Build lifelong relationships

Homecoming remains one of the best opportunities for schools and universities to bring their communities together, but getting alumni to participate takes more than just putting together a game or a reunion event on the calendar. Repeating too many of the same traditions year after year can make homecoming feel predictable, especially for alumni who have attended before.

Institutions need to think beyond the usual game-day activities and create experiences that give alumni a genuine reason to reconnect with friends, and participate. That might mean revisiting how students and alumni interact, using campus in unexpected ways, bringing back something forgotten, or creating experiences that make homecoming feel different from any other weekend on campus.

In this article, we have gathered fresh homecoming ideas that institutions can adapt and work into your 2026 events. Rather than the usual list of reunions, tailgates, and themed parties, these ideas focus mostly on creating experiences that encourage alumni participation and engagement and give them something new to look forward to.

Homecoming ideas for 2026

If your goal is to engage more alumni in the homecoming experience, the program is a good place to start. The activities you choose shape what people can do, who they can meet, and what they take away from the weekend. You can use them to build different parts of the homecoming program that offer opportunities to fit into and appeal to different groups. With that in mind, here are some homecoming ideas worth experimenting with in 2026 and beyond:

1. Open Campus

Once students graduate, much of the campus that was part of their everyday life becomes off-limits. Homecoming is a good time to change that for a day. You can have an open day for alumni that gives them access to parts of campus they would not normally be able to visit after graduation. It could be a chance to walk through the archives, visit a research lab, see a new facility, step backstage at the theater, or take a look at the spaces where students are working today.

You can also involve the departments and students who use these spaces. They can show alumni what has changed, explain what happens there now, and share some of the work they are doing. This gives alumni a chance to see a side of the institution that they would not experience during a regular homecoming visit.

For alumni who have been away for years, the day can be a simple way to see how much the institution has changed since they graduated. By doing so, homecoming becomes a way to reintroduce alumni to the institution and create new points of connection with it.

2. Alumni vs. Varsity Athletics

Homecoming already brings alumni, students, and the wider campus community together. You can use that crowd to put a little competition back into the weekend. Bring former athletes back to compete against the current varsity team in a friendly game or a shorter exhibition before the main homecoming event.

Former teammates get to play together again, current athletes get to meet the people who once represented the same team, and everyone watching gets to see two generations of the program in one place. You can add old team photographs, jerseys, or a brief recognition of former athletes from the game to bring some of that history into the day. To deepen the connection, include a panel discussion or Q&A session where alumni and current players can share stories, pass on advice, and talk about how the sport has evolved over the years. 

It can also become a recurring part of homecoming. Over time, the alumni game could grow into something former athletes plan their returns around while giving current teams another way to connect with the people who came before them.

3. Then & Now: a guided nostalgia tour

Homecoming already brings back memories, so you can build on that with a “then and now” tour of campus. Put an old photograph of the campus next to what the same spot looks like today. Take them through a residence hall, classroom, dining area, student center, or favorite campus hangout and let alumni share what they remember about each place. These old photographs could also serve as excellent keepsakes/memorabilia for the nostalgia tour.

Current students can join the tour and add their side of the story. They can explain how the space is used today, what student life looks like now, and what has changed since the alumni were there, and alumni could chime in with how different the same space used to be. You could also collect a few alumni stories before homecoming and build them into the tour.

For alumni who cannot make it back, you can take the “then and now” experience online with old photographs, current images, short videos, and memories from their time on campus. It can also give them a glimpse of what they are missing at homecoming and encourage them to make the trip next year.

4. Let the class take over homecoming

Instead of giving homecoming a broad ’80s, ’90s, or 2000s theme, you can build the day around a specific graduating class and bring their version of homecoming back to campus.

Say it is the Class of 2005. Bring back the music, traditions, clubs, games, campus activities, and other details that defined homecoming for that class. You can even invite former student leaders to step back into their old roles for the day. The former RA can run a residence hall activity, the student body president can lead the welcome, and former club or organization leaders can bring their groups together again.

The class gets to help recreate the homecoming they remember, while current students get to see what campus life looked like for an earlier generation. It is a much more personal way to use nostalgia than simply putting a decade on the invitation.

