Introducing OpenApply’s Exciting New Advancement Module

We are excited to announce the launch of OpenApply’s new Advancement module, designed to empower schools with robust and reliable data to cultivate relationships with alumni, existing families and prospects alike. It provides a number of tools that schools need to optimise this data and leverage it to their advantage!

Advancement and Development directors in the increasingly competitive international and independent school market are under pressure to continually evolve and secure the support of their alumni to contribute towards their school’s mission – from fundraising to engaging with the local community and improving campus facilities. While facing their own top-of-funnel pressures, they cannot afford to merely react to inbound enquiries without an efficient, structured and streamlined engagement strategy and workflow to accelerate advancement. Advancement is all about furthering the school’s aims and providing a better experience for the students, parents, faculty, staff and alumni who make up the school community. OpenApply’s new Advancement module will help schools to engage alumni and nurture these important relationships in a number of ways:

Exit Questionnaire Form

Capture valuable information from school leavers (both graduates and students transitioning to a different school), with bespoke questions that enable you to better nurture your alumni relationships with more tailored communication.

Alumni Information Update Form

On a recurring basis (e.g. annually), ensure that your school receives the most up-to-date information from your alumni, keeping track of changes in circumstance, such as new jobs or relocation. Ensure that relationships do not fade over time, and in fact, grow stronger through more personalised outreach that can engage your alumni community.

Alumni Dashboard

Access a centralised, user-friendly interface from where the exit questionnaire form and information update forms can be sent, as well as view statistics relating to these forms, and send reminder emails and notifications. Configure your ideal communications (i.e. sequence, order and timing of forms and reminders) for more automated and efficient alumni relationship management.

Lead Scoring

Create a hierarchy of lead categories and define weighted scoring factors for your alumni groups (granting higher scores to more impactful activities). Review different thresholds to prioritise those individuals who are most likely to become donors. Boost conversions through broader community initiatives that leverage alumni relationships (e.g. donations).

Email Campaigns

Send professional emails (e.g. one-off campaigns promoting an upcoming event, or recurring newsletters) to alumni, and utilise AI to enhance, expand and rephrase text. Automatically (un)subscribe parents and alumni based on their level of interaction with multi-email (drip) campaigns, leading to an increase in engagement and stronger alumni relationships and rapport. Create tracking links and see source numbers in real time at each stage in order to monitor which sources are successful (e.g. Facebook, email campaigns, WeChat, Google Ads, etc.)

Volunteer Hours and Donations

On an Alumni’s profile, you can enter and record volunteer hours and donations. This adds further nuance and insight into which members of your alumni community are particularly passionate and loyal, and which relationships may need further cultivation.