Recruiting volunteers is a continuous process of keeping your organization and its volunteer opportunities visible to a wide audience. One tool is printed materials, whether simple paper handouts after a presentation, flyers on selected bulletin boards, brochures for pick-up at exhibits, or inserts of various kinds. Word processing programs have made it easy to develop a range of recruitment "pitches," storing different wording and mixing-and-matching paragraphs and images to target specific audiences as needed.
It's important to note that a single piece of material cannot meet all recruitment needs! So how can you determine what you should prepare for what purpose? Here are questions to answer that will help you to narrow your choices and ultimately create the best piece each time.
Audience and Objectives
- Who will see this item?
- Is this their first introduction to you or not?
- How informed are they already about what your organization does?
- How informed are they already about what volunteer opportunities exist with your organization?
- What potential do they have to become volunteers? Are they getting the information because they:
- Already are interested in volunteering?
- Are financial donors or other supporters?
- Happen to see it while looking for general information about your organization?
- Receive the information incidentally without even realizing what it is?
- What is their demographic profile? (Age, gender, education, etc.)
- Where will they get it?
- Is this a volunteer recruitment event?
- A casual, even recreational, event?
- A serious professional event?
- What do you want them to know?
- What, if anything, do you want them to do once they know it?
- How will they get this?
- Is it an optional take-away or will everyone get a copy?
- Will someone mention it orally or will it be provided without explanation?
- Will it come in the mail or via e-mail?
- How much time will someone likely spend on it?
Content and Look
Depending on your responses to the questions above, you can then select the best:
- Size
- Does it need to match other materials given at the same time?
- Will it be inserted into something else of a certain size?
- Length
- Content
- Is this going to focus on a single volunteer opportunity or try to introduce a variety of volunteer assignments?
- Is it a teaser to get people to learn more or will it try to give details right away?
- Tone (For example, is humor appropriate?)
- Level of language
- Visuals
- What fonts will look clean and easy to read?
- What photographs or illustrations will make your point while matching the tone of the piece?
- Degree of permanence
- Is this a "throw-away" that can be on plain paper stock or do you want people to keep it longer and so should use heavier, text stock?
- Space for tailoring or personalizing
Absolutely, positively always include CONTACT INFORMATION, including your Web site URL!!! And then make sure you have more information there (that is current).
Finally, a word to the wise: PROOFREAD carefully! Not just for spelling errors, but for clarity and completeness. Ask several people who were not involved in designing the piece to look it over for you and ask questions.That will help you assess if you are indeed communicating what you want.