Alumni Newsletter.
 

how many of you have newsletters published for your chapter's alums? We have a free, quarterly newsletter published, with articles and pictures provided by the active chapter. We started this about 1 year ago, and now we have alumni sending in their own articles, and sending us letters and information, on top of donations. I'm curious if anyone else has had success or failure working with alumni newsletters, and what has worked for you.

M.
Sigma Nu,
Knox College

My alumnae chapter has had a newsletter for a number of years now. Two months ago I became the alumnae chapter's editor and I am responsible for sending out 2 newsletters annually. Our alumnae website has a function that lets alumnae update their addresses and give us any information that they'd like to share. From time to time I get emails from sisters around the world... a lot of them I've never met before, but I'm getting to know them for the first time this way! I've only been an alum for a few months and I love knowing so many of them already!

I guess the difficult thing about this is keeping track of all these addresses and making notes of all the address and name changes. When I sent out 280 newsletters last month, I got about 20-30 back from the postal service saying that they were undeliverable or they had new addresses...so those had to go out again.

I'm having a great time being alumnae editor!!! If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

OTW, Know the feeling!

I get returns on e-m as they do not keep me informed to changes as our Interntional is way lacking!

It is tuff when you have someone and do not give you changes!!!!!!:mad:

The Chapter is suppose to send out a Sem. Letter to all of the Members for info and updating! Da, Been a long time in getting the latest!

The Best way to lose an Alum for doing things is not to KEEP IN TOUCH!

As usual Sweety, you make me Proud!!!!!!!

Your are my main! :)

Oh I Know What You're Going Through, lol!
 

We would lllooovee it if our alumnae would send us information and their address changes!!

I know when I get a newsletter, the first thing I look to see is if I know anyone in there....but if no one sends stuff in..no one else will know! :D

We're working on an updating records drive so maybe this will help.

Sandy, I'll email you some stuff I sent Nina!

In your news letter, list a calander of events news information, choose an or some alums to write a thumb nail article about. Everyone likes their name in lights!

Request any changes of E-M, Home Address, and Phone # be sent to a specific person or Officer!

We also did something that may help all of you!

Each officer had an e-m address not by name but by office! Ergo, you need to send an e-m, you send to that officer no matter who is in that office at the time!

Remeber, Alums still want to be a part of teh Group so make sure you include them as they are the ones down the road who may be of service and help!!!!:)

Our active chapter puts out an alumnae newsletter 3 times a year (1st term, 2nd term and summer). It is a great way for us alum to keep up on the active chapter and see what other alum are doing. It includes intros to new members, a message from the chapter president, articles about fundraising events, sports, etc. A calendar with upcoming events, when meetings are held, etc.

On top of that, a group of us just met saturday night to form the Vancouver Alumnae Association of Delta Phi Epsilon; we talked about also doing our own newsletter as we plan on holding monthly events: teas, book clubs. etc.

We try to send out alumni newlsetters but we have one main issue . . . the alumni house for the university will NOT let us have our own mailing list. Everyone who goes to get labels must sign a confidentiality agreement not to make a mailing list for the chapter. Everytime someone asks them about this they talk about how it's so that they can keep updated with the addresses (as opposed to them updating only us on the address) . . . they also insist on reading everything we send out. Personally, I think this is to make sure that we don't try to fundraise from them . . . I mean why should they give us money instead of the university? Grrrr! Does anyone else have to deal with a similar situation?

Emmi

Our chapter has an alumnae newsletter that goes out normally twice a year. It's hard for them because people move and such and don't notify anyone of their address change, but we're trying to move to email newsletters now, and that's been even tougher. BUT, the newsletters are GREAT for your own chapter because the national publications can't publish all of the stuff that chapters would like.

Siob, we have our Philadelphia Alum Association meeting on the 18th, as we're trying to revive the thing. Let's hope it works out! Good luck with Vancouver!

SuperSister, that is weird, but then, I've never heard of a chapter getting their addresses from the university rather than merely collecting them themselves. Just keep your own database, and you can do/write whatever you want in it ... including ask for money, which you have every right to do!

