Dormitories & Dragons
General Recruitment
Freshman year is one of adjustment. A traditional student goes from high school, a structured, busy environment with parents, teachers and administration watching over them, to college, where they are largely independent and unsupervised. Many freshmen seek to make this change easier by making friends and joining clubs, including yours. However, there are many other organizations vying for their time as well. How do you make your club stand out?
Recruitment is always a priority for student organizations, especially early on when you will need to struggle to make sure you have the membership available to sign next year's charter. The good news is that many incoming freshmen are looking to sign up with a bunch of groups that they're interested in. The bad news is that these freshmen will quickly learn that they don't have the time or energy to be active in as many groups as they were in high school, and will end up dropping out of the majority of them. This means that you need to be able to make your new members feel like they're getting something out of your group. Remember that you're competing against other organizations that offer more direct benefits to students--if you're going into education and you have to choose between staying in the gaming club or the Student Teachers Association, most are going to choose the one that will look better on a resume. If you want to keep those members, you need to give them a better reason to stay.
In order to make sure that you can attract and keep new members, remember these points.
- Many incoming freshmen are used to joining active groups with people they know well. When they come to college, this means they're looking to participate and get to know the other members personally. You need to provide that experience to them. It's fine if you want to meet once a week for official business, but during the first two or three weeks of the semester, you need to be far more active than you might normally be. Have a pizza party, or an extra game night. Take a trip to your local game shop. Have some social activities planned that interested people can take part in. If you hold fast to your "meet once a week and that's it" schedule, you will find yourself without any new members by the end of the semester.
- Get to know the new members. Take some time to go around and chat them up. Freshman year is usually when people are making decisions that will affect them not only during college, but after college as well. If the new members feel like they're making friends and having fun, they'll be more likely to stick around.
- Let the new members help out. Remember that many students came from high schools where they were very active in club activities, and they expect to be active in college as well. They don't want to sit in chairs and listen to what other people are doing. Use this to your advantage; if posters need to be made, new members are usually eager to help. If you have to go chalk sidewalks at 1 a.m. to publicize a meeting, new members are usually happy to join in. These are people that want to be part of a group. By letting them help out, you can get to know them better, and they feel like they're making a contribution to the club.
- Read and understand the campus policy on hazing. While chances are you won't be doing anything that resembles hazing, you need to make sure that no one gets any ideas that could be harmful. Universities take hazing reports very seriously, since hazing incidents often end in medical emergencies, lawsuits, and negative press coverage. Make sure that you're familiar with the policy, since pleading ignorance won't help you if something bad happens.
The Organization Fair
I mentioned getting signed up for the organization fair in my first column waaaay back in April. Some of you may be wondering why this fair seems so important.
At the beginning of every semester, most universities will have an organization fair so that everyone can look at all of the different clubs and organizations they can join. The org fair at the beginning of the fall semester, however, is usually the most important one, since it's the first time incoming freshmen can see for themselves which organizations exist and ask the club members questions about the group. The fair itself usually has food available for students, as well as activities they can participate in. It is, in short, a Big Event. When I was involved with the BGGS, there were years where we weren't at the org fair or we didn't prepare for it well, and those years were often filled with poor attendance and dwindling membership. Years where were planned for big displays and good publicity usually saw a nice increase in membership and more active members overall. It's not a stretch to say that, for a starting club, the organization fair can make or break a year.
The way most fairs work is that every organization is given one table to set up however you want. With the loud, busy atmosphere of the fair, you need to do some planning ahead of time to make your table stand out. Here are some ideas on how you can attract people to your table and manage the people.
First, try to get the best table you can. Usually, tables are assigned to clubs on a "first come, first served" basis. This is why you should have signed up before school let out last year. Tables closer to the center of action are going to have more people passing by, which means more people seeing that you exist. If you don't have a table close by, a good set up can help negate some of the lost foot traffic, but you may also be able to swap tables during the org fair if a group doesn't show up.
At least one week out from the event, get together with whoever is helping with the fair and figure out some ideas for the table. You want to be able to attract people to it just with a quick glance, so here are some design ideas you can use:
- Think three-dimensionally. One of the reasons many groups use those tri-fold science posters is because it can be decorated to attract people's attention, and it's more interesting than a pile of books lying on a table. Design a poster that explains what the group does, as well as give people some contact and meeting information.
- Bring something to demonstrate what you do. As an RPG club, colorful gaming books, dice, and miniatures can help give people an idea as to what you do. When I was planning the tables, I would bring my 3D Mage Knight dungeon set and set up a small dungeon with the minis. This would always get the attention of people who were just passing by and wanted to know what all these colorful toys were.
