How Brenau University Grew Giving Day Donations More Than 300 Percent

Team collaborating around a wooden table with laptops and digital devices during a meeting.

TL;DR

Alumni engagement grows when alumni hear from a real person they recognize, not another mass email. Brenau University’s small alumni engagement team has used Mongoose since 2022 to send personal, two-way texts with photos, emoji, and Smart Messages. When it promoted Giving Day by text in 2023, donations rose more than 300 percent over the year before, and one message about an alumni trip to Italy reached nearly 12,000 alumni and drew more than 1,600 responses.

300%+ more Giving Day donations
~12,000 alumni reached by one message
1,600+ responses to that message
A small team, personal texts

Download the full case study

Download

When Brenau University’s alumni engagement team texted alumni about a trip to Italy, the message reached nearly 12,000 people and drew more than 1,600 responses. Even alumni who couldn’t go wrote back with feedback and kept the conversation going.

Brenau is a historic private university in Gainesville, Georgia, that puts a premium on staying close to its alumni. Since adopting Mongoose in 2022, its alumni engagement team has used personal, two-way texting to fill events, grow Giving Day, and build lasting relationships.

Why email and social weren’t reaching alumni

Email and social media posts weren’t driving the alumni engagement Brenau needed, and many alumni missed events and giving opportunities. Emily Reid, Director of Alumni Engagement, wanted a more personal way to connect that a small team could run across both events and donor outreach.

How Brenau built personal texting into alumni engagement

Emily had used Mongoose at Yale University and brought it to Brenau. Her team sends personal, two-way messages with photos, emoji, and Smart Messages that invite alumni to reply, and segments alumni by graduation year or location so each message fits the person getting it.

“Having used Mongoose at Yale, I knew it would be a great fit at Brenau. The ability to personalize messages has helped us build stronger connections with our alumni community.”

Emily Reid, Director of Alumni Engagement, Brenau University

What changed for Brenau’s alumni team

Giving Day donations up more than 300 percent

Brenau promoted its 2023 Giving Day through Mongoose, and donations rose more than 300 percent over the year before. Emily credits personal messages that connected the team directly with donors and created a sense of urgency.

Events that get replies

The Italy trip message reached nearly 12,000 alumni and drew more than 1,600 responses. Photos help, too, because alumni can see who they’ll meet.

“When alumni see a photo of our team and know who will be at the event, it makes them more likely to attend.”

Emily Reid

Personal touchpoints

Alumni reply with life updates and questions about upcoming events, even when they can’t attend.

“It’s nice to have those touchpoints, even if they can’t attend events, they know we’re thinking of them.”

Emily Reid

Benchmarks that help

Responsive support and quarterly reviews show the team how Brenau compares with its peers.

“The quarterly reviews are so helpful. Sometimes you don’t know how you’re doing until you see how you compare to other schools your size.”

Emily Reid

What other advancement teams can take from Brenau

Let alumni see who’s texting them, with a name and a photo, and segment so the message fits. Smart Messages help a small team keep up; across Mongoose’s 2026 data, they earn three times the reply rate of standard advancement outreach. Look past opens to the engagement signals that matter, and see these FAQs and best practices for advancement teams for more.

Other advancement teams have seen strong results by text. The University of North Florida finished its Giving Day 1,134 donors over its goal with more than 30 segmented lists, and St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute lifted alumni event attendance 50 percent with personal invitations by text.

Looking ahead

Brenau plans to grow its stewardship with Mongoose, including donor thank-yous, real-time scholarship updates, event surveys, and more interactive messaging. The team is also working to collect more alumni phone numbers.

“Mongoose has saved us so much time and allowed us to connect with our alumni in a way that feels personal and meaningful. It’s been an essential tool for us, and we’re excited to see where it takes us next.”

Emily Reid