Talk Up Toastmasters! - Add 5 New Members in February / March

Do Toastmasters Like to Talk? During the Talk up Toastmasters! membership contest, encourage your club’s members to invite as many guests to your club’s meetings as possible. Consider conducting a special guest meeting – where you conduct a regular meeting, but also specifically discuss the benefits members receive as they participate in the Toastmasters program. All clubs that add five new, dual or reinstated members to your roster between February 1 and March 31, to receive a special Talk up Toastmasters! ribbon to display on your club’s banner.The club will also earn a choice of one module from The Better Speaker Series, The Successful Club Series or The Leadership Excellence Series.

Individual Recognitions -
  Shaping Ourselves ... Shaping the World.

The 2007 - 2008 Membership Building Contests include Recognition for any individual member that sponsor 5, 10, or 15 New Members - helping their club and Toastmasters grow. Program begins July 1, 2007 and ends June 30, 2008 - for new member applications received at world headquarters between those dates. Sponsor a new member AND indicate your name and club number as sponsor on the new member application form.

• Sponsor 5 new members, receive a unique sponsor's pin.
• Sponsor 10 new members, receive a Gold Star Pin.
• Sponsor 15 or more new members, receive a Toastmasters necktie or scarf.
• New Membership Tracking Form
• TI's Membership Growth Online Manual

Individual Recognitions - District 53 Governor's Award

District 53 will be recognize all Toastmaster members that sponsor three (3) new members for their toastmasters club between July 1, 2007 and June 30, 2008.

The time is right to build MEMBERSHIP at every club. Winners will receive this ribbon and a certificate that can be proudly displayed at their home or workplace. When you successfully sponsor three new members you will get a personal call from District Governor John Lynch.

Please bring a guest to your next meeting and encourage that person to join the club. Make them feel welcome, show them a good product and they will join.

Club Membership Building Ideas

People can't join your club if they don't know you exist! There are thousands of people waiting to join Toastmasters who "just haven't gotten around to it." Undoubtedly, there are people who are ready to join your club. They just need a little push in the form of a reminder. There are many ways to publicize your club, we suggest you consider the following: Let the World Know: Publicity and Public Relations Handbook contains sample press releases and many other ideas. TI's Marketing Toastmasters > Brochures & Fliers

Follow the Hyper-link - Membership Building - for a compilation of various ideas that have been collected from visiting other clubs, talking with other Toastmasters at conferences and training events and surfing the internet. These are ideas that have worked for many clubs but is by no means complete.

Marketing Information @ Toastmasters International:

Toastmasters International has a large collection of membership building materials that can help your club grow. Many are available free of charge while others cost a small amount. The majority of these items are listed on the First Aid for Your Club flier. You can view and download the flier by clicking on the following link:   First Aid for Your Club

Toastmasters International sponsors a variety of membership building programs each year. Your club and its members are automatically entered in these programs and will be recognized if you qualify. You can use these programs to motivate your club's members to achieve. The Membership Programs Flier contains the specifics for each program. You can download a copy here: 2007-2008 Membership Building Contest Flier

In Ralph Smedley's honor, a Toastmaster Club will receive a Smedley Award Ribbon for display on their Club's Banner IF the Club qualifies by increasing their club membership by 5 or more new members in the months of August and September 2006. The club will also earn a choice of one module from The Better Speaker Series, The Successful Club Series or The Leadership Excellence Series.

Membership building is a challenging yet rewarding task. By adding new members
to your club you add new perspectives, personalities, and potential club officers/leaders.

Need Members? Get the D53 Membership Kit

The 2005-06 D53 Marketing Committee, chaired by then LGM Will Ryan, made a substantial contribution to the electronic file cabinet. The committee has prepared a D53 Membership Kit containing ideas and processes to achieve healthy club membership levels. More

Building A New Toastmaster Club

Toastmasters Clubs meet in thousands of communities -- and corporate conference rooms -- in more than 80 countries around the world. Each year new groups organize and start new clubs worldly places like Sarawak, Malaysia; Kilrush, Ireland; Los Angeles, California and more locally, Troy, NY. Some are organized by experienced Toastmasters, while others are organized by people completely new to the organization. So don't be intimidated! If you're interested enough to read this page, you're probably interested enough to start a new Toastmasters Club (or simply, to get involved). The steps outlined here will focus your efforts toward meeting the requirements for your Advanced Leader recognition. Thus, to build or to support/participate in building a new Club, the first step is to request a new club information kit. Contact:

Lt. Governor Marketing  
New Club Extension Chair  

Forming A Toastmaster Club
While waiting for your own "new club information kit," take a moment to read "How To Build A Toastmasters Club: A Step-by-step Guide." This 70-page manual or on-line guide will help you from start to finish. It offers information on the type of club to form, how to promote it, how to effectively demonstrate the Toastmasters educational program, how to complete the formation process and submit the charter paperwork to Toastmasters International, and how to help the club in its first months of operation after it charters.

