If you’ve ever wondered whether student thank-you videos actually move the needle — wonder no more.
1. Proof That Segmenting Your Send Is Worth the Extra Step
The setup: After Giving Hearts Day wrapped, UND didn’t just send a generic “thanks for giving” note. They sent two targeted outreaches — one for donors who gave on GHD itself, and a follow-up for late donors who came in after. Student-recorded thank-you videos did the heavy lifting.
The results:
- 356 donors reached
- 71.6% open rate
- 20.2% click rate
- 72.2% average view percentage
The takeaway: Donors didn’t just open the email — they watched nearly the whole video. That’s not a passive audience. That’s genuine engagement. Segmenting your sends (on-time vs. late donors) is a small lift that shows donors you’re paying attention.
2. Proof That Candid Beats Polished
The setup: After a Greek Life scholarship ceremony, the team didn’t schedule a big production shoot. They walked up to students and asked for quick, candid quotes on the spot. That’s it.
The results:
- 28 donors reached
- 71.4% open rate
- 32.1% click rate ← the highest click rate in this whole list
The takeaway: Spontaneous is sometimes better. The donors who fund Greek Life scholarships aren’t expecting a polished broadcast — they want to know their gift mattered to a real person. An in-the-moment conversation after a ceremony delivers exactly that.
3. Proof That a Good Campus Partner Changes Everything
The setup: UND’s campus partner in the Aerospace department lined up a few students ahead of time to share reflections after the ceremony. A little coordination went a long way — the resulting video felt personal without requiring a major production effort.
The results:
- 46 donors reached
- 82.6% open rate ← the highest open rate in this whole list
- 23.9% click rate
The takeaway: When campus partners are invested, the content gets better and the logistics get easier. Aerospace donors received a video that reflected their specific area of generosity — not a generic institutional message. That specificity shows.
4. Proof That You Don’t Have to Be in the Room
The setup: The SMHS Adopt-a-Student program had a unique challenge: matching individual donors to specific medical students who benefited from their support. UND handled the entire video collection using ThankView’s Video Request links — no in-person coordination required, no scheduling headaches.
The results:
- 99 donors reached
- 56.6% open rate
- 25.3% click rate
The takeaway: Scale doesn’t have to mean losing the personal touch. Video request links let students record on their own time, in their own environment — and the results still feel genuine. This is a scalable model for programs where students are geographically dispersed or hard to coordinate on-site.
5. Proof That One Video Can Deepen a Major Relationship
The setup: This one’s the definition of high-touch. Two students who won an annual business/entrepreneurship competition recorded thank-you videos for the donor who funds the award. One student — with no guidance from the team — built a cinematic, multi-angle video from his own workshop. The final version was lightly edited for length.
The results: Sent to a single priority donor as part of a Personalized Stewardship Plan (PSP).
The takeaway: When the stakes are high and the relationship matters, let the student set the tone. You don’t need to script it. Creative freedom produces content that institutional copy never could — and this donor received something they’re unlikely to ever forget.
6. Proof That Channel Choice Is a Strategy, Not an Afterthought
The setup: This one’s a case study in what happens when you A/B test your stewardship channel across three years.
- 2023 — ThankView: 326 sent, 60.4% open rate, 11.9% click rate
- 2025 — Mass Email Platform: 529 sent, 49.9% open rate, 4.5% click rate
- 2026 — Back to ThankView: 674 sent, 50.7% open rate, 6.4% click rate (and still climbing)
The takeaway: UND tried the mass email route in 2025 and the numbers told the story clearly. Click rate dropped by more than half. They came back to ThankView in 2026 — and within a morning of sending, the video had already outperformed the mass email campaign on engagement. Donor loyalty isn’t just built through gifts. It’s built through the moments in between.
The Through-Line
You don’t need a big team to run student-powered stewardship. You need a clear ask, a willing campus partner, and the trust to let students tell their own story.
UND’s results aren’t an anomaly. They’re what happens when you stop treating stewardship like a checkbox — and start treating it like a relationship.
Ready to build your own playbook? Chat with a member of the EverCrew!