7 Ways to Recruit Nonprofit Volunteers
Volunteers help nonprofits accomplish the missions that they are aiming to fulfill, and as a result, it is vital to have people on your team. If you need volunteers urgently, you must prepare your volunteers well in advance for whatever the situation may be. The Forbes Nonprofit Council has a list of helpful tips that will enable nonprofit organizations to rapidly attract and train volunteers:
- Build relationships before needing volunteers. Always make sure you are actively recruiting volunteers well in advance of the time that you are likely to need them. Take action by connecting people who are interested in volunteering with you—be it by sharing relevant information on social media or by having people come to one of our events. Volunteers who already have a strong sense of your organization will be more inspired to help you if you ask them to help.
- Find a dedicated volunteer to lead or recruit volunteers. Check out volunteers who are leaders that are trustworthy and willing to advocate for the cause. Leaders need to be able to create and maintain a strong network of people who are able to help them and find them when you need them. When you present a short-notice recruitment event, people are enthused to do what is required immediately and that person is chosen as the leader to help make the event happen.
- Keep in touch: Follow up all year and respond quickly. You want to be able to quickly turn around and begin recruiting volunteers when the opportunity arises. Volunteers should feel strongly connected to the cause they are supporting, in order to be motivated to immediately step up and help you. If all year long you engage with your volunteers, they will become more excited to help you with the urgent work that you have planned to do.
- Conveying why you are recruiting volunteers is as important as communicating why you need volunteers. Communicating the “how” and “why” of volunteer recruitment is just as important as needing volunteers. Be sure to describe in detail why you need volunteers as soon as possible, and then be specific about the need that you have. Potential volunteers should know why you want volunteers and if it resonates with their passions and desires. If the volunteer who is excited about doing the job is no longer interested in your cause, use the opportunity to encourage them to get involved. Give a clear explanation as to the urgency of what you are trying to accomplish and explain to potential volunteers where they are willing to provide the support that they are willing to provide.
- Help your current volunteers spread the word. Its crucial to build and maintain a network of supporters that are able to help you and your organization whenever you need their help. Not every volunteer you cultivate can help if you have an emergency, but those you support can help if you reach out to other supporters who have connections to other volunteer leaders. If you have a strong network of supporters, you will not have a difficult time recruiting new volunteers.
- Build a community around your cause. Creating a supportive environment for volunteers that makes them proud of what that person does and that causes them to think that their work matters greatly to others is the way to build a true network of volunteers. Ambassadors can help you build relationships with your community and demonstrate how you truly care about what you do. When needed, allow volunteers to meet with their peers easily; it is better to get in touch with people in person, and not spend months trying to reach out to each person individually.
- Have a clear volunteer pipeline. Being able to motivate and engage volunteers is an important component of the success of your organization. It is important to be able to recruit many volunteers who will provide us with the support that is needed to take action. If something needs to be done, our network of dependable people is strong enough that they are suited to assist us. Once a volunteer is onboarded, what is their next step? Is there a way to give them more responsibility? Be sure to empower ownership for your volunteers.
MyVolunteers is a great tool that can help you manage your nonprofit’s volunteer resources. MyVolunteers is part of MyCommunity, which exists to build relationships and tools that equip organizations so that they can maximize their impact. Our suite of tools is designed to help organizations of all sizes focus on their mission without worrying about the logistics. We understand the importance of building strong relationships, so we provide the necessary tools to maximize impact and make a difference like our easy-to-use platforms MyDonors and MyVolunteers. Likewise, MyNonprofitCoach equips nonprofits with the training they need to be successful. Schedule a demo for any of our solutions here.
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