Selling Your Volunteer Opportunities

Would you eat at a restaurant whose ad read?

Of course you wouldn't! You'd probably choose a restaurant whose ad described how delicious and reasonably priced the food was, not to mention the great service and atmosphere.

Most organizations recruit volunteers much the same way as the restaurant ad mentioned above. They simply say, "We need volunteers". Sometimes they say a bit about their organization, but they don't talk about why they need volunteers, what they need the volunteers to do or what the organization can offer the volunteer.

At best, these blanket requests for help blend in with all the other recruiting that is occurring in your community. They don't make your organization stand out from all the others. Sell your program! If you don't, you run the risk of getting lost in the crowd!

The key to successfully selling your organization to potential volunteers is determining what you have to offer the volunteer and then highlighting that. Like retail businesses, the same customer service standards apply to the volunteers who are interested in your organization. This means that the organization offers a "product" or "service", which will entice the individual to look at your organization as a potential volunteer opportunity. If good "customer service" is not provided to your potential volunteers, then a poor recruitment process and a decline in your volunteer base will result.