginn, CRFE
- Capital Development Strategies
- _[marshall@capdevstrat.com](mailto:marshall@capdevstrat.com)_
- Marcia Weston
- Director of College Goal Sunday Operations
- _[westonm@nasfaa.org](mailto:westonm@nasfaa.org)_