Group 5 Membership Seminar Thankyou for coming! 1 st Session :Rotary’s Global Membership Trends Focus on Retention Members’ needs & Attractive Clubs 3.15pm.

Group 5 Membership Seminar

Thankyou for coming!1st Session : Rotary’s Global Membership Trends

Focus on RetentionMembers’ needs & Attractive Clubs

3.15pm Afternoon tea – 10 minutes2nd Session: Getting your message out

Attracting new membersSocial Media

4.45pm Q&A5.00pm Close

It’s not just about the numbers…It’s about what we do!

• Globally 1.2 Million (static for over 20 years)• We recruit and lose 100,000

members every year• 2003 – 2011

2,552 new clubs chartered with a net gain of only 226 members

• Global membership shifting from West to East

Recent Membership Trends

RECRUITMENT RETENTION

CANADA-4,167

ENGLAND-7,743

USA-58,481

BRAZIL+4,045

GERMANY+11,114

INDIA+34,063

AUSTRALIA-5,260

TAIWAN+7,567

S.KOREA+12,671

JAPAN-23,248

Largest Nett Membership Gains & Losses 2003-2013

District 9520

1373Dec 31, 2014

• Over 50 Inductions• Nett increase of 9

D9520 July 1 – December 31, 2014

CANADA-4,167

ENGLAND-7,743

USA-58,481

BRAZIL+4,045

GERMANY+11,114

INDIA+34,063

AUSTRALIA-5,260

TAIWAN+7,567

S.KOREA+12,671

JAPAN-23,248

Largest Nett Membership Gains & Losses 2003-2013

Abraham Maslow 1908 - 1970

Where basic human needs are not being met, might Rotary and its work appear more relevant?

Might there be a greater incentive to join?

?

?

But where we live a comparatively privileged life, might Rotary and its work appear less relevant?

Might there be less incentive to join Rotary?

PP

Q. How do we motivate interest in Rotary in a developed country?

THIS IS WHAT WE

DO

THESE ARE BENEFITS OF

MEMBERSHIP

I WANT TO GIVE BACK

WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME?

Our messages can no longer be solely about what we do…They need to include what WE get out of our membership.

In our: • Conversations• Meetings & Bulletins• Fliers & Promotional Material• Newspaper articles• Websites & Social Media Posts

Retention

So, why are people leaving us?

We are constantly weighing up the pros and cons…

PROS CONS

FRIENDSHIPS

RECOGNITION

NETWORKING

LEADERSHIP

ENTERTAINMENT

We are constantly weighing up the pros and cons…

PROS CONS

EXPENSIVE

DEMANDING ON TIME

BORING MEETINGS

BAD FOOD

STRICT RULES

We are constantly weighing up the pros and cons…

PROS CONS

FRIENDSHIPS

RECOGNITION

NETWORKING

LEADERSHIP

ENTERTAINMENT ONE MEMBER WHO IS A

COMPLETE PAIN IN

THE ASS

We are constantly weighing up the pros and cons…

PROS CONS

FRIENDSHIPS

RECOGNITION

NETWORKING

LEADERSHIP

ENTERTAINMENT

MAJOR HEALTH SCARE

EMPLOYMENT UNCERTAINTY

FAMILYTRAGEDY

• Death• Poor health• Relocation • Change in work responsibility• Competing priorities

So, why are people leaving us?“Uncontrollables”

So, why are people leaving us?“Controllables”• Lack of involvement/engagement/inclusion• Lack of direction & leadership• Conflict with other members• Inflexible attendance requirements• Input not sought or valued• Membership did not meet expectations• Unfair distribution of workload• Unwillingness to modernise/change• Boring meetings • Affordability

• Poor venue/meal quality• Termination

So, why are people leaving us?“Controllables”• Lack of involvement/engagement/inclusion

• Conflict with other members(major contributor to losses of newer members)

(major contributor to losses of experienced members)

• Responsibility• Recognition• Leadership pathways• Sense of belonging• Networking opportunities• Fellowship / social interaction• Skill Development• Challenges• Interpersonal Relationships• Fulfilment / achievement• Personal growth / Broadening of Horizons• Assimilation into a new community• Project ownership / Empowerment

• Sense of purpose / direction• Mentoring• Support for your cause• Fun / entertainment• Education• Keeping active• International Understanding• Humanitarian Service• Community Involvement

What do you need from your Rotary membership?

Drink wine

Building your network

Consider all those who have been touched by your club in the last 10 years…

Consider all those who have been touched by your club in the last 10 years…

• Exchange Students• The Science Experience (TSE)

• Roadsafe Youth Driver Awareness (RYDA)

• Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RYLA)• Rotary Youth Program of Enrichment (RYPEN)• Rotary Youth Wellbeing (RYWELL)

• National Youth Science Forum (NYSF)

• Health of the River Forum

Consider all those who have been touched by your club in the last 10 years…

• Ambassadorial Scholars• Peace Scholars

• Indigenous Medical Scholars

• Group Study Exchange Team Members

Those students all have Friends, Parents, Siblings, Teachers & Support Staff at School

Who else have we touched?

… and so many more local programs

Consider all those who have been touched by your club in the last 10 years…• Local Charities, Schools, Community &

Church Groups, Sporting Clubs, etc• Members of the public who use the

playgrounds, parks and public facilities that we support. They buy from our thrift shops and book shops. They turn up to our public events.

Think of the ripple effect…

• Guest Speakers & Venue Staff

The ripples of our work spread far and wide…

So many people feeling positive about RotaryPeople I call “Warm Contacts”

So many people who we just need to find and say…

Join usJoin us to help at that gardening project

Join us to help at that fundraiser

Join us for a coffeeKeep your warm contacts warm!

Join us to help at that sausