KNOX CONFIDENTIAL
Updated 8/8/08
Office of Advancement Communications Plan
Fiscal Year 2008/2009
The Office of Advancement establishes and maintains lasting relationships between Knox College and its alumni and friends. Advancement communications is one of the primary means used to both establish and maintain these relationships. Within the Office of Advancement, “advancement communications” is defined as any piece of communication, including brochures, letters, newsletters, e-newsletters, and magazines, that is sent to more than a single constituent.
- Strategic Goals
All communications originating at the College incorporate the President’s primary stragetic goals: to Nurture Academic Excellence, to Strengthen Institutional Self-confidence, and to Chart a Course towards Financial Impregnability. The Office of Advancement works to reflect appropriately these goals in each of its communications vehicles.
- Constituencies
In its broadest terms, the Advancement target audience consists of the College’s alumni and friends. This audience can be broken down into more specific constituent groups:
Alumni
Donors
Current Students
Parents of Students
Faculty and Staff
Friends
Corporations/Foundations
Galesburg’s Business Community
- Objectives
In communicating with the target constituents, the objectives and vehicles through which Advancement achievesits objectives are as follows:
To educate and inform: Advancement communications provide information about the College in a timely and entertaining manner. The primary goals are to increase awareness of the achievements of our faculty, students, and alumni; to introduce and describe new initiatives related to the College’s educational program and the campus as a whole; and to communicate the College’s needs and ways in which our constituents can support those needs. Advancement communications educate and inform constituents using the following communications:
Knox Magazine
President’s Report
Board of Trustees Update
Gizmogram
The Knox Parent
Fifty Year Club Bulletin
President’s Circular
All Constituent Letter
Periodic Updates to Knox Fund Steering Committee, Alumni Council, Parents Association
Steering Committee
Web site
Periodic E-mail Announcements
To connect and excite: This objective is the natural result of educating and informing constituents. More specifically, Advancement wants to enhance alumni awareness of and participation in alumni programming, including service on local and regional clubs and attendance at alumni events; to solicit and utilize constituents’ expertise and advice when appropriate; and to engage constituents more effectively in the support of the admission and career placement/internship program. Advancement communications connect and excite constituents using the following communications vehicles:
Board of Trustees Update
Knox Magazine
President’s Report
Gizmogram
The Knox Parent
Fifty Year Club Bulletin
Engagement Calendar
All Constituent Letter
President’s Circular
Periodic Updates to Knox Fund Steering Committee, Alumni Council, Parents Association
Steering Committee
President’s Circle Invitations (including Homecoming reception, Trustees’ Tribute, etc.)
Alumni Programming Invitations (including Homecoming Brochure & Knox Club events)
Web site
Periodic E-mail Announcements
To cultivate and solicit: The most important functions of advancement communications is to communicate the College’s needs and objectives to constituents and to solicit financial support of those needs and objectives using the following communications vehicles:
Knox Magazine
Honor Roll of Contributors
Board of Trustees Update
Engagement Calendar
President’s Circle Brochure
All Constituent Letter
President’s Circular
Annual Library Appeal
Monthly Appeal Letters
Class Agent Letters
Reunion Letters
Periodic Updates to Knox Fund Steering Committee, Alumni Council, Parents Association
Steering Committee
President’s Circle Invitations (including Homecoming reception, Trustees’ Tribute, etc.)
Community Campaign Events
Faculty Staff Campaign Communications
Web site
Flash E-mails
To steward and recognize: In order to maintain lasting relationships with constituents, it is important that Advancement thanks those who have supported the College in the past and keep them informed of the College’s continuing goals and needs through the following communication vehicles:
Knox Magazine
Honor Roll of Contributors
President’s Report
Gizmogram
The Knox Parent
Fifty Year Club Bulletin
President’s Circle Brochure
All Constituent Letter
Class Agent Letters
Reunion Letters
Community Campaign Events
Web site
Flash E-mails
- Primary Advancement Communications
Each communications vehicle that the Office of Advancement produces adds to the overall success of its communications plan; however, individual communications serve special needs within the overall communications plan. They are as follows:
Knox Magazine:Knox Magazine is the flagship publication of the Office of Advancement. It is used to educate and inform, to connect and excite, to cultivate and solicit, and to steward and recognize. Published twice yearly, the Magazine highlights those news and feature stories that best reflect the mission and vision of the College.
Gizmogram:The Gizmogram is an e-newsletter that is used to provide alumni and friends with up-to-date information on campus news, events, and achievements, as well as timely updates on alumni, faculty, staff, and friends of the College. It is also used to drive people to the Knox Web site, where additional information is provided. The Gizmogram is distributed monthly from September to June.
President’s Report: The President’s Report will be published for the first time in January 2009, with the goal of becoming an annual publication. The reportis mailed to all constituents of the College. Its primary mission is to provide an overview of Knox’s accomplishments from the past year and to set forth the ongoing goals of the College, all within the context of the President’s three goals. It will also encourage philanthropy towards Knox.
President’s Circular: The President’s Circular is an e-newsletter that is distributed to members of the President’s Circle. Its mission is to provide key donors and friends of the College with timely and important updates and announcements, ideally, in advance of other constituents. The newsletter is published on an “as needed” basis in order to relate immediate and outstanding news to its audience.