5. The Homecoming house party

Bring the feel of a college house party into homecoming weekend. Pick a familiar campus space or a beloved dorm and turn it into a relaxed evening with music, food, games, and plenty of room to hang out.

You can have students and alumni add songs to the playlist, bring back a few favorite campus snacks, and set up games that people remember from their college days alongside newer ones that students enjoy today. It does not need a stage, speeches, or a packed schedule. The idea is to give people a place to relax, talk, laugh, and stay for a while.

It also gives homecoming a more informal side. Alumni can spend time with old friends, meet current students, and enjoy being back on campus without having to sit through another formal program. If people enjoy it, it can easily become one of those homecoming events everyone looks forward to. It also works really well as the event to wrap up the Homecoming weekend.

6. Homecoming game day

You can turn a part of homecoming into a friendly competition that students, alumni, faculty, and families can join. A cook-off, campus trivia, karaoke contest, three-legged race, mini talent show, or even a ridiculous relay can work, depending on what fits your campus.

The point is to keep the competitions light and easy to join. You can have people sign up as individuals or teams, mix students and alumni together, and keep small prizes for the winners. For trivia, questions can cover campus history, old traditions, sports, music, and things only long-time students would know.

It gives people something to do together instead of simply attending another event. Alumni who come back for the weekend can end up competing with current students, meeting people outside their own graduating class, and making some new memories along the way.

7. Tailgate with a twist

Tailgates are an oldie but a goodie, but with a little bit of thought, they can take on a more exciting shape.. You can keep the food, music, games, and pre-game buzz, but give each tailgate its own personality.

Take a step ahead and turn the usual tailgate into a friendly campus-wide competition. Let different schools, departments, student groups, or alumni chapters host their own setup and compete for the best food spread, best setup, best playlist, or most creative theme. You can have students and alumni vote throughout the day, with the scores displayed on a leaderboard for some real-time excitement. Announce the winners just before the game to end on a high note

You could also add a few unexpected stops around the tailgate area: a pop-up dessert bar featuring old campus favorites, a local food truck lineup, a small stage for student performers, or a “name that song” challenge that moves from the hits of past decades to today's music. The tailgate remains familiar, but there are enough new elements around it to make people want to walk around, take part, and stay longer.

8. Homecoming court reimagined

Homecoming court is one of those traditions that many institutions have kept for years, but it does not have to be limited to current students. You can open nominations to alumni and create a court that represents the institution's different generations.

Bring the finalists into the homecoming program and let the campus vote. You could have a recent graduate, a longtime alum, a former faculty member, a current student, or even a notable couple among the nominees. Give each finalist a short introduction that tells people what they have meant to the institution.

It turns a familiar homecoming tradition into a chance to recognize people who have been part of the institution at different points in its history. It also gives alumni a reason to follow the event, nominate someone they know, and take part in the celebration even if they are not attending a reunion.

9. Made here

For your upcoming homecoming, you can celebrate  the institution’s notable achievements over the years. It could include the people who studied there, their ideas, businesses, research, art, traditions, and communities that began on campus and grew into something bigger.

You can carry the theme through the entire weekend. Put student and alumni work on display, bring back performances by former students, feature businesses founded by graduates, or ask different departments to share projects that began at the institution and have since gone elsewhere. You could also have students showcase what they are working on now and place those projects alongside examples from earlier years.

It gives alumni a chance to see the impact of their institution today and find new reasons to stay connected to it. They can discover programs, projects, and people they want to support, follow, or get involved with long after homecoming.

10. The next chapter

Homecoming can be an excellent chance to show alumni what's next. Instead of focusing only on the institution they remember, you can use the weekend to introduce them to the people, programs, and plans that will shape its future.

You can give alumni an early look at a new academic program, a campus expansion, a research project, a student venture, or a new initiative that is still taking shape. Invite the people behind these projects to share what they are working toward and what they hope to accomplish. Alumni may find areas that connect with their own experience or expertise and want to stay involved. This also lends itself beautifully to showing the impact first and then making an ask, in case fundraising is part of your Homecoming.

You can also bring current students into the conversation. Let them talk about what they are building, what they want to do after graduation, and what they hope to see from their institution in the years ahead. Alumni can respond with advice, introductions, ideas, or support based on their own experience.

