District 53 Membership Kit

Prepared in September 2005 by The Marketing Council: IPDG Rich Couture, AG Rosanne D'Ausilio, Rescue Chair Marilyn Jess, PDG Frank Kane, AG Dennis Kunkler, LGET John Lynch, PRO Jim McNerney, LGM Will Ryan, and DG Paul Young.

Overview

Let's start with the end goal in mind.  Imagine your club with more than 20 members. It's a delight to attend meetings when all the functionary roles are filled with enthusiastic members, and you usually have at least one or two guests at every meeting.  While some of your current officers have served before, they had different positions.  Thus, there's new thinking among leaders. Meetings are exciting and definitely attractive to guests.  Overall your meeting environment is an ideal place to make speeches and to grow.

More than 80 years of Toastmasters’ experience has demonstrated that the minimum membership level for healthy clubs is 20.  With 20 members in your club, meeting attendance will typically average about 14.  If your meeting has three speakers with three evaluators, eight attendees are available to fill functionary roles: Toastmaster, Table Topics Master, Ah Counter, Grammarian, Timer and General Evaluator.  Thus, only two of the 14 attendees have no meeting role.  This is a healthy club.  As the membership number diminishes, the club gets progressively less healthy.   The average number of meeting attendees declines along with total membership.

"What difference does this make?" you ask.  A healthy club is the ideal place for personal growth.  If you need motivation to take action, remember your personal need for a Toastmasters club that provides a "safe space" with members who are committed to their own personal growth as well as dedicated to helping others achieve growth.  Also remember one of the Toastmaster's Promises is "To bring guests to club meetings so they can see the benefits Toastmasters membership offers."   By the way, every member agreed to the Promises when they joined Toastmasters.

The bottom line is "Membership is Everyone's Business!" This Membership Kit contains ideas and processes to achieve healthy club membership levels.  The process is segmented into three major steps: Attraction, Enrollment, and Inclusion.

Attract Enroll Include

Members

Attract - led by Vice President of Public Relations

Toastmasters owes its successful growth to promotion by attraction, not by pressuring guests to join.  Analysis shows that guests are attracted to clubs that exhibit positive energy and that hold their meetings in attractive locations.  The marketing element of the membership building process is led by the club VP of Public Relations.  The objective is to fill seats in our meeting rooms with as many guests as possible.

Club Web sites have proven to be very effective advertising for Toastmasters. Leaders of successful clubs frequently cite their Web site as the main reason for membership growth.  Consequently, we've set a goal for every club to have a web site.  Rich Couture has prepared a TLI module on Web site building. It provides clear directions on how to easily create a Web site and how to make it easy for prospective guests to find the web site and the Club location.  Check it out at http://www.osst.us/TLI601/.

There is no substitute for hard work to achieve significant membership growth.  Follow your Web site launch with a membership campaign.  For a guide to membership building, refer to the article, "Membership Building 101."  Prepared by Toastmasters International, this useful article provides helpful information about attracting guests.

In addition to establishing a membership campaign, consider using one or more of these proven membership growth ideas:

• Speechcraft: for-fee, member-conducted, multi-session education classes for non-Toastmasters.  In either four or six weeks, attendees will develop their speaking abilities by creating and delivering several evaluated speeches.  Historically a large percentage of attendees join Toastmasters at the conclusion of their classes.

• Public Relations: Good public relations is anything that produces a positive response and stimulates the reader or listener to do something, such as visit a club meeting, attend a Speechcraft program, or stop by the Toastmasters booth at a state fair.  Public relations is free promotion.  Interviews with local media, press releases in newspapers, and public service announcements or appearances on radio and television are the most effective form of public contact.  For complete detail on this topic, refer to the two "PR Starter Kit for Closed/Restricted Clubs," and "PR Starter Kit for Open/Community Clubs," by Jim McNerney, District Public Relations Officer.  Topics include:

• Advertising and PR story outlets
• Target groups like Business Networking International (BNI)
• Chambers of Commerce
• Rotary clubs
• Targeting specific businesses and industry groups.

When all is said and done, the best source of guests is current members.  Word-of-mouth advertising has proven to be very effective.  Help your members develop a Toastmaster commercial (known to many as an "elevator speech") for delivery in all situations where there is potential interest in Toastmasters.  These speeches need to be concise, credible and contain a personal story highlighting the value received from Toastmasters.  After all, we're speakers.  We attract guests by demonstrating our speaking skills.  A reminder: Extend an invitation to the potential guest for a specific meeting.  Don’t just say, “Do stop by some time.”

