Advocacy Toolkit
Give To What You Love, Hamilton’s Spring Give Day, is April 4. This website will be your go-to place for everything you need to know to be a successful volunteer.
How can I help?
In the days leading up to April 4, you can:
- In the VIP (Volunteer Information Platform), select the classmates you'd like to contact.
- Email them through the VIP, or forward along the College's emails, to let your peers know Give To What You Love is coming up. Let them know to expect calls from Hamilton, and ask that they pick them up to speak with a current student!
- Sign up to be a Give Day advocate - you’ll receive a personalized link to share with your Hamilton network through email, social media, and text messages. Every time someone makes a gift using your link, you’ll receive credit! The advocate with the highest dollars raised will win a prize!
On the Day of, you can:
- Set an example: Make your gift early on April 4, and then share your link, encouraging your peers to do the same!
- If you haven't already, sign up to be a Give To What You Love Give Day advocate.
- Log into the VIP (Volunteer Information Platform), and select the appropriate GIVE DAY email template - there's one for reunion years and another for non-reunion years. Send this email to your assigned classmates - feel free to personalize it!
Use GiveCampus to record your plea (video message) and set up any challenges for your fellow Hamilton community members.
Follow @HamiltonCollege on Facebook and Instagram and @HamiltonCollegeAlumni on Instagram for updates throughout the day. Make sure to check GiveCampus throughout the day and see how many clicks and gifts are being made through your link!
What do I say?
Looking for inspiration about the message to send your classmates and Hamilton network, to ask for their participation in Give To What You Love? Here are sample social media, emails, and text messages to get you started!
- Give To What You Love is a day of giving that celebrates the collective effort of all the people, places, and programs that define the Hamilton experience. I love ____! I gave today, did you? Make your gift and then spread the word to your network! #HamiltonCollege @HamiltonCollege @HamiltonCollegeAlumni www.hamilton.edu/give
- Have you heard? Today is Give To What You Love, Hamilton's Spring Give Day. Will your gift support Hamilton students? #HamiltonCollege @HamiltonCollege @HamiltonCollegeAlumni www.hamilton.edu/give
- I loved hearing from a Hamilton student athlete today, calling to update me as a former player about this year’s team and season. Today is Hamilton’s Give to What You Love day of giving - it felt good to make my gift in support of current student-athletes. Will you take the call and support what you love? #HamiltonCollege @HamiltonCollege @HamiltonCollegeAlumni @HamiltonCollegeAthletics www.hamilton.edu/give
Hello [...],
I am excited to share that today, April 4, is Give To What You Love, Hamilton’s Spring Give Day.
All members of the Hamilton community can make a gift in support of the people, places, and programs that defined their Hamilton experience.
Join me in giving back to the community that invested in us- and pay it forward for today’s students. Then, spread the word with other members of your class, club, team, and extended Hamilton network. Help make this the most successful day yet to support Hamilton faculty and students.
Carissima,
[X]
Today is Give To What You Love - Hamilton’s Spring Give Day. Join me in supporting students on the Hill and everything that makes Hamilton exceptional. Then, spread the word to other members of your class, club, team, and Hamilton family. Show your support for what you love at hamilton.edu/give
“How To” Documents
Once you have logged in to the VIP (Volunteer Information Platform), click Search constituents on the left side of your screen. You will see several pages of your classmates (sorted by last name). Under the status header, if a classmate is:
- UNASSIGNED - they are available to be added to your outreach list.
- UNSELECTABLE - they are not available for your outreach list.
- ASSIGNED - Another volunteer has this classmate on their outreach list.
Click the Blue Assign to Me button to add a classmate to your outreach list.
In addition to sending an email through an assignment’s record, you can also use the Email feature. To send the same email to multiple assignments, select one of the available pre-made templates. You can edit your selected template in the email preview window.
Once your draft is ready, there are multiple tools to help you select your recipients and test the email before sending.
Select recipient(s). *Has Given* will be next to the names of donors.
You can use filters to refine your desired recipients and make your selection easier.
Outreach tracker: Check the appropriate box: thank you, or a gift conversation (which includes solicitation emails).
Final Step(s): To proofread, click send to me. If it’s ready to go, click send email.
Notifications: You will receive notifications when your assignments make a gift or pledge. You also may be notified if an individual requests not to receive solicitations, or is in conversation with a member of the Advancement staff. If you are unpaired from a classmate, please note that there is no action needed on your part.
Messages: Use messages to contact Hamilton staff partners directly from GiveCampus. A yellow notification will appear in the menu bar when you receive a new message.
Tasks: If you would like, set tasks for yourself to stay organized. Hamilton Fund staff can also set up tasks for volunteers.
Notes: Every email you send will be archived here for your reference.
Resources: Documents to help answer any questions you might receive from classmates, as they decide which area of Hamilton College to support with their gift, or which upcoming event they would like to attend. If you don’t find what you are looking for, please reach out to Sara Messier (Senior Associate Director, Reunion Giving) at smessier@hamilton.edu.
FAQs
Not at all! You can draft a personalized message, and share it with the Hamilton Fund staff. On April 4, we will make sure to send it to your assigned classmates on your behalf!
Give To What You Love provides an opportunity for Hamilton alumni, parents, and friends to join forces for a one-day campaign for Hamilton. Take part in this collective effort to show support for all those people, places, and programs that define the Hamilton experience.
The easiest way to make your gift is through our Give To What You Love web page. You can use any of these methods:
- Credit card: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, or Discover
- Mobile pay system: Apple Pay, Google Pay, Venmo
Your gift will support whoever, or whatever, you love at Hamilton. You can give to a club, sport, academic department, student center, or financial aid. Because we all love Hamilton, you can also give to the College’s area of greatest need by giving to the Hamilton Fund.
Every donor to the Give To What You Love spring day of giving! Give to What You Love is all about the collective Hamilton community supporting what, or who, they love at the College. Alumni, parents, faculty, staff, friends, and even students (our future alumni!) are encouraged to join us and participate in this community-wide event.
Absolutely. We are grateful for your earlier support this fiscal year and appreciate your additional support on April 4 to be part of Give To What You Love.
If you mail your gift or transfer stock, please send us an email at giving@hamilton.edu to let us know it is on the way. If you tell us what you love, we will make sure to count it in the day’s totals.
Yes! We encourage everyone in our global community to join us. All supporters, no matter their location, will be able to submit their gift through GiveCampus. Please be sure that the zip code that you enter matches your credit card’s billing address.
Yes. Your gift will be entirely tax-deductible. Donors will receive an email confirmation after submitting their donation, which serves as a receipt for tax purposes. As always, please consult your tax advisor for more specific tax information.