This gives alumni a reason to keep paying attention after homecoming. They are not only coming back to see what they once knew; they are getting a look at what they may want to be part of next.

At the end of the day, homecoming is about bringing people back to a place they still care about. The traditions give them a reason to return, but the way you bring those traditions to life can make each year feel different. A little creativity can go a long way in making alumni want to come back, take part, and stay connected.

Carrying the engagement beyond homecoming

A homecoming can create a lot of alumni activity in a short period and open the door to regular alumni involvement. Homecoming gives you a useful snapshot of what alumni care about. The key is to identify and use the interactions and interests you learn about during homecoming to shape future outreach. When you map the follow-up to what your alumni paid attention to when they were on campus, over time, these can turn a once-a-year homecoming visit into an ongoing relationship with the institution.
A few ways to build on the momentum:

• Send relevant follow-ups- if someone attended a student mentoring session, invite them to a future mentoring opportunity. If they joined a chapter event, keep them informed about what that chapter is doing.
• Share the highlights- send photos, videos, student stories, or other content from the weekend while the event is still fresh.
• Invite them to something specific- use what you learned from homecoming to recommend the next event, volunteer opportunity, or program that may interest them.
• Stay in touch with new connections- if alumni met classmates, students, faculty, or other alumni during the weekend, give them ways to continue those conversations.

How can Almabase help

A successful homecoming represents a means to a beginning. It gives you a chance to learn more about what brings alumni back and what they want from their relationship with the institution.

But when registration details, attendance records, event participation, and follow-up information are spread across different spreadsheets or must be gathered manually, it can be difficult to get a clear picture of alumni engagement. Almabase brings this information together so your team can manage the homecoming program and use what you learn from it to plan future engagement. Your team can use Almabase to build the program, promote it to the right alumni, manage registrations and attendance, and keep that activity connected to each alum’s engagement history.

• Build and manage your event in one place- create the homecoming event, add individual activities, set registration options, and manage attendee information.
• Target your outreach- use alumni segments to promote different parts of the program to the audiences they are most relevant to.
• Keep track of engagement- registration and attendance data give your team a record of how individual alumni participated, not just how many people came.
• Connect event activity with alumni profiles- participation becomes part of an alum’s engagement history, giving your team more context for future outreach.
• Use that data across your engagement strategy- homecoming activity can help inform future event invitations, volunteer opportunities, mentoring programs, chapter engagement, and other outreach.

Finishing up

Homecoming is fertile ground for trying something new and learning what brings your community together. A change to the program this year could become a tradition worth keeping or finding out what alumni respond to most. Either way, each homecoming gives you another chance to make the experience more relevant to the people you want to stay connected with. We hope our ideas have inspired you to use the weekend to try something new and find ways to keep them involved throughout the year.

Want to see how Almabase can help you manage homecoming and turn event participation into ongoing alumni engagement?

Book a personalized demo today and see what you can do with Almabase.

Blackbaud recently announced that support for Raiser’s Edge NXT’s database view and related functionality will end on September 15, 2027, affecting several Blackbaud products. These include Blackbaud Online Express and Blackbaud NetCommunity (BBNC). For advancement teams that have spent years building forms, pages, workflows, and other processes around the platform, this means choosing and migrating to a new platform. The prospect can feel like a lot to take on, especially if it wasn't something you'd anticipated.

If you're looking for an alternative, Almabase can help you replace the functionality you currently rely on across these products. We've already covered why teams might be thinking of a move off BBNC and how the main alternatives compare. In this article, we’ll be focusing on what happens once you've made that decision: what the migration process looks like, what your team can expect along the way, and how Almabase approaches the move.

In case you’re evaluating how Almabase stacks up against BBNC, check out our comparison blog here.

There’s also another question that comes up around a platform migration: How much is this going to cost?
This question extends beyond the immediate, visible technical costs. In fact, the technical side of the move might just be the simplest to figure out. It’s the broader, more abstract elements like shifting scopes, changing requirements, or even figuring out the right set of requirements in the first place that could end up costing the most amount of money and time, if not approached thoughtfully.

That's why we want to walk you through the Assisted Fast Pass Migration process upfront: what happens at each stage, what your team is responsible for, what our migration team handles, and where costs may come into the picture. We hope to give you a clear idea of what the move to Almabase will look like before you get started, so there are fewer surprises along the way.