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Enroll - led by Vice President of Membership

Enrollment is "closing the deal."  Inviting guests to join your club is essential; however, the invitation needs to be extended with care and without pressure.

Enrollment begins when guests visit your club.  Members need to reach out to guests and make them feel welcome.  The relationship with guests starts with the first introduction.

As your guest process unfolds, actions to consider are:

• Ask the guest to sign your guest book and remember to record the date of their visit as well as their phone number, email and mailing addresses.
• Create a guest badge for them with their name in large, legible letters.
• Introduce the guest to other members and to the Toastmaster for the meeting.  Let the guest know that it's OK for them to participate in Table Topics and encourage them to do so.
• After the meeting, ask them to complete a guest interest survey.  (See the Appendix for a recommended survey.)
• Since the Toastmaster should formally introduce guests, it's always a good idea to ask guests how to pronounce their names ahead of time.
• It's appropriate and a good practice for the Table Topics master to invite guests to speak if they're willing.
• Toward the end of the meeting, the Toastmaster asks guests for their impressions of the meeting and, above all, expresses interest in having the guest become part of your club.
• Before the guest leaves, give them your Guest Kit.  (See the Appendix for a sample kit which can be used to customize one for your club.)

Regular follow-up is an important part of membership enrollment.  Tasks to consider are:

• Keeping track of your follow-up process by making entries in a log of guest interactions.  The idea here is balance, i.e., being persistent without being overbearing.  Coordinate your follow-up so that one member has the lead.  Methods of follow-up:
• Telephoning guests after meetings to check in with them.  Use the interest survey information they provided on their first visit as a context for this follow-up conversation.
• Emailing relevant information to them if they've agreed to receive your messages.  This can be a good method to remind them of "What's in it for them." (WIIFM)
• Sending them a well-written thank you letter for attending your club and considering membership.
• In addition to tracking guest interactions, consider using the form to track individual member's efforts in your membership process.  This will ensure appropriate recognition and encourage other members to participate.
• Regularly sending them meeting announcements and recaps of meetings so that they'll know what they missed if they were not present.

Some people need to visit several times before agreeing to join.  Staying in touch with your guests can pay handsome membership dividends.

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Include - led by Vice President of Education

Once guests join your club, you'll want to integrate them into the group.  This process is led by the VPE and is critical to effective guest assimilation.  Getting new members off to a good start in their Toastmasters career can significantly improve their experience and increase the likelihood they will remain a Toastmaster.

A formal induction ceremony can help make the new member feel welcomed and part of your group.  Some clubs present a Toastmasters pin at this ceremony, while others award the pin after members have given their Ice Breaker speech.  In either case, formally presenting the pin is symbolic of acceptance into your club.

A member badge makes the new member feel at home.  Setting a proper level of expectation is also important for new members.  They need to know what to expect and how to participate to gain maximum value from their investment of time and money.

Some clubs have active standing committees for Education (supporting the VPE), Membership (supporting the VPM), Public Relations (supporting the VPPR) and meeting setup/greeting committee (supporting the Sgt.-at-arms).  When members join your club, they'll feel part of the group if they're asked to join a committee.  This practice not only helps with member inclusion, but also provides strong teams to run the club and to support officer succession.

A one-on-one interview with your VPE will get the new member off to a good start.  Begin by scheduling them for their Ice Breaker and by introducing them to their mentor.  If several new members are joining at the same time, an orientation session sets a professional tone and provides them with an accelerated start to their Toastmasters career.  At this session, the new members should review their interest survey for accuracy and use it as the basis for their speech-planning activity.

A well-run mentor program is one of the keys to member retention.  The mentor shows new members the ropes and shepards them through their first few speeches.  Mentors are always available to answer questions and provide guidance for new members.  This is a "buddy system" that works and is another way for members give back to their club.  Mentors are also responsible for assessing the member's integration into your club.  If done effectively, your mentor program can be the most important element in member retention ... a key to maintaining club charter strength of 20 members.

Summary

Coordination of your officers and members is necessary to achieve your membership goals.  Your "Club Success Plan" needs to include specific tasks and actions related to membership.  The D53 Membership Kit provides valuable information for building a realistic plan for your club.

We leave you with a memorable quote from Henry Ford, "If you think you can do a thing, or you think you cannot do a thing, you're right." A positive attitude is possibly the most important ingredient for success in life and in Toastmasters!

Other Questions or Comments about Building and Sustaining Membership?
Contact the Lt. Governor Marketing
Contact the Club Rescue Chair
Contact the Public Relations Officer

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