Charities play a critical role within our communities and one of the main objectives for these organisations is recruiting volunteers. Some charities rely purely on volunteers and assist with important tasks such as fundraising and being a point of contact. The best way for you to offer this, is having an active online presence.
We’ve come up with some top tips to help:
- Clearly state your values, mission and what impact the charity has. Volunteers want to know that they’re doing something that makes a difference and has a positive impact. If there aren’t any benefits, people won’t give their personal time.
- Provide more details on what volunteer roles there are available, such as any skills and requirements needed. Where there is the role, you need to provide a location as some people may not want to travel too far, for example. Also, there may be a role that requires heavy lifting in a warehouse environment, and this may not be suitable for some potential volunteers, so you will also need to let them know exactly what they will be doing.
- Use images & videos to get people’s attention: People will be more likely to engage with content that includes photos and videos, as pages of writing can put off potential volunteers. It also helps the younger audience engage, so if you’re specifically looking for school leavers then this would be a great option.
- Regularly post on social media platforms: If you regularly post and advertise that you have volunteer roles available, then you will gain more interest. Not everyone may know that your charity exists, so social media is an essential way to get your presence out there. Posting volunteer stories is a great way to see inside the life of a volunteer, and this also makes current feel appreciated.
- Make it easy to sign up: Make sure you include a call-to-action on your site that takes them to an application form. Also remember to include a contact number as not being able to speak to someone over the phone can frustrate potential volunteers.
- Follow up quickly: When someone expresses their interest in volunteering, follow up as soon as possible. People will lose interest if someone hasn’t got back to them. Thank them for taking interest in the role and provide them with updates.
By using all these tips and putting them in to practice you can create more interest in your volunteer roles, helping bring people together within your local community.