Why transparency matters during a migration

A migration project always begins with an agreed-upon plan. But it’s also very likely that, a few weeks in, you discover a form that needs some additional customization or a request that seemed straightforward seems to fall outside the original scope, on second thought. These are perfectly reasonable hiccups during the migration, but if work is already underway, it could seem harder to understand what you're paying for, and even harder to plan around the rest of the project.

Clear expectations are at the heart of our migration approach, starting with total transparency around what extra requirements cost. With Almabase’s Assisted Fast Pass Migration, each stage gives you a chance to understand what's being proposed, what falls within the standard migration, and where something would require additional work.

Basically, you shouldn't find out about an extra requirement after the work has already been done. Your approval and sign-off comes first. The five steps in the migration process are built around this intention. Let’s get into them.

1. Kickoff: Getting the project off on the right foot

The migration process starts with a kickoff between your team, a dedicated CSM, and an implementation specialist. This is where we get the groundwork in place. This is usually access to your current site, your branding assets, and the dates your team needs to work around.

Another important step here is understanding your calendar and priorities. Your Giving Day, reunion, fiscal year-end, or another major event may determine what needs to happen first and we would be building the migration calendar around it. So, the migration sequence might look a little different for each institution, as each gets to choose which product goes first.

The kickoff is also a chance to flag anything unusual about your current NetCommunity setup.

After years on a platform, it's normal for your setup to have accumulated a few workarounds, custom configurations, or integrations that made sense when they were created. We don't need to solve all of those questions in the first meeting, but we do need to know about them.

That way, we can account for them during the next stage: the inventory. 🤗

Your team mainly needs to provide:

• Key dates and deadlines
• Relevant branding assets
• Access to your existing NetCommunity site
• Any known custom configurations, integrations, or unusual workflows

From there, you can let us take on the heavy lifting.

Your dedicated CSM and implementation specialist work with you throughout the migration, while your team focuses on the decisions and approvals. A migration shouldn't require your advancement team to take on managing a project full time on top of everything else they’re already handling.

Your data doesn't have to wait for the build

Your data migration is handled alongside the rest of the process. Almabase's bi-directional TrueSync integration connects with Raiser's Edge NXT and supports two-way syncing for configured entities and fields, including constituent, event, and gift data.

Admins can also decide which fields update automatically and which should be reviewed before they're pushed or pulled between systems.

That means your team doesn't have to wait until every page and workflow decision has been finalized before thinking about what happens to your data. The data side of the transition can move forward alongside the rest of the migration, with real time decisions being made.

2. Discovery and inventory: weeks one and two

Once kickoff is complete, your implementation specialist carefully starts building a complete inventory of what's currently running on NetCommunity: pages, forms, events, programs, memberships, and other key components of your site.

This process is useful in its own right, especially when taken on by someone external. After years on a platform, it's easy for a site to accumulate things that no one thinks about anymore, simply because they’re too involved in the process. The inventory gives you one place to see what's actually there, anything you might’ve forgotten about, and to make decisions about what needs to move vs what can be left behind.

Probably the most effective part of this is that it's a shared inventory that you can review alongside your specialist. If something looks outdated, doesn't need to move, or needs a closer look, you can flag it before it moves to the new product.

The inventory can surface things like:

• Duplicate or unused event pages
• Old forms or pages that are still live
• Site elements that don't need to be carried into Almabase
• Custom fields and configurations that don’t make sense on the new platform

This idea is to document your NetCommunity site so well that both teams end up on the same picture of what exists and what needs to happen next. The Almabase team handles the actual inventory work, and all you need to do is review the inventory and flag anything that should be changed, removed, or investigated.

3. Sign-off: deciding what moves forward

At this stage, the migration project starts taking on a more defined shape as you decide what you need to bring into Almabase. You and your implementation specialist review the inventory, decide what carries forward, and establish what the finished version should look like.

For each item being migrated, the team, along with you, defines the acceptance criteria before the building begins. If your existing alumni directory has eight fields and three filters, for example, those requirements can be documented as part of the scope. By the end of this discussion, everyone has arrived at the same definition of what needs to be delivered.

