Volunteers make your community a better place. Discover how to engage and retain them with these tips to implement a new volunteer program.
Successful volunteer programs advance local, meaningful causes while also engaging volunteers by providing them with a community, new skill growth opportunities, and a sense of fulfilment. Volunteer centres starting a new volunteer program need to balance the personal interests of the individuals who sign up to volunteer with the needs of local causes.
An organised, focused program can engage volunteers, even when offering roles with fairly rote tasks. To get your program started, follow these five simple steps.
Before starting a volunteer program, determine what you will have volunteers do. Conduct a needs assessment survey, through which you’ll meet with various people in your community, look at studies conducted on ongoing local issues, and review any other relevant datasets to decide whether there is a significant need and if it can be addressed with a volunteer program.
As you discover opportunities for volunteers, follow these steps:
Throughout the assessment process, take note of the current state of various causes in your community to establish baseline data. Then, as your volunteer program progresses, use this information to determine how impactful your efforts are and how you can potentially adjust your volunteer program to achieve better results.
Volunteers are more successful when they have proper coordination, training, and oversight. Determine who at your organisation will manage your volunteer program and what their responsibilities will include.
Appoint a volunteer manager who has previous experience managing groups of volunteers and volunteering themselves to ensure they have a holistic perspective. Additionally, they should have strong communication and organisational skills.
Volunteer management responsibilities include:
For larger organisations, these responsibilities may be divided between multiple team members. Several of these tasks can also be streamlined with a Deedmob platform. Think about managing your opporutnities, hour registration and communication with volunteers.
Managing multiple volunteers can quickly become complex, and to operate at scale, your organisation should consider investing in volunteer management software. Volunteer management software can help you automate various tasks, track relationships with volunteers over multiple years, and monitor each initiative’s progress.
Look for a platform with the following features:
Okay, you have already estabilised the basic structure of your volunteer program in steps 1-3. Now, you can begin crafting your outreach campaign. If your organisation already has a solid base of supporters, begin your efforts by getting in touch with them. Or, have members of your staff spread the word to their personal networks to bring in your first groups of volunteers.
You can improve your marketing strategy and reach a wider audience of volunteers by:
To make a positive first impression on new volunteers, ensure your website has up-to-date information on your volunteer program and is easy to navigate. Consider going the extra mile by using your software to create online experiences and spaces for volunteers. Here, they can communicate with one another to answer each other’s questions, share insights and form a community around your program.
The most successful volunteer programs are able to keep their supporters coming back over and over again. This allows them to have experienced participants who can help guide and train newcomers, while also spreading positive word-of-mouth about your program.
To retain more volunteers, create a structured appreciation strategy. This might include instructing volunteer supervisors to check in with and thank volunteers at the end of each shift, sending small gifts in the mail, or hosting appreciation events.
Of course, straightforward, earnest thank-you letters can also go a long way toward showing volunteers you appreciate them. Fundraising Letter’s guide to volunteer thank-you letters advises making your letters as specific as possible. Create a standardised template you can use as a base, then fill it with details unique to each volunteer, such as the programs they’ve worked on, the number of hours volunteered, and any specific contributions they made.
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Engaged volunteers are productive, passionate, and likely to stick with your cause for the long-haul. Attract more volunteers to your organisation and keep them engaged by having clear roles and responsibilities, keeping your program organised, and showing your appreciation for everything they do.