- Have something to give people with your contact and meeting info. Giving people free stuff gives them a reason to find your table and gives you an easy way to get other people to carry the information with them. Ideally, this would be some sort of small knickknack that lots of people would think is cool, but is something they would want to carry around with them. I've never been able to find a good way to do this, but I've considered both some form of candy (lots of people will want it, but they'll throw the info out when they're done with it) or some small miniature, like a Mage Knight figure, with the information stuck to the bottom of it (an attractive option for the kind of people we wanted to contact, but too costly.) Don't make the mistake of just having candy available for people to take--candy is too easy to obtain on campuses, and most people won't go through the effort just to track down who's giving out Tootsie Pops.
Make sure that whatever information you pass out has 1) the group's name, 2) some permanent method of contact (a web site, an e-mail address, and so on), and 3) a meeting time, preferably for the new member meeting. This is a busy place, so you want to make sure people are going to hold on to your information for at least a day or so. If so, you'll have a better chance at seeing these faces again at the new member meeting.
New Member Meeting
The reason I want to focus on this meeting is because it's really the biggest meeting you're likely to have, and it's the first impression everyone gets of the group as a whole. You want to make sure everyone is ready and prepared, but you also want to have some fun.
Unlike most of your other meetings this year, you'll want to prepare this meeting at least a few days in advance. Sit down with the officers and let everyone know what you expect them to say at the meeting. If some of your officers aren't good public speakers, try and get them to prepare something to read to the crowd--it might sound bad to have prepared remarks, but it's a lot better than having your officers stand up and mumble "Uh, I'm Joe, the treasurer. I keep track of the money. I do other stuff, too, like, I need to collect your dues. Uh...see me if you have questions or something." Remember that leadership point, Representing The Group? The people at your meeting aren't members yet, so you want to make a strong first impression. Stand up straight; speak clearly; look at the audience; smile.
You should have a plan as to what people will need to say and how long they'll have to say it. This meeting can quickly degenerate into an hour-long session with Monty Python quotes and geek jokes interrupting the introductions every other sentence (trust me, I've had to sit through this meeting.) You need to keep focused, stay on track, and make sure people get the information you need them to receive. There are a bunch of different ways to structure this, but here are the points you need to make sure everyone hears:
- The group name and what you do. This is where all that work on defining the group goals helps.
- The contact information for the group, including meeting times. It might help to have a piece of paper to hand people as they come in the door with this information on it.
- Who you are and what your job is.
- Who the officers are and what their job is.
- What is expected of members (dues, committee service, and so on.)
- Extra time for questions
Make sure that you have a sign-in sheet for people to give their name and e-mail again. Yes, you'll likely have copies from the org fair, but there will always be people that show up that haven't signed that first sheet. Again, this sheet should be treated like gold; always know where it is, and make sure everyone signs it before leaving.
After the business is done, you should start playing games. Explain what activities you have planned, and who will be running them. Even if you focus on RPGs, I would advise to avoid playing such games at the new member meeting unless you have several people who have pre-made characters ready to go, and even then, you really do need some other activity ready in the wings. This is because you want people to walk by and go "Oh, what's that? That looks like fun," and come in. RPGs tend to be less flashy than other games, and it's harder for walk-ins to start playing a game right away. Board and card games are usually better options, since lots of people know what to expect from such games and you can get a game going with only three people. Use this time to emphasize the other interests of your group.
Once the games are settled, try to have at least one person, preferably an officer, free to wander around. This person's job is to chat up the new members and help direct walk-ins to a game. This chatting up is important; you want to make sure that there's a friendly face asking people about themselves and what they're doing. If someone's not having fun or there's a problem at a group, this person can help redirect people or get the game back on track. If walk-ins come in, they can talk to them and explain what's going on, as well as invite them to play. If everyone's having fun, this person can take pictures for use on posters or the web page.
You can rotate this duty if you'd like, but make sure that at least one person is doing this for the whole meeting. Yes, it means that you'll likely not get to play games for hours. You're the officers, though, so it's your job to do some of the work while others are having fun. Try and get some some enjoyment out the fact that your work is helping others to have fun and get connected with other gamers.
If you're an established group with returning members, make sure that the returning members don't cluster off into their own group and ignore everyone else; the more open the older members are to new members, the more inclusive the group will feel, and people will be more likely to return. Likewise, the older members will likely enjoy getting to know other players and finding new blood for their campaigns. I've never seen anyone object to this mixing, but make sure to watch out for this just in case it shows up.
Refreshments can also help bring in people and make them feel welcome. As mentioned in earlier columns, most universities have a deal with pop makers to provide drinks to student orgs for free as long as the proper paperwork is filled out. Most universities will require a advance notice on this, usually at least two weeks, because they need to order the pop from the distributor. You should check on the policies for your campus as soon as possible so you can make sure to get your order in. If possible, try to buy a cheap styrofoam cooler or two and some ice--most universities won't provide this, and cold drinks are always more welcome than warm soda. The ice and coolers shouldn't cost you more than ten dollars at Wal-Mart, and you can reuse the coolers later if you want.
Aftermath
In the wake of the org fair and new member meeting, you should have a bunch of contacts for your mailing list, and hopefully some new members. Even after the fun is over, you have a few tasks that you need to accomplish.
