Recruiting volunteers is a daunting task. Once they’ve been put into place, you definitely want to keep them around for a while. You came to the right place! We’re starting a new series on how to treat your volunteers like a million bucks.
The first tip I have for you is something that has become foreign in a world with Facebook, Twitter, and email. There’s nothing quite like a hand-written note. The art of note writing is lost in today’s world…this is your chance to bring it back! Anyone can go online (let’s face it, you’re probably there anyway) type a friend’s name into the Facebook search and then type a quick “thank you” on their wall. Because this is the norm, I would even go as far as to say that hand-written notes mean more today than they did when we didn’t have the internet.
You may have to dig to find your stationary, but it’s so worth it. Stay away from phrases like “good job” and really tell that volunteer what you have seen that impresses you about them. Everyone wants to know that the person in charge thinks they are doing something right. So pull out that stationary, grab your pen of choice, and make someone’s day!
Jen Hall, our camp intern and director of CentriKid Camps team 2 at Campbellsville University, is great at making people feel like a million bucks. Keep up with Jen via twitter.