Dealing with responses...
The audiences you will general be communicating with can be divided into five groups based on their experience of scouting or other volunteering:
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Once you have a person in a conversation it is important to ascertain quickly how warm they are to scouting and what their motivations to joining may be (which category they fall in to).
When talking to potential adult members there are some key points to remember:
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Don’t use ‘scouting jargon’ (ADC or GSL means nothing to an ‘outsider’ instead of GSL refer to ‘the group’s lead volunteer’)
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Keep upbeat and enthusiastic
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Make it personal to the individual (why scouting is great for them and why you need them, in particular, to be part of your team)
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Do not force people to sign up, it will be fruitless in the long run
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Be confident in your message you really are offering them something that is useful, fun and brilliant!
Responding to responses….
‘No one asked me.’
Ask them! Don’t assume that people know you need help or that they would be comfortable offering it. Talk to those around you and get to know parents. Once you find out more about them, you may be able to ask them to do specific tasks or activities. You could also look at creating a rota system that works – perhaps one which is run by one of the parents.
‘I’ve spoken to people who just moan about volunteering.’
Be an ambassador for scouting – speak positively and passionately about it – your enthusiasm could rub off on others.
‘Scouting doesn’t look like much fun.’
Give parents the opportunity to experience the fun of scouting – reference the Big Adventure and emphasise that any involvement should be a positive experience.
‘I don’t have the time to help out.’
Be flexible – explain the different ways they can get involved and how they can give as much/little time as they want. Be understanding and accepting, and work with them to identify how they could help.
‘I’m not needed.’
Many parents will just pick up and drop off their kids and don’t realise that help is needed. Make sure they know that help is welcome, and when they offer, make a point of giving them something to do. There is nothing worse than feeling like a spare part.
‘I don’t have the skills to help out.’
Be flexible, as above. Get to know them better and see what their skills are, so you can provide better direction. Depending on what they are interested in doing, promote the training that they can access to help them.
‘I don’t understand scouting.’
Dispel some of the myths about scouting: show them the opening/closing ceremonies and explain why they are done; explain the uniform and the left handshake, and so on. Remove the invisible barriers.
‘I don’t really see myself in the leader’s shoes.’
Be a role model, someone that others aspire to. If they’re a current youth member, make sure they know that they don’t have to become a leader and that there are other options.
‘Nobody explained I could be a volunteer at 18.’
Encourage young leaders and explorers. Let them know the options that are available to them.
‘I left and went to university elsewhere.’
Be flexible. You could offer to contact the local scout group for them, link them up with a scout network or the Student Scout and Guide Organisation (SSAGO). Accept that some young people will not have time to be involved in scouting while at university, but they could stay in touch so they can help during holidays.
When you receive enquiries it’s good to acknowledge them as soon as you can.
The key to successful recruitment is to deal with enquiries promptly. If you can, ensure that your initial contact is made within two days of you receiving the enquiry details.
When dealing with volunteer enquiries, phone calls are 100% more effective than emails or text messaging, so whenever possible call the person and confirm your conversation with a follow-up email.
Remember: At this stage never arrange to meet a person in a place where there is no one else around and don’t go to their home alone or invite then into your home.
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If they do not respond:
If you do not receive a response to your initial call, follow-up with an email. We suggest that you try to make contact three times. You could draw the enquiry to a close by sending them a final email stating that you have been unsuccessful in making contact with them and if they are still interested in getting involved with scouting to get in touch with you.
To help you administer and deal with both joining and volunteering enquiries we have developed some helpful tools including some suggested text for email responses. You can find these HERE