Demonstration Meeting
A tried and true way to build a Club is to "show what you mean" or simply, demonstrate a Toastmasters meeting in action. A demonstration meeting is your opportunity to show prospective members how a Toastmasters club meeting is conducted and what the Toastmasters program can do for them. A carefully planned, well-conducted meeting will excite prospective members and make them eager to form a club.
     Following the first or second successful demonstration meeting, the organizing group and their Toastmaster sponsors will prepare an "Application to Organize a Toastmasters Club" and forward the application to the District 53 Governor for signature. A properly approved and executed application will give this group the right to use the name, procedures and materials of Toastmasters International as a provisional club for four (4) months from the date received by World Headquarters.

Your Support Team: Building A Club is Not A Solo Effort
The District 53 New-club Extension Committee will provide a support group or "Demo Team" to assist you. You need not work alone.

• Demo Team
  The demo team consists of several experienced Toastmasters who are willing to volunteer their time; to play the role of a Toastmaster, General Evaluator, TableTopic Master, demo speaker or an evaluator and thus put on a complete, yet brief, example meeting to encourage all potential members to join. For the demo team, it is a great opportuniy to speak outside your home club environment and often the experience can be applied to a manual speech. Read more on demo teams.
• Club Sponsors
  Each new club may have up to two sponsors; key players in the demonstration meeting. The sponsor is responsible for organizing the new club, including promoting and selling the new club idea to prospective members, helping to set up regular meetings, completing paperwork (charter documents), and planning the charter presentation. After that point, the sponsor’s responsibilities end and the mentor takes over.
       Sponsors receive a certificate when the club charters and can receive credit toward the Advanced Leader (AL) award. Note that sponsors must apply for credit no later than 90 days after the club’s official charter date. Any changes or additions to the sponsor assignments must be made no later than 60 days after the club’s official charter date.
• Club Mentors
  Each new club may have up to two mentors who are appointed by the District Governor. Mentors should be experienced Toastmasters who actually join the new club, providing guidance during the first six months to one year of its existence. The mentor will work side by side with the new Toastmasters; show the new members how to fulfill each meeting role; and help new officers perform their duties.
       The mentor also receives a certificate when the club charters and, if he/she fulfills the role satisfactorily, credit toward the Advanced Leader (AL) award. Note that mentors may apply for credit no sooner than six months after the club’s official charter date. Any changes or additions to the mentor assignments must be made no later than 60 days after the club’s official charter date.
• Sponsoring Club
  Occasionally an entire existing club may help to start a new club and may present the demonstration meeting. The sponsoring club offers the new club encouragement and advice, and its members attend the new club’s charter presentation. Sponsoring clubs earn the “Founder’s Award” club banner ribbon. The sponsoring club works with the mentor after the new club charters to:
  • Arrange inter-club meetings and exchange of speakers and evaluators;
  • Invite the new club’s officers to attend meetings of the executive committee;
  • Invite the new club’s members to attend anniversary meetings, speech contests,
    and other special meetings;
  • Present programs from The Better Speaker Series, The Successful Club Series, and
    the Leadership Excellence Series at the new club’s meetings; and
  • Remind the new club about District training programs, Area speech contests and other
    District meetings and functions and encouraging their participation at these events.
• District PRO
  The District 53 Public Relations Officer can work with the Sponsors to promote the building of a Club in a community during the formation period and work with the Mentors to let the public (or corporate community) know that a successful new Toastmasters Club exists - ready to make effective communications and leadership a world-wide reality. Contact the District 53 PRO

Club Rescue: How To Re-Build a Club (Catalog #1158)

If you are a member of a Club which has only 8 to 10 members (or less) attending a regular Club meeting, and if there are currently only 12 or fewer active members on your Club roster then it is time to seek the support of the Club Coach Program. District 53 is committed to help re-build low-membership Toastmaster Clubs.
      A Club Coach is an experienced Toastmaster who is asked to help a struggling club. The Club Coach comes from the outside with new viewpoints, perspectives, and experience. He or she may not be a member of the club prior to assignment, but may join after being assigned. Coaching assignments will be made by the District Governor if (1) a club qualifies and (2) a club wants the support of one or two Club Coaches. See TI's Club Coach Program flier, the FAQ on Club Coaching, and the Coach's Corner.

If your club is seeking the benefits of being a charter strength (20+ members) Club and willing to receive help from a Club Coach, please contact our acting District 53 Club Rescue Chair, or your Area Governor. Do it now!

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