Social media platforms like Facebook have become indispensable tools for staying connected, engaged, and building communities. For advancement professionals, alumni relations teams, and educational institutions wondering how to engage alumni using social media, the most effective approach is to build a dedicated alumni Facebook presence and use it consistently to share alumni success stories, invite comments, promote events, encourage user-generated content, and create ongoing two-way interaction.
As of September 2017, Facebook had more than 2 billion monthly active users, an increase of 16% over the previous year. What's more, 66% of those Facebook users — that's 1.37 billion people — log in every day. According to research from Sprout Social, it's the preferred network among Millennials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers alike.
Even more important for advancement offices, 79% of Facebook users hold a higher-education degree.
You might think of Facebook as just a personal social networking tool, but it started as a social networking site for college students. This is a huge advantage for advancement professionals — most Facebook users are already used to interacting with their school on the platform.
With such a huge user base, Facebook is a huge part of the marketing strategy for most businesses — and should be for advancement offices too. The ideas below focus on the practical tactics that make that presence work: alumni pages, interactive posts, hashtags, video, call-to-action buttons, cross-promotion, and stronger alumni relationships that support events, campaigns, and long-term engagement.
Creating an Alumni Facebook Page: The Foundation of Engagement
The cornerstone of any successful alumni engagement strategy on Facebook is the establishment of a dedicated alumni Facebook page. This page serves as a virtual hub where alumni can congregate, reminisce, and stay informed about the latest happenings related to their alma mater. The alumni page becomes the digital manifestation of the institution's community spirit, connecting graduates from various years and locations. Dedicated alumni groups on platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn can complement the main page by bringing together specific cohorts, programs, or shared interests.
The alumni relations team plays a pivotal role in curating content for the alumni Facebook page, and a consistent posting schedule helps keep it active over time. Using regular posts with relevant news, stories, and updates ensures that the community remains active and engaged. From showcasing alumni excellence to sharing the latest developments on campus, every piece of content should be tailored to resonate with the diverse interests of the alumni audience.
Spotlight Alumni Success Stories
People love reading about themselves and people like them. Having the same alma mater already gives people a sense of community, and hearing stories about what other alumni are up to can strengthen that bond, helping you build meaningful relationships and strengthen emotional ties when you recognize and celebrate alumni achievements.
A dedicated alumni page is the perfect place to share stories about alumni excellence and highlight the diverse fields occupied by graduates of the same school. LinkedIn works especially well for sharing detailed career success stories. YouTube is a strong channel for in-depth alumni profiles and campus-experience storytelling.
For example, George State University features stories about what their alumni are up to:
And Columbia's Alumni Association also shares stories about alumni in the news:
Get Alumni Involved With Interactive Content
Engaging alumni on social media works best with a tailored approach that blends storytelling and networking, and on Facebook that often starts with conversation. But sometimes just throwing an idea or a question out there isn't enough. You might get a few “likes,” but to engage alumni on social media, encourage comments and discussion so they actively participate instead of just seeing updates.
Fortunately, Facebook has a few features you can use to pull your alumni audience more actively into your content. Tracking engagement metrics can also provide data-driven insights that help tailor content and refine social media strategies over time.
Polls
You can use Facebook's polling feature to ask a question and get people to vote on answers. Neumann University Alumni Association created a poll on their Facebook page and asked alumni to vote on the design of their Homecoming 2017 T-shirt:
The beauty of polls is that they also create a curiosity loop. People want to check back in for the results and see how their answers are stacked up against the rest of the community.
Tags
Facebook's tagging feature is a great way to expand a post's reach. When you tag individual alumni members, not only do they get a notification, but so does everyone in their network.
You can also invite alumni to tag themselves and their friends and share memories from their graduating class. The University of Wollongong in Australia posted pictures from a recent graduation ceremony, and invited alumni to tag themselves and their classmates. Tagging posts can also be tailored to segments by graduation year or shared interests.
