6 Student Organization Recruitment Strategies to Find New Members

A student organization is an effective way to get involved in college. You have a chance to expand your resume and network while you meet new people. But how do you encourage other students to join? It’s essential to keep your numbers strong to support your cause. This initiative can be a great learning opportunity.

Take a look at six student organization recruitment strategies you can explore.

1. Have Active Social Media Accounts

Your club’s social media accounts need to be active. These days, it’s essential to be engaged online. There’s a significant chance that your target audience gets some of their information via Twitter, Facebook, and other websites. Therefore, you need to use those platforms to your advantage.

Ask one or two members to manage your organization’s pages. Try to post at least three times every week to ensure everything stays updated. Be sure to remember social media best practices so that you don’t get into any trouble. Take a look at a few points to keep in mind from the University of Tennessee.

2. Offer Free Stuff When Possible

What college student turns down free stuff? This trick has been used alongside other student organization recruitment strategies for years. It won’t cost your club too much money to occasionally offer things like food, stickers, and buttons.

If you’re sending out information about meetings, you should include what you’re providing that week. For example, you can write, “Join us for donuts and coffee while we talk this week,” or something along those lines.

3. Do a Presentation During Class

You can ask your professors to let you promote your club during class. This trick gives you a direct audience with other students. If your organization is niche, you should focus on advertising to specific lectures. Your English course might not love flag football.

Be sure to keep your presentation to the point. You’ll probably only have a minute to discuss everything. A quick rundown of what your club does and how people can join should suffice. Bring flyers and other materials to pass around to your class.

You could even see which professors in your major teach first-year students. These new students are likely looking for clubs to join — and you want to be the first to reach them. Send them a short email about how participating in college extracurriculars can boost social health while helping them expand their experience.

4. Make Club Merchandise

Here’s a trick that benefits both current and prospective members. Merchandise is a way for everyone to show off that they’re apart of your club. If you make shirts, you can ask everyone to wear them on meeting days to get out the word. An eye-catching design will prompt people to ask about your organization.

You can then offer that merchandise for free to new members. They get to join a club while receiving some exciting gear — and you increase your numbers. It’s a win-win.

5. Host a Virtual Event

If your club can’t meet due to COVID-19, you’ll need to try alternative measures. An event on Zoom or another video chat software can help you stay connected with your members while recruiting new people. This trick can be a fun way to introduce everything to interested individuals in an informal setting.

The activities you choose will depend on what type of club you’re running. For example, you could screen a movie if your organization is all about film. You could even invite everyone to sit in on a typical meeting so that they can gauge their interest.

6. Enlist Guest Speakers

A guest speaker works wonders for drawing attention to your group. If you can get an expert to talk to your club, you’ll be able to draw in support from everywhere on campus. You can even bring a guest to your online meetings when you can’t meet in person.

Here are a few ways to find interesting speakers:

• Reach out to people in relevant fields via social media.
• Ask previous members to speak about their experiences since graduating.
• Talk to professors to see if they have connections.
• Consider asking qualified family members.
• Look at TEDx talks on YouTube to narrow down the kinds of people you want to be guests.

Be sure to prepare in advance. You need to take time to choose someone relevant to your group’s purpose. You should also consider your budget. If you don’t have the funds to afford a popular figure, it’s smart to start small with previous graduates.

Explore These Student Organization Recruitment Strategies

If you’re looking for new members for your club, you can try these student organization recruitment strategies. Before long, you should be able to generate new interest in what you and your members do.