This is also where you’ll be able to clearly separate standard migration work from anything that requires additional effort.

If something falls outside the standard scope, you'll know before the work begins:

• What the additional work involves
• What's included and what's excluded
• The estimated effort
• The associated cost

You won’t have to decipher this from the invoice later on, because the work only moves forward once you’ve signed off on the scope.

This is exactly why your input here matters most. The Almabase team handles the building, but it’s you and your team deciding what is important enough to carry forward and what “done” needs to look like, within the standard process or with additional effort layered on.

4. Build and launch: 30 days for each product

Our team takes up building only once you’ve greenlit the scope. Each product gets its own dedicated 30-day track, with the order of products taken up built around your events and fiscal calendar.

This is to accommodate your calendar: giving days, reunions, Homecoming, we’ll build that product first so you’re ready in time for go-live day. If your immediate priority is your broader alumni site, we might begin with building that instead. The point is, even at this pace, you’re not forced to adopt a one-size-fits-all solution. Your implementation team works with you to determine what needs to come first.

The build itself happens on your Almabase pages, so you can review as it gets built while also familiarizing yourself with the new platform.

The timeline typically looks like this:

• 30-day build track: Each product moves through its own focused build.
• Weekly working session: Your team meets with the implementation team to review progress, provide input, and make decisions.
• Training as you go: Your team gets hands-on experience with the platform during the build, rather than waiting until everything is finished to start learning it.
• First launch: The fastest migrations can have their first product live around 45 days from kickoff, depending on the scope and sequencing of your project.

Having the scope agreed upon shows up in smoothness at this point: you can expect fewer decisions to make from scratch during this stage. Your team knows what's being built, your implementation specialist knows what they're working toward, and everything can move as planned, on track.

5. Cutover: moving from NetCommunity to Almabase

As you get closer to launch, the focus shifts from building to making the transition itself as smooth as possible.

The most important part of that is making sure people can still find the things they've been using. Your team receives a redirect map that pairs each carried-forward NetCommunity URL with its new Almabase destination. You'll also want to review where those old links appear outside NetCommunity: your main institutional website, email templates, QR codes, printed materials, and any other places where an old URL may still be in circulation.

The redirect map gives you a clear list of what needs to change and no one has to discover old links one by one after launch.

Before each product goes live, your team gets to review it thoroughly and explicitly approve the launch.

The aim, with these five steps, is to get your Almabase programs ready before your NetCommunity access ends, so the transition remains smooth and doesn't become a last-minute scramble.

What happens when something doesn't fit the standard scope?

Not everything that comes up during a migration falls neatly into the original plan. But there's also an important conversation to be had: what counts as additional scope and what is a limitation in the platform itself?

If something requires work beyond the standard migration scope, that's identified and quoted before the work begins. You can then decide whether you want to take it on.

But if there’s a requirement you have that Almabase cannot support yet, we’ll be fully transparent with you. Essentially, you haven’t asked for too much, we’re just not there yet. Depending on what you need, the team can look at a workaround or determine how the functionality could be addressed after launch.

This conversation is also one of the reasons the earlier stages matter. The shared inventory, defined acceptance criteria, and upfront scoping give everyone a common reference point throughout the project.

That's really the principle behind the entire migration process. You're not expected to know every detail of what needs to happen before the project starts. The process itself is designed to show you those details early, give your team a chance to make the calls that matter, and keep the build moving while minimizing unexpected, last-minute surprises.

Ready to make the move?

A BBNC migration may not have been on your roadmap, but that also doesn't mean it has to become a project that takes over your team's calendar.

With a clear process, an agreed scope, and the right support, you can move the parts of NetCommunity that matter to your team and work for your institution without having to figure everything out as you go. The Almabase team handles the build and migration work, while your team stays in complete control of the decisions, priorities, and final approvals.

And because the scope and any additional costs are addressed before the work happens, you can go into the migration knowing what to expect.

If you're planning your move away from BBNC, let's talk about what it could look like for your institution.

Talk to the Almabase team about your BBNC migration →

A paddle raise (also called a fund-a-need) is a great and simple fundraising format for nonprofits. It is easy to host, fun, and similar enough to auctions that if you have experience in one, you can easily incorporate the other.