Engaging Alumni Through User-Generated Content
One of the most effective ways to engage alumni on Facebook is by encouraging user-generated content. Alumni-generated content adds authentic, relevant content to the page, allowing graduates to share their unique experiences and perspectives in ways that can deepen alumni engagement. Whether it's a heartfelt testimonial, photos from their college days, or updates on their professional achievements, featuring this content can enhance the authenticity of alumni engagement on social media and create a sense of ownership within the alumni community.
To boost user-generated content, the alumni relations team can initiate themed campaigns or challenges, prompting alumni to share their stories and memories through nostalgia-driven ideas such as throwbacks or memory-sharing themes. This not only enriches the content on the alumni Facebook page but also strengthens the bonds between alumni and their alma mater. Alumni engagement becomes a reciprocal process, with the institution providing a platform for sharing, and alumni contributing their content.
The University of Technology Sydney used the cover photo on their alumni page to promote a contest for the best selfie photo taken at a recent graduation ceremony. Alumni were asked to share their selfies and vote for their favorite. The graduate whose selfie got the most “likes” won a $200 voucher.
Strategic Posting: The Key to Sustained Engagement
Engaging alumni on Facebook requires a thoughtful approach to posting content. From photos of campus events to updates on faculty achievements, the content should support digital engagement by staying diverse, relevant, and timely. A consistent posting schedule keeps the alumni community informed and excited about what's happening at their alma mater over time.
Content should also be tailored to different social media platforms, with Instagram especially effective for short-form emotional storytelling.
For example, the alumni relations team can regularly post nostalgic photos and campus updates around sporting events, encouraging alumni to reminisce about their college days and share their own experiences. This not only sparks nostalgia but also taps into the collective passion for their alma mater, fostering a strong sense of community.
Utilizing the cover photo as prime real estate for highlighting key events, achievements, or milestones adds a visual element to the page. A well-designed cover photo not only enhances the page's aesthetic appeal but also serves as a powerful storytelling tool.
Harnessing the Power of Hashtags
In the vast world of social media, hashtags play a crucial role in content discoverability and engagement. Relevant hashtags make it easier for alumni to find and participate in discussions related to their alma mater. The alumni relations team should create and promote specific hashtags that resonate with the alumni community and encourage widespread use.
For instance, a hashtag like #AlumniExcellence can be used to showcase the professional achievements of alumni, creating a thread of success stories that inspires current students and engages the broader alumni community. By consistently incorporating relevant hashtags, the visibility of the alumni Facebook page is enhanced, making it more accessible to a wider audience.
Promote Alumni Events and Campaigns With Videos
According to research from Buzzsumo, Facebook posts that include videos are more likely than any other type of content to be shared. We've all seen our share of viral cat videos, but advancement teams can use video to great effect when promoting alumni events and campaigns.
Facebook Live, in particular, is an important tool. Because Facebook's algorithm favors native videos, Facebook Live video posts are more likely to show up in your followers' newsfeeds. You can use live video not only for campaign updates, but also for alumni interactions and virtual events that keep far-flung graduates engaged.
You can use Facebook Live to provide updates during specific campaign drives, like #GivingTuesday. Live video helps amp up the excitement for activities like donor challenges.
You can also broadcast alumni events live — like the following London Business School Alumni event — so that members who can't attend don't have to miss out completely.
Consider using Facebook videos to amplify your larger alumni campaigns, too. Here's how Oxford University promoted their Three Little Words campaign to their alumni community. Used well, this kind of social video can support broader fundraising efforts, and peer-to-peer fundraising can build crowdfunding momentum through social sharing.
Videos showing the impact of specific fundraising campaigns — like this one, also from Oxford University — can have a much more visceral impact than any annual report.
Using Facebook's Events functionality is an excellent way to amplify your alumni or fundraising events. Your members can see upcoming events at a glance, but more importantly, their response amplifies your event's reach. When a member RSVPs (or expresses interest), their network — which may include former classmates — sees it too.
Increase Offline Engagement With Call-to-Action Buttons
Using Facebook's call-to-action feature is another way for you to take your alumni engagement further, even off the Facebook page.
The call-to-action feature allows page owners to embed an interactive button on their page that links to any destination (on or off Facebook) they choose.