Mailing lists.
 

Many Headquarters keeps a current record of every chapters alumni. Some groups put out a chapter aluni directory for each chapter. Others will send you a mailing list on request. If the school won't help you out, maybe your HQ will.

M.
Sigma Nu
Knox College

Re: Mailing lists.
 

The trouble with that is a lot of people don't update with their GLO's HQ. They seem to think if they tell one member it will magically get there. The uni they know they have to tell. I found the addresses from the university to be more accurate. It's best to get a list from each & combine the 2.

SuperSister, I PM'ed you.

As for getting money from your alumni instead of the school, if you do get a chance to send out a newsletter, or if you see them at homecomming, I know at Knox, if the almni earmark a donation for our chapter, the college is leagaly bound to give it to us/spend it on us. there are certain months during the year that we can not fundraise--these are during the main pushes of our college's fundraising events. They don't want alumni getting letters from 3 different organizations during the same week. Our buisness office helps with our fundraising by organizing when letters go out to alumni so they don't get more than one fundraising letter in any close ammount of time.

M.
Sigma Nu
Knox College

I know when I re-started my chapter's alumni association (after about 15 years of silence), I contacted our International Headquarters, who sent me a list of every initiated chapter member, their address, phone number and email. This list indicated the date their info was last updated.

I took this list and cross referenced it with the alumni dept. at the college (luckily several Pikes had been and were on the alumni board of directors, so the alumni staff were more than happy to help). Once we started mailing things, we would receive back newsletters from bad addresses or non-forwardable changes. We also conducted an online address search using search engines like www.whitepages.com or www.anywho.com to try to pinpoint some alumni.

But the best way I have found to update your alumni information is by using a website or email listserv. A listserv works well once you get a nice number of alumni email addresses. I started out with just about 25 email addresses, and now we have over 200! Alumni who keep in contact with one another usually have their email addresses, and by forwarding emails, you can potentially reach some of those alumni that were listed as "lost".

We also still send out a paper newsletter three times a year. The content is about 75-80% alumni oriented, with only a small percentage about the current chapter (mainly only top news - intramural championships, new Exec. listing, community service projects, and other achievements).

The key to alumni is to establish and maintain a CONSISTENT line of communication. Too many chapters send out an alumni newsletter for about a year or two, but then stop doing it. Another mistake that many chapters make is hitting alumni up for money and donations right off the bat...something that turns off a LOT of alumni. Two big complaints that alumni have about the alumni relations programs of many chapters:
1. "I don't hear from the chapter for years, and when I do, all they want is money"
2. "I don't hear from the chapter for years, and when I do, it's because they are in trouble and want our help getting them out of trouble."

If you chapter hasn't had a good alumni relations program in a few years, it takes a period of time to woo alumni back into the loop. It's almost like RUSHING the alumni all over again.

Just a few comments from an Alumni Association president...

Pike4Life, well said!!!!!!

I started with 10 e-m and now have 200+. It took a lot of work and money to track down Brothers all over!

Most Nationals have lailing lists, but they are only as good as what is sent to them! That would be a base to startwith though.

If you haver a web site have a place for Alums to update their info.
Right now, I a, the Keeper of the e-m address book! I keep it on 3 computors thank god as I erased half of one one time! I pissed BBs.

As far as the school not giving you the information, That is BS!

If that is the case, get to it and start setting up your own data book with address, phone, and e-m in it!!!!!!!

Set up so you can send out e-m listings of updates etc. Just because the College says you cant does not mean you cant do it on your own!

Snail mailings get expensive but are neccessary, ask for a forwarding address. If it is not listed, the postal service should return it to you so you know who is lost!

I have finally started getting e-m from Brothers who are in contact with some I did not have and it is very gratifying for that to happen!

To long and to much so at an end!:D

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for their ideas on this thread. For a new chapter like mine to get started on this early should hopefully save headaches in the future!

LHT
Kevin