All this is to say that, with proper planning, it is one of the most effective ways to get donations for your nonprofit or a particular project.

In this blog, we’ll look at what makes a typical paddle raise work, its benefits, and the essential steps to start hosting one on your own.

What is a Paddle Raise?

A paddle raise, also often called fund-a-need, is a live, direct appeal during a fundraising event such as a gala where donors pledge a financial contribution to a nonprofit, charity, or a particular cause. This is usually done by raising paddles containing varying numbers or ‘levels’, or through bidding devices and software.

Unlike charity auctions though, there aren’t any items or art involved, and attendees will not be bidding on a piece. An ask is made, and donors willing to contribute that amount raise their paddles. Due to the simpler setup and direct contributions, paddle raises have high ROI and are generally considered to be very effective.

How does a Paddle Raise work?

Usually taking place at the peak of the fundraiser, a paddle raise takes around 10-20 minutes (it happens quite quickly). This is typically how it unfolds:

• A designated speaker or emcee gets the event rolling by showing a video or narrating a quick story that introduces and emphasizes the impact of your mission.
• The emcee announces the fundraising target for the night, or if there are multiple causes, the goals for each.
• Tiers of contributions are planned beforehand ($10k, $7.5k and so on), and the emcee starts with the highest tier and works their way down to the lower tiers. When they ask for contributions, attendees express their willingness by raising numbered paddles.
• Volunteers and staff keep track of all the pledges and note it down.
• After going through all the tiers, the pledges are processed, and the total amount raised is announced. Attendees are thanked for their contributions and the event draws to a close.

Now that we’ve gone through what a paddle raise is and how it usually plays out, let’s get to how you can run one of your own.

How to Run a Successful Paddle Raise (Step-by-Step)

While paddle raises are simple enough in concept, they do require proper planning and coordination to capture pledges accurately and create good energy overall.

Here’s how you do it:

1. Pick the right cause/project for your targets and set your targets

Paddle raises are a lot more effective if you can tie them to a specific initiative that makes donors feel like they’re making a meaningful impact. It could be an annual raise for cancer, providing education to underprivileged children, etc.

Set a tangible goal and be clear on where the money goes. Sharing this with your donors builds trust. The goal shouldn’t be so high that hitting it feels impossible. All in all, you want to set a realistic but fairly ambitious figure.

2. Decide the contribution levels or tiers

You should aim for 5-10 levels and make sure it’s inclusive of everyone’s giving capabilities. You can discuss with your pre-committed donors (more on that later) to decide amounts for the higher giving tiers (or conversely for lower giving tiers depending on the situation).

This is where having a regularly updated donor database helps greatly, as you can base your levels off of giving history and data.
A basic example would be to have $15k as the highest tier, followed by $10k, $5k, $2k and so on all the way to $50. Remember that you have to be inclusive, so don’t skimp out on small or micro-level contributions.

3. Pick your emcee or host

The emcee is critical in setting the stage and the energy before the raise begins. An enthusiastic crowd can make a massive difference in contributions. If possible, hire a professional emcee who has been on the mic for other charity events before. You know your donors best; use that knowledge to pick out a host that can connect with them and elevate the room accordingly..

Alternatively, if your organization has deep ties with the attendees, you could consider a leadership figure (directors, chair, etc.) for familiarity. Of course, they need to be a good orator as well.

4. Decide the schedule and script

Since a paddle raise is relatively short, decide when the paddle raise should take place during your fundraising event or gala. You should aim to host the raise during the peak of the fundraiser, when everyone is energetic and receptive to instructions from you or your host.

Come up with a script, including your opening statement, tier announcements, anecdotes, and expressing gratitude at the end. Have alternative scripts ready for different scenarios since you can’t always predict if you’ll hit your target, overshoot it, or come close.

5. Pick the right tools for your event

You can choose to host your paddle raise with either physical paddles or through bidding software, though incorporating the former is heavily recommended.

You’ll need to assign numbers to each attendee and give them a paddle with the corresponding number. When a certain giving tier is called out, they can choose to pledge that amount by raising the paddle while volunteers keep track of it.

If you’re opting for a digital process, look for mobile-friendly bidding platforms. There are some other options as well like scanning QR codes to pledge. However, keep  your attendees’ preferences in mind and try to find a balance between their experience and your team’s feature set. This is important, since  the bidding and giving data will need to be synced to your CRM.

