Membership: the lifeblood of our club
A large and special meeting that was attended by
representatives of all Northern Beaches Clubs (Balgowlah, Warringah, Manly,
Upper Northern Beaches and Rotaract) was held on Tuesday March 21, 2023. Approximately
35-40 people attended.
The subject was membership: a concern with many clubs. The retention and increasing of membership have been a long problem with many clubs as numbers drop and remaining members become older. Sue Terry in introducing our speaker, Antonio (Tony) Butera, from Upper Northern Beaches club said, “The more active members we have the more we can make the world a better place; but how?”.
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| Tony Butera - helping clubs formulate the membership plan. |
Amongst the Northern Beaches clubs, Upper Northern Beaches (UNB) stands out: Membership has nearly doubled in the last two and a half years. Tony Butera was deeply involved with this achievement at UNB - his experience and knowledge was most apparent as he led the audience on a workshop and interactive approach resulting in an action plan for club membership. He used a white board to capture the key elements of the discussion.
Tony is a local - went to school in Manly and now has a family with adult children. He has now been involved in Rotary for about 9 years, but initially had no intention of joining Rotary but was convinced to go to dinner by a friend and didn’t join initially; but then realised he enjoyed the relationships and company of many members which he still gets today. He explained that he enjoys fostering relationships and connecting people with other people and in Rotary this a key part of being a good Rotary member. He explained that all members of the audience are in the room for a variety of reasons.
Where do we start?
Tony captured the answers to the following 4 questions from a cross section of the people in the room:
· Name,
· How long in Rotary,
· why one joined and
· what are you still getting out of it.
The following was the result.
A diverse number of reasons and outcomes/benefits of being a member were reported. Tony pointed out this is our “Target market” – anyone who is interested or becomes interested. It also shows a lot about the existing members and the amount and depth of knowledge, diverse skills and passion that they bring to any club.
Membership is like any other project.
Project manager _ Sue (Balgowlah)
ALL members drive the strategy…and invite guests. Everyone is responsible for membership growth; not just one person. It is ongoing project in difference to other club projects.
SETTING GOALS
Goals should be SMART; Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-Bound.
In Balgowlah’s case: Currently 19 members Goal 30 members in 2 years. (nett).
Breaking it down to a smaller goal/time scale - to ONE new member every ONE -TWO months.
ACTION PLAN (see SMART above)
How do we get there:
There are two separate but interlocking strategies with two important targets:
1. EXISTING MEMBERS (retention)
2. NEW MEMBER (addition)
EXISTING MEMBERS – how to keep them: keep the motivated.
Ensure they are fulfilled and give them opportunity to contribute where they want to contribute – strengths and expertise.
Find out if they are fulfilled. Do a survey – identify a few key changes and act on them.
Ensure existing members have a buddy to rely on.
NEW MEMBERS –How do we attract and capture them
Existing members inviting guests.
Community – (projects and contacts)
Social media & website (up to date and contacts).Keep it relevant and fresh.
Advertising: print media, banners, signs.
Promote on donor or charity websites.
Supporters and recipients
Alumni
Interesting guest speakers (who come in and see who they are talking to)
New member information nights
Try new things (e.g. Ask me about Rotary badges)
Invite awardees back (ask why don't you come to a meeting)
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| The numbers in the circles show the number od new members from each source |
BE INCLUSIVE: It was pointed out that rather than the word "Rotarian" (which possibly have a negative connotation or impact on some people in the general community). Using 'members and participants' may be more inclusive.
Possible use of a meet-up program with a high profile speaker to attract interested parties - involving all Northern Beaches Clubs is one proposal being considered to help capture potential new members.
HAVING FOUND THE POTENTIAL NEW MEMBER: Initial conversation(s)
Ask how did they find out about Rotary
Find what are they looking for
Tell them the Rotary story & focus on their needs/concerns
Keep them informed and on club bulletin database.
Find Out what they think Rotary is
What is Rotary what does it do: Promote what we do and what we are
Elevator speech - tell it from your own perspective.
Have a cup of coffee and discuss on a one-to-one basis.
WHEN THEY COME TO A MEETING
Make them welcome
Introduce them to all members
Make them feel welcome.
Sign the visitors book - with comments
Explain to them what is happening
Address particular aspects of Rotary - one topic per meeting
Tell them why we support certain charities or projects
Ask what they think
Ask to come back (Meeting or project)
Ask to join (when they comfortable) . Pick your mark..WHEN??
Make it simple and feel valued and contributing
WHEN THEY JOIN: Back to 1. EXISTING MEMBERS
NEXT STEP: Action Plans from each club.
At the finish, social media was further discussed. The importance of social media in communicating to potential new members keeping relevant, news and interesting is vital. All clubs should look at the resources available and utilise them wherever possible.
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| L to R: Ruth Vumbaca(Warringah), Tony Batera (NB), Rick Van Brugge (Balgowlah) |
In thanking Tony for his excellent presentation and leadership of the group, Rick van Brugge said that Tony made the Mountain of Membership so much easy to traverse and the time and effort he put into the night was greatly appreciated. . All members greatly benefited from the evening and were motivated and more confident in attaining their membership goals.
OTHER ITEMS:
Sam Wilkins reported that Rotaract Northern Beaches has now 6 members and growing. It meets at Manly Leagues club on the 1st and 3rd Monday night of the month at 7pm. Youth Directors and other members for all clubs are most welcome to come to the next meeting on Monday night where a guest speaker will be talking to the club.
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| Sam Wilkins, President Rotaract Northern Beaches |
Presentation to Tony
Sue Terry presented Tony Batera with a Walking Stick from the Cowra conference.
Sue ended up buying the Northern Beaches stick; who upon reflection said "This belongs at upper Northern beaches since their members design it." So Tony here is the stick to return it to the Upper Northern Beaches club.
Photos: Thanks to John O'Brien.
FORWARD PLANNING
EVENT March 25 26, 2023 (Saturday & Sunday)
Collection at Stocklands Balgowlah Mall
See the Flyer below
Formal Meeting April 4th, 2023 (Tuesday)
Balgowlah Rotary Club Meeting
ShelterBox CEO Mike Greenslade presentation via ZOOM
Balgowlah RSL Wine Room from 7pm and via Zoom
Dinner available in Bistro from 6 pm
Formal Meeting April 18th, 2023 (Tuesday)
Balgowlah Rotary Club Meeting
Balgowlah RSL Wine Room from 7pm and via Zoom
Dinner available in Bistro from 6 pm
Vocational & Community Awards May 2nd, 2023. (Tuesday)
Event
Wakehurst Golf Club Wine Room - details to be confirmed.
Formal Meeting May 16th, 2023. (Tuesday)
Balgowlah Rotary Club Meeting
Balgowlah RSL Wine Room from 7pm and via Zoom
Dinner available in Bistro from 6 pm
Rotary International Convention May 27-31st 2023. (Tuesday)
Rotary International Convention in Melbourne.
Meet Rotarians form all over the world.
This is where the Rotary world comes together to exchange ideas, share project successes, and have fun!
Save the date.
Formal Meeting June 6th, 2023. (Tuesday)
Balgowlah Rotary Club Meeting
Balgowlah RSL Wine Room from 7pm and via Zoom
Dinner available in Bistro from 6 pm
Changeover June 20th, 2023. (Tuesday)
Balgowlah RSL Wine Room - details to be confirmed.
FINALLY:
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