Your first job is to have the secretary put all of the email addresses into the mailing list. This way, you can contact people easily and quickly. It's also important to do this as soon as possible in case you lose the list--that list is the big reason you took part in these huge events in the first place, so make sure it's safe until you get the names on the mailing list. The first email the secretary should send out should be a welcoming email explaining why people are on this list, what the list is for, and how to unsubscribe if they don't want to be on it. This way, people who didn't realize what they were signing up for or have change their mind since can quickly and easily drop off. If you don't include this information, you'll likely get a bunch of people asking how to drop over this list, and some will get ticked that you keep spamming their inbox. Head this off now and just give everyone the information they need now.
The second job is to have the treasurer go through the official membership list and make sure the people who paid their dues at the new member meeting are actually registered members. Likewise, the treasurer should make sure that the returning members on the list are paid up. If not, something needs to be done to remedy that situation--either they're given a deadline to or they're dropped from the roster.
Once the official matters are taken care of, get together with as many of the returning members as you can--at least the officers--and compare your experiences of the night with each other. What did everyone see happening? What went well? What didn't? What adjustments might need to be made to accommodate the new members? What other actions need to be taken right away? By comparing notes, you can figure out what challenges and opportunities lie ahead because of the new members. For the BGGS, this was an important step for us, since we realized at one new member meeting we had a large group of Magic: the Gathering players show up. They returned the next week, and pretty soon we had to plan on having a M:tG sub-group as part of ours. Without the shared notes of the officers, your club ends up reacting to events in a haphazard and disjointed fashion.
You should also be prepared for some of the changes that will occur in the club from your new member meeting. It's not bad, mind you, but there are some expectations and realities that need to be addressed before people start to think something is wrong. For example, chances are there will be a lot of new members at your new member meeting. My experience is that at least three people in every four at that meeting won't join the group or even show up again. You might think that a 25% retention rate from the first meeting is bad, but remember that you're just giving people a chance to get a feel for what your group is like. If you go into the meeting expecting that only a handful will return, you're not as likely to panic or get depressed at a declining attendance as the semester goes on until it stabilizes around the more committed new and returning members.
In addition to the membership decline, there are some people who get disappointed that the tenor of the meetings changes from the excitement and willingness to try new games at the beginning of the year to the more subdued and predictable feel of later meetings in, say, November or December. This is normal; as the year starts, people are getting groups together and looking for new things to try. Once you get to the middle of the semester, people have pretty much chosen the games they want to play, schedules have been settled, and people get into a rhythm. It's important to mix things up every so often, but at the same time, people want to play the games they enjoy. We'll discuss how you can keep meetings lively and interesting for everyone in next month's column, but for now, recognize that this shift will occur, and it's a natural occurrence you shouldn't worry about as long as everyone's having fun and not becoming too insular.
Normally, I put in some advice for groups rebuilding the club, but the challenges are pretty much the same at this time of year: put your best foot forward and charge into the recruitment drive.
August Checklist:
--Ensure you have a spot at the organization fair and space reserved for your regular meetings. If you don't, reserve one right away.
--At least a week prior to the fair, get together with people to plan what your table will have and who will be present at what times. Arrange for something to hand out with group information.
--At least a week prior to your new member meeting, begin a promotions blitz to publicize the event. Posters, sidewalk chalking, free announcements in the school newspaper, and info tables in the student union are just some of the possible ways to get the word out.
--At least one hour before the fair starts, find your table and begin setting up. Just because the fair doesn't start until a particular time doesn't mean people won't be walking by anyhow. Have your table look interesting and professional.
--During the fair, make sure you have at least one person at the table at all times, taking names and email addresses. These people are representing your group, so make sure everyone understands that means being friendly.
--For the org fair, make sure you have something to hand out with your group contact information and meeting place.
--Make sure you have all of the necessary reservations made for the new member meeting at least a few days out from the event. This would include any necessary A/V equipment, pop, coolers, and so on.
--Make sure all of the officers know what points they're going to talk about at the new member meeting. Give them a time limit and hold them to it. Make sure you have someone taking names and emails of attendees.
--During the meeting, make sure the new members are having fun and being intergrated with older members. Have at least one officer wandering around, talking up the new members and taking pictures.
--After the new member meeting, put all of the people you obtained contact info from on to the mailing list. Send out a welcome email with basic information and how to unsubscribe from the list.
--Get together with the officers and compare notes: what worked, what didn't, and what do you need to do now that people are showing up for your meetings.
Whew! That's a lot! It's the beginning of the year, though, so it's normal to feel overwhelmed. Just make sure you stay on top of the big tasks you need to do. Delegating these responsibilities to others can help manage the chaos.
Next month, we'll discuss meetings in general and how you can hold a productive meeting. In addition, I'm interested in hearing from you about what topics you would like to see covered or questions you would like answered. If you do, either PM me (my forum name is Kid Twist) or email me at uberfunk at hotmail dot com.
See you next month!
Alec "Kid Twist" Fleschner