6. Running the paddle raise itself

When opening your event, it helps to set the energy high. Start with the mission statement and targets you set earlier. Here’s where the emcee does the heavy lifting. Videos and stories with emotional angles work really well at establishing a connection with your donors and creating empathy for your cause. If you have first time donors in the mix, a quick explanation of how the paddle raise works would also be helpful.

Make sure your volunteers are in place to clearly record everything. The emcee announces the levels in succession, starting with the highest one and working their way down.
Seeing major contributions right at the start might encourage the others to go beyond what they had originally planned. Make sure that the emcee acknowledges and celebrates pledges briefly for each tier before moving on to the next one.

How your staff records the pledges is up to you. You can use an app, spreadsheets, or simply pen and paper. Choose whichever would be the most convenient and accurate for your team.

7. Gratitude and stewardship

After going through all the levels, tally the total amount raised and announce it as the event draws to a close. Celebrate the impact everyone has created on the day. Tying the money raised to a tangible outcome (for example, 50 scholarships granted for struggling children, or feeding 100 people) creates even more positivity and really drives home a sense of accomplishment and giving.

After your fundraising event, follow up with your attendees to collect the pledged amounts, preferably within a day. Include key details like their paddle number, amount they pledged, and multiple payment options. Thank all the participants, regardless of whether they donated or not.

A Few Tips to Enhance Your Paddle Raise

Here are a few extra things to ensure you get the most out of your paddle raise(s):

• Pre-committing a handful of donors: Reach out to some of your long time supporters, and ask for an early commitment to a particular level, especially the higher ones. Hesitation in the opening rounds of the raise can affect the overall contributions negatively. When attendees see paddles being raised immediately even at higher tiers, it gives them confidence to donate more.
• Host it at the right time: If your paddle raise is part of a larger fundraising event (as is most common), avoid doing it right after a meal break when attendees are a bit languid, or at the very end of the event when a lot of them have left already.
• Celebrate milestones during the raise: Every time you get significantly closer to hitting the day’s target, celebrate it. For example, if your goal is to raise $30000, then announce and celebrate when the contributions reach $5000, $15000, maybe hit a gong at $25000, and so on. Also, make sure to recognize all contributions, big or small, with equal excitement.

Almabase - A Powerful Tool for Hosting Your Paddle Raise

At its core, a paddle raise is fairly simple. But behind that simplicity is a lot of manual tracking like volunteers noting down pledges, someone tallying totals, and follow-up calls or emails to actually collect what was pledged. This is usually where a platform like Almabase can take some of that load off your team.

Instead of clipboards and spreadsheets, Almabase gives you a real-time dashboard of the event as it unfolds, so pledges don't need to be re-entered after the fact. Since collecting payment is often the trickiest part, you can also capture a guest's card at registration and charge pledges automatically once the raise wraps, rather than chasing donors down individually.

A couple of other things worth mentioning: contributions can be routed straight to the fund or project they were raised for, and everything syncs directly with your CRM so your donor records stay accurate without extra data entry.

None of this replaces a great emcee or an emotionally engaged room, but it does mean less time spent staring at numbers, and more time celebrating what you raised. 
Request a personalized demo to see how this would look for you!

Modern donors expect deeply relevant, personalized communications, especially when it’s alumni hearing from their alma mater. Generic messages won’t cut it, but it can also be difficult to make your appeals stand out when you’re making the same ask every year. To develop annual fund appeal letters that drive revenue and deepen relationships, you need a strategic approach.

Annual fund appeals succeed when they have refined messaging, emotional resonance, and enough variation to win donors’ support outside of flashier, major campaigns. In this post, we’ll explore a few key ways to elevate your university’s next ask.

1. Center Authentic Student Storytelling

Donors give to people, not institutions, making personal narratives one of the most effective fundraising and marketing strategies you can use. By shifting the focus from university-wide achievements to the tangible success of individual students, you foster a direct emotional connection with your audience and demonstrate the real, lasting impact of their donations.

Instead of relying on generic asks for annual fund appeal letters, incorporate the stories of individual students and the scholarships and programs that empower them to thrive. For instance, you might share how a first-generation nursing student used a grant to complete their clinical rotations, or include a quote from a scholarship recipient about how attending your university made their dreams a reality.

