Recruiting with a Personal Touch
Have you ever experienced being invited to a special function and following the event you never heard from anyone? As the membership chair for my club, I did not want this to happen to our guests. I made a note card for all members to capture the guest’s name and address that I picked up at the close of each meeting. A business card also serves the same purpose.
By Wednesday noon of our morning meeting day, I had a thank you note in the mail to each guest. By Friday, I made a personal call to see if they had received my note and thanked them again for their visit. I encouraged the sponsoring member to make the same call. I also reaffirmed my contact information and our club’s web page address. There is no word about joining Kiwanis yet. My main concern was to get them back for a second visit.
I find that people feel very special when they receive a personal thank you card and a phone call. As the membership chair, I make it easy for our members to invite someone to a free meal. I do the follow-up to remove the possible stigma of rejection many members feel. Once the new member joins, the inviting member always gets the sponsorship credit.
It’s amazing what the two little words, “Thank You”, will do for our visitors and guests.
This is a sample of the card and the content.
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Dear Jane Doe,
On behalf of _______, I want to thank you for taking the time from your busy schedule to visit our Kiwanis Club of the Valley Kiwanis on ________, 2009. If you have an interest in finding out more about the exciting things we are doing with youth in Auburn, your host or a member of our club can meet with you to answer your questions. If you would like to talk to a member of our membership team, call Sylvester Neal at 253-735-0139 or Jim Schwend at (253) 833-7633. Kiwanians are a group of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time. Our members are service minded men and women who are united in our commitment and compassion for others. I hope you consider joining us. We enjoyed having you and hope you will visit again. Please check out our Club web page www.kiwanisclubofthevalley.org Signed: |
I run this note through my computer and sign and date it. I enclose a copy of my club business card.
You can personalize this as you wish. Your guest will know their presence was noticed and appreciated.
It shows that you care!
Sylvester Neal
Kiwanis International Vice President