Laurentian University Alumni Communication Policy

Laurentian University Alumni Communication Policy

Technical, editorial and privacy guidelines for
electronic communication with alumni

 

Introduction

 

Laurentian University Alumni Relations acts as a central point of communication to all Laurentian University alumni.

Notwithstanding that the University and the Faculties have the right to communicate with their own graduates all communication with Laurentian alumni will be coordinated with the Alumni Relations Office.

This process will ensure that the graduate’s privacy is respected in accordance with Federal and Provincial Privacy policies.

 

Electronic Communication

 

Electronic mail is used with increasing frequency to communicate with alumni. The ease and affordability of using electronic communications increases the danger of overburdening our alumni with frequent, seemingly disconnected messages.  If messages arrive in an alumnus’ inbox at all times and in all manners, it makes the university appear disorganized and unprofessional in its communications approach. Email messages sent to alumni reflect on Laurentian University as a whole, and as such, it is important to establish guidelines that will help us communicate in a cohesive, effective and professional manner.

 

In defining protocols for Alumni-related electronic communications, we are acting on the following principles:

 

·         Electronic communications, appropriately thought out and executed, can significantly advance the relationship between Laurentian University and its alumni

·         Poorly conceived electronic communications, and too many electronic communications, can have a significant negative impact on the reputation and image of the university and Alumni Relations

·         Alumni Relations does not wish to restrict or control electronic communications; instead we wish to establish quality controls and procedures to ensure that we communicate effectively with alumni

·         Alumni Relations is responsible for ensuring that the graduate’s rights to privacy are respected.

·         Alumni Relations will provide the service of email deployment that satisfies the requirements of these protocols.

 

 

General Guidelines

 

1.     Information from departments will be incorporated into the monthly electronic newsletter distributed by Alumni Relations on the first Tuesday of each month to all alumni for whom we have an email address.

2.     All mass email activity will be tracked in the alumni database.

 

3.     Alumni Relations staff will code all bounceback emails accordingly once an attempt to confirm the accurate email address is made.

 

4.     Emails will be sent to target audiences from the Alumni Relations Office to assist in promoting events (ie. Reunions). Such emails are to be scheduled by Alumni Relations staff to avoid unnecessary overlap with other scheduled emails.

 

5.     Emails from Laurentian University Alumni Association Affinity Partners are to be scheduled with the Director, Alumni Relations, who must review and approve all material in advance. One targeted email per affinity partner will be permitted each calendar year.

 

6.     All broadcast emails must include an “opt-out” / “unsubscribe” feature.

 

7.     Fundraising solicitation emails MUST be approved by the Director, Development or his/her designate.

 

8.     Emails cannot contain political or commercial messages (with the exception of messages from Laurentian University Alumni Association Affinity Partners).

 

9.   The types of broadcast emails, (and their priority if quantity/scheduling issues arise), will be as follows:

a.         E-newsletter

b.         Event invitations

c.         Event reminders (limited to one reminder per event)

d.         Information requests (call for nominations, updates, volunteers etc.)

e.         Affinity partner emails

f.          Surveys

 

10.  Exceptions to this policy must be approved by the Alumni Director.

 

E-newsletter guidelines

 

1.   Create a webpage in both English and French which would contain all the necessary information

 

2.   Do not include attachments as they cannot be sent through the e-newsletter

 

3.   Write a short intro (2-3 lines) that gives the reader a summary of the news to be published (this will be in the newsletter and linked to your webpage);

 

4.   Send the request during the 2nd week of the month prior to the distribution of the e-newsletter to the Editor at alumni@laurentian.ca ;

 

5.     The Editor reserves the right to refuse content if deemed inappropriate to the alumni audience.

 

6.     Questions regarding the e-newsletter are to be directed to the Editor.

 

Privacy

 

1.   Data requests for alumni personal contact information are to be sent to the Director, Alumni Relations.

 

2.     Alumni Relations will ensure that alumni who do not wish to receive communication from Laurentian University will be removed from the distribution list.

 

3.     Email address lists from the alumni database will not be given to any university employee or any volunteers to create their own address book or shadow database.

 

4.     Confidentiality Agreements will be signed by departments and alumni volunteers requesting alumni data.

 

5.   All broadcast emails must include the following standard “footer”:

 

We respect your privacy and communication preferences. To learn more, please go to www.lualumni.laurentian.ca .

 

Appendix A: General Email Etiquette

 

The following points concerning general email etiquette have been taken from popular websites on the subject, some of which include: http://www.emailreplies.com/, http://iwillfollow.com/email.htm, http://www.writerswrite.com/journal/dec99/pirillo1.htm.

They may be helpful when explaining to those unfamiliar with the use of email, how their message should be formatted, and how to send an email privately to groups.

 

1. Be concise and to the point

Do not make an e-mail longer than it needs to be. Remember that reading an e-mail is harder than reading printed communications and a long e-mail can be very discouraging to read. Some people receive hundreds of e-mail messages a day. Few people enjoy reading on their computer screens; fewer still on the tiny screens in cell phones, PDAs and other mobile devices that are becoming increasingly popular.

 

2. Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation.

This is not only important because improper spelling, grammar and punctuation give a bad impression of your company, it is also important for conveying the message properly. E-mails with no full stops or commas are difficult to read and can sometimes even change the meaning of the text. And, if your program has a spell checking option, why not use it?

 

3. Use proper structure & layout.

Since reading from a screen is more difficult than reading from paper, the structure and lay out is very important for e-mail messages. Use short paragraphs and blank lines between each paragraph. When making points, number them or mark each point as separate to keep the overview.

 

4. Do not write in CAPITALS.

IF YOU WRITE IN CAPITALS IT SEEMS AS IF YOU ARE SHOUTING. This can be highly annoying and might trigger an unwanted response in the form of a flame mail. Therefore, try not to send any email text in capitals.

 

5. Read the email through the eyes of the recipient.

A lot of people don't bother to read an email before they send it out, as can be seen from the many spelling and grammar mistakes contained in emails. Apart from this, reading your email through the eyes of the recipient will help you send a more effective message and avoid misunderstandings and inappropriate comments.

 

6. Use a meaningful subject.

Try to use a subject that is meaningful to the recipient as well as yourself. For instance, when you send an email to a company requesting information about a product, it is better to mention the actual name of the product, e.g. 'Product A information' than to just say 'product information' or the company's name in the subject.

 

7. Avoid long sentences.

Try to keep your sentences to a maximum of 15-20 words. Email is meant to be a quick medium and requires a different kind of writing than letters. Also take care not to send emails that are too long. If a person receives an email that looks like a dissertation, chances are that they will not even attempt to read it!

 

8. Personal computers are like fingerprints-no two are exactly alike.

Everyone has different hardware and software installed, resulting in different system capabilities. Even if you have a fancy e-mail program that can generate beautifully formatted messages with HTML, you should not rely on your recipients having the capability of reading such messages. A fancy HTML-formatted message might come across like gobbledygook to people with noncompatible e-mail programs. I strongly suggest using text (ASCII) as your default message format-that way, you're pretty much guaranteed compatibility with everyone else's mail reader.

9.Use the Bcc: field or do a mail merge
When sending an email mailing, do not place all the email addresses in the To: field. If you do so, you are publicizing each person’s email address to everyone else on the list without their permission. One way to get around this is to place all addresses in the Bcc: field (if you don’t put an address in the To: field, that field will likely say “Recipient List Suppressed”).

 
 
 
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