No matter how you incorporate storytelling into your appeals, Meyer Partners recommends using the three R's of storytelling to make them as impactful and ethical as possible:

• Resonance: Every story should include real, humanizing details that resonate with donors. Let students tell their stories in their own words, and pair testimonials with photos whenever possible.
• Relevance: Make sure the donor can clearly understand their role in the story. Use donor-centric language that appeals directly to supporters’ values, inspiring them to become the changemakers who support the next generation of students.
• Respect: Respect both your readers and your storytellers by maintaining authenticity. Be direct and honest about what donations can achieve, and always focus on positive emotions like empowerment rather than guilt or scare tactics.

Incorporate these stories into multiple elements of your annual fund campaign to ensure maximum visibility and consistency. For example, you might include quotes from a student in your direct mail appeals, then post a selfie video of the same student telling their story on social media.

2. Highlight Impactful Giving Opportunities

To maximize revenue and increase average gift sizes, ask for more than standard, one-time cash gifts in your annual appeal letters. Offer additional giving options that provide greater flexibility and can increase donors’ long-term impact. These opportunities are often more compelling, especially for young alumni looking for accessible options and for high-capacity donors looking to make the most of their donations.

Specifically, use your annual appeals to highlight opportunities like:

Matching Gifts

The easiest way to make supporters’ donations go further is to double them. Typically, donors can double the impact of their gifts at no extra cost in one of two ways:

1. Your university offers a matching donation challenge. Organizations often partner with a major donor who commits to matching every dollar donated within a set timeframe, up to a certain amount. These challenges motivate individual donors to give urgently so they don’t miss out on the match.
2. Donors request corporate matching gifts from their employers. At any time, donors who work for participating companies can independently request matching donations from their workplaces. If the request meets the employer’s guidelines (e.g., a donation between $10 and $100 to a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit), they’ll match their employee’s gift.

Either way, donation matching is a powerful motivator, especially during year-end giving season. Feature matching gifts prominently in your annual fund appeals, explaining how to participate and why these donations are so impactful.

Recurring Giving

Imagine you’re a recent graduate just starting your career and trying to pay off student loans. You wouldn’t want to donate $1,000 to the university you left last year, but it might be feasible to give $20 a month. In this case, you’re much more likely to respond to an appeal that highlights recurring giving.

Recurring gifts offer a more manageable opportunity to support your university while deepening donor relationships. In your annual fund appeal letters, include the option to give monthly and provide several accessible donation tiers.

Legacy Giving

Plant the seed for long-term support by introducing planned giving and bequest options in your annual appeals, too. These avenues empower alumni to leave a lasting mark on your institution without requiring an immediate, large-scale donation.

Even if most donors aren’t ready to commit to a legacy gift right now, just including information about planned giving in your appeal can get them thinking about it. Include links in emails and QR codes in direct mail letters so supporters can easily learn more on your university’s website or request a meeting with your major gifts officer. Note each donor who shows interest in the program so you can cultivate the relationship over time.

3. Leverage Donor Data for Highly Personalized Appeals

The best fundraising strategies reflect the unique relationship each supporter has with your university. Highly personalized appeals show each donor that you value them as an individual and respect their unique contributions.

Use your donor and alumni data to tailor your asks as much as possible. Go beyond addressing recipients by their preferred names—reference their specific past involvement, giving history, and personal connections to the university. Acknowledging that an alumnus was on the debate team or that a donor consistently supports the engineering department validates their identity and gives them clear, specific reasons to give again.

Segment your donor lists in several ways to maximize relevancy, and regularly audit your donor database to ensure all contact information and engagement records are accurate before sending appeals.

If you aren’t sure how to best segment your audience, hone in on the highest-value potential donors, or match supporters with the right requests, consider professional donor analytics services. Experienced fundraising consultants who specialize in data analysis can help you optimize your strategy for this year’s annual fund appeal and well into the future.

An effective annual fund approach relies on deep personalization, authentic narratives, and a variety of flexible giving options tailored to your audience. Upgrading the underlying strategy of your communications with these tips will help you build stronger relationships with alumni and secure the financial future of your core programs.