Honor Roll of Contributors: The Honor Roll of Contributors will be published for the first time in September 2008. It was previously published each January as the Annual Report. This new publication will be mailed to all constituents of the College in conjunction with the Knox Magazine (the two publications are separate books but are grouped together in a single mailer). Its primary mission is to encourage philanthropy towards Knox by recognizing those individuals who have contributed financial support to the College over the course of one fiscal year.
Board of Trustees Update: This is an update from the chair of the Board of Trustees to President’s Circle members and is distributed shortly after each of the three yearly Board meetings. The update is sent as an e-newsletter, and its mission is to treat key donors and friends of the College as insiders by giving them timely and important updates, announcements, and decisions made at the Trustees meeting. All copy for the update is approved by both the president and chair. This mailing will follow the same protocol as the President’s Circular (e-mail and mail distribution to all members).
The Knox Parent:The Knox Parent is an e-newsletter used to provide current Knox parents with up-to-date information on campus news, events, and achievements, as well as timely updates on alumni, faculty, staff, and friends of the College. It is also used to drive people to the Knox College Parents Program Web site, where additional information is provided. It is published four times each year (August, October, February, and April).
All Constituent Letter: The President’s All Constituent Letter is published twice yearly, in October and June, and is mailed to all College constituents. Its mission is to provide important College updates and announcements and to encourage philanthropy towards Knox.
Engagement Calendar:The Engagement Calendar is published annually in November and is mailed to all constituents of the College. Its mission is to provide constituents with a visual and emotional connection to the College and to solicit donations to the Knox Fund.
President’s Circle Brochure: The President’s Circle Brochure is published annually in November and is mailed to all members of the President’s Circle. Its mission is to enhance philanthropy towards Knox by recognizing outstanding donors, informing them of the many ways their gifts are utilized, and encouraging their continued stewardship.
Fifty Year Club Bulletin: The Fifty Year Club Bulletin is published three times per year and is mailed to all members of the Knox Fifty Year Club. Its primary mission is to connect alumni with the College and each other. It is also used to inform members of the club of important College and club updates, announcements, and events.
Periodic updates to Knox Fund Steering Committee, Parents Association Steering Committee, Alumni Council: The president updates the Board of Trustees on College decisions, events, and accomplishments every 2-4 weeks. These updates are generally produced via e-mail and—after the removal of any sensitive material—are shared with the Business Advisory Council, President’s Circle members (as the President’s Circular), Knox Fund Steering Committee, Alumni Council, and Parents Association Steering Committee. The following protocol is observed when distributing these updates to constituents:
Phase 1
President sends update to Board, BAC, and appropriate campus individuals
Phase 2
Update is revised by the advancement communications coordinator and e-mailed as President’s Circular.
Phase 3
Director of advancement communications sends revised update to associate director of the Knox Fund, Parents Council coordinator, and director of alumni programs for distribution to Knox Fund Steering Committee, Parents Association Steering Committee, and Alumni Council.
Website: The Web site—which consists of the Alumni & Friends gateway ( the Parents gateway (), and the Knox Online Community ()—provides timely updates on College news, accomplishments, and events. It is also used to connect alumni and friends of the College by announcing upcoming events, providing online registration, and encouraging correspondence between classmates. Online giving is also encouraged on the Advancement pages. The Advancement Web site is updated on a regular basis. In recognition of the internet’s growing importance to Advancement communications, Advancement is currently working to update its Web pages and better incorporate them into all Advancement communications. New Advancement pages will be launched by September 2008. Advancement is also working closely with Public Relations, Admission, and the Computer Center on an overall Knox College Web site redesign to be launched in May 2009.
Periodic E-mail Announcements: In addition to the monthly Gizmogram, the Office of Advancement sends e-mail announcements to all constituents, or specific constituent groups, when deemed necessary. These announcements include event reminders, Commencement speaker updates, the Flunk Day e-mail, notice of the passing of a prominent faculty/staff member or alumnus/a, etc. These e-mails are meant to provide alumni and friends with timely notification of an important event/news items and to keep them connected to the College.
Flash E-mails: The Office of Advancement distributes a flash e-mail—or an e-mail that links to a special video/audio Web presentation—to all constituents at the end of each fiscal year. This e-mail’s primary purpose is to solicit end-of-fiscal-year gifts, but it also serves to engage our constituents and thank our donors for their continued support. The video presentation has a different focus each year (our first presentation focused on alumni memories of Knox, juxtaposed with music and photos; our second presentation focused on four outstanding students, featuring audio and photos of each).
Invites, Class Agent Letters, and Reunion Letters: The Office of Advancement produces numerous letters and invitations targeting each of constituent group, including Knox Club event invitations, Reunion invitations and solicitations, donor club event invitations and solicitations, etc. The mission of each letter and invitation is to educate and inform, to connect and excite, to cultivate and solicit, and to recognize and steward.
- Advancement Communications Flow
Each piece of Advancement communication is charted by its production schedule, drop date, and targeted constituency. These charts will help the Office of Advancement enhance the quality and quantity of its communications. The charts will be updated on a yearly basis and will reflect the continuing enhancement of advancement communications.
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