For example, you can use the Sign-up button on your Facebook page to collect contact information by prompting alumni to create or update profiles with home addresses and other details that help you reach alumni. McGill University uses this button on their Alumni home page to link to a page on their website where alumni can create or update their alumni profile. Updated profiles also support alumni engagement data collection, and tracking alumni attendance at events reveals engagement trends over time.
London Business School uses the Learn More button to take users to a dedicated alumni page on their school's website, drawing them deeper into their alumni community.
And you can be even more direct with your call-to-action buttons, like the Cornell Alumni Association. They use a Donate button prominently displayed on their Facebook page to link directly to a secure donation site:
Cross-Promotion and Collaboration: Extending Reach and Impact
Collaboration is a powerful tool for expanding the reach and impact of an alumni Facebook page. Advancement teams, responsible for fostering alumni relationships, can collaborate with other departments or groups within the institution to cross-promote events or initiatives. For example, partnering with the advancement office to promote fundraising campaigns through the alumni page not only raises awareness but also supports fundraising success.
Moreover, cross-promotion can extend beyond the confines of the institution itself. Engaging with other alumni's Facebook pages, especially those of schools with similar values or histories, creates a network of interconnected communities. This not only diversifies the content available to alumni but also exposes them to a broader spectrum of experiences within the larger academic world.
Encouraging Alumni to Stay Connected: The Role of Events
Organizing and promoting events through the alumni Facebook page provides a huge opportunity for engagement. Whether it's a virtual reunion, a networking event, or an alumni lecture series, events offer a platform for alumni to reconnect with each other and with the alma mater. The alumni relations team can leverage Facebook's event feature to create, promote, and manage these gatherings efficiently, and networking events can also carry that momentum onto LinkedIn for professional development and networking after the event ends.
Sharing event details, photos, and follow-up content on the alumni Facebook page ensures that even those who couldn't attend physically remain connected and engaged. The sense of community is strengthened as alumni come together, whether in person or virtually, to celebrate shared experiences and milestones. Tracking participation over time also helps teams see which formats resonate most with former students.
Incorporating Multimedia for Maximum Impact
Incorporating multimedia elements such as photos and videos is crucial for capturing the attention of the alumni audience. Posting engaging videos, such as interviews with prominent alumni or highlights from campus events, adds a dynamic dimension to the content.
The alumni relations team can also encourage alumni to share their videos, providing a platform for diverse voices and perspectives. These multimedia elements not only break the monotony of text-based posts but also cater to different preferences within the alumni community.
The Importance of Comments and Connections
Alumni engagement on Facebook is not a one-way street. Encouraging alumni to comment on posts, share their thoughts, and connect helps build support through meaningful dialogue and creates a vibrant, interactive community. The alumni relations team should actively respond to comments, providing alumni with a sense of openness and dialogue. On most platforms, free real-time analytics on comments, views, shares, and likes show which discussions resonate.
Creating discussion threads around relevant topics, whether related to current events or nostalgic memories, stimulates engagement. By actively participating in these discussions, alumni feel valued and heard, strengthening their connection with the institution. Just be careful not to post so often that you overwhelm alumni.
The Power of Alumni Networks: Extending Engagement Beyond Facebook
While Facebook is a powerful way to engage alumni, it's important to use a broader mix of social media platforms. The alumni relations team can use the alumni Facebook page to guide graduates to the institution's wider online presence, such as LinkedIn, and dedicated alumni groups on channels that fit networking, mentoring, or fundraising.
Encouraging alumni to join LinkedIn-based alumni groups supports professional exchange, expands their connections, and still provides additional avenues for engagement. By strategically linking to the institution's website and other relevant platforms, the alumni Facebook page becomes a gateway to a comprehensive alumni network.
Nurturing Lasting Connections
Engaging alumni on Facebook is not just a digital endeavor; it's a dynamic process of nurturing lasting connections that can support stronger alumni relationships over time. The alumni Facebook page serves as a bridge between past and present, providing a space for shared memories, achievements, and aspirations. By implementing these practices and continually evolving with the changing landscape of social media, educational institutions can create a thriving alumni community that stands as a testament to the enduring bond between alumni and their alma mater.