Drawing from years of experience working with all types of nonprofit organizations, we’ve distilled our findings into a proven 6-step recipe that you can follow to maximize the impact of their volunteer program.
Volunteerism is a driving force behind the success of countless nonprofit organizations. Yet, in today’s world, where volunteer expectations are rapidly shifting and technology is advancing, managing volunteers requires a fresh, strategic approach. How can nonprofits create programs that not only attract volunteers but also keep them engaged and empowered?
With over two decades of experience working with volunteer programs of all shapes and sizes, we’ve distilled our findings into a proven 6-step recipe that you can follow to maximize the impact of your volunteer program. Whether you’re looking to start a new initiative or improve your current processes, these key steps will help you build a successful, sustainable program.
The Six Steps:
1. Promote Volunteer Opportunities Effectively
Getting the word out about your awesome volunteer opportunities is essential. This includes utilizing social media, email, community events, and partnerships to ensure your opportunities are visible to the right audience. Do you have a catalog for a prospective volunteers to see how they can get involved in your mission?
2. Eliminate Barriers to Engagement
Make it as easy as possible for people to get involved by simplifying the application process and removing obstacles that might prevent volunteers from signing up. Your goal should be to minimize the amount of time that passes from when a volunteer first expresses interest in a program to when they actually begin volunteering – without compromising the vetting and onboarding process, of course.
3. Empower Volunteers and Staff
Equip your volunteers with the tools they need to succeed. When possible, empower volunteers to set their own schedules, personalize their communication preferences, and complete onboarding requirements.
Additionally, support your staff so they can manage and engage with volunteers effectively – giving them the tools they need to successfully manage hundreds of volunteers.
4. Show Gratitude
A little appreciation goes a long way. Recognize your volunteers regularly to build loyalty and make them feel valued. Whether this is through an appreciation event, email and text messaging, hand-written notes, or celebrating a milestone, volunteers need to know that you couldn’t carry out your mission without their dedication and hard work.
5. Gather and Utilize Feedback
Always seek feedback from your volunteers and staff to continuously improve your program. This creates a cycle of growth and ensures you’re meeting their needs.
Sometimes feedback can feel scary for volunteer program managers. “What if we find out we’re lacking in an area?” “What if we can’t do anything about the negative feedback we get?” Regardless of the nature of your hesitation, gathering feedback is crucial to find areas of improvement. Oftentimes, feedback is positive! When it’s not so positive, the issue can often be resolved with a simple shift.
6. Measure Impact
Tracking the outcomes of your volunteer efforts allows you to understand your program’s success and share that impact with your stakeholders. Having confidence in your numbers is everything. It’s important to know where your program stands today so that you can celebrate how far you’ve come, as well as set exciting goals for the years to come.
Ready to Take Your Volunteer Program to the Next Level?
In our latest podcast episode, we explore the recipe for extraordinary volunteerism in more depth and discuss how you can implement each step of the recipe right away.
Tune into the episode on your favorite platform:
