Literacy Basics - Community Literacy of Ontario

Effective Recruitment Methods

Probably one of the most important things to remember about volunteer recruitment is do not use an "anybody will do" approach. People want to make a difference; they don't want to merely be a warm body. Showcase your organization and its important mission and let potential volunteers know why your organization is a good choice for them. Make your message and approach personal: we need YOU.

Treat volunteering with your organization as an opportunity, not an obligation. Sell it as:

• An opportunity to make a meaningful contribution in another person 's life
• The chance to make new friends
• An opportunity to contribute to literacy
• The chance to get out and have a bit of fun
• An opportunity to learn new skills / share your skills with others
• An opportunity to "give back" to the community

Promote whatever you think both suits the position and will appeal to volunteers in your community.

You should also try to recruit people whose skills and interests match your needs. This will assist in both recruitment and retention and will result in happier volunteers and staff. Be honest about the time and skill requirements. Don't under-sell the time required or the skills needed just to fill the position. It is much better, not to mention fair to all concerned, to keep looking until you find the right match.

Because we are all so busy, often organizations recruit only when needed, as opposed to conducting recruitment on an ongoing basis. It can often happen that new board members are recruited in a mad flurry just before the annual general meeting, or new tutors are recruited just before instruction starts up in September, or new fundraising committee members are recruited just before the annual spaghetti supper. It is much more effective to try to recruit year-round.

Recruit as widely as possible and use as many different techniques as possible. Be creative. Don't just go to the same tried and true sources. Also consider who is not represented or who is under-represented. The volunteer base in your agency should reflect the diversity of your community.

Here are some final things to consider. Try to make a good first impression on volunteers (whether they call, email or drop-by the office, or meet you at a community event or whether they hear about you through a brochure, poster or via your website). Creating a positive and welcoming environment for volunteers will greatly assist with recruitment!

When CLO asked literacy agencies how they recruit volunteers in the 2005 volunteer survey, here were the top recruitment methods:

• 89% - Word of mouth
• 83% - Posters and brochures in public places
• 83% - Local newspaper advertisements and articles
• 81% - Community activities
• 70% - Ask them directly
• 64% - Fundraising events
• 34% - Television public service announcements
• 32% - Local mall promotions
• 28% - Radio public service announcements

When volunteers were asked how they found out about the opportunity to volunteer with a literacy agency, some of the most common ways were via the local newspaper, by word of mouth and by a poster or brochure in a public place. Another important method identified by volunteers was via the Internet! Literacy practitioners rarely mentioned the Internet at all. Perhaps we are missing an important volunteer recruitment opportunity? Does your website have a section that gives clear and easy to find information for potential volunteers?

Here are a couple of websites from the Ontario literacy community that have clearly laid-out volunteer recruitment information on their websites.

• Action Read: http://www.actionread.com/
• Hamilton Reads: www.hamiltonreads.ca
• Kingston Literacy: www.kingstonliteracy.com
• Literacy Plus (Renfrew County Community Upgrading): www.literacyplus-renfrewcounty.ca
• Literacy Council of South Simcoe: www.nald.ca/simcoe
• The Organization for Literacy Sarnia-Lambton: www.readsarnia.com
• Parkdale Project Read: www.nald.ca/ppr
• Thunder Bay Literacy Group: www.tblg.org

Here are a few innovative suggestions for volunteer recruitment:

• Make a list of everyone you could approach and ask everyone in your program (students, volunteers, staff and other stakeholders) to add to the list
• Get existing (but not burnt-out) volunteers to recruit new ones
• Hold a "bring a friend" volunteer tea
• Use testimonials from learners in your recruitment material
• Host an open house for potential volunteers
• Offer to write a letter of recommendation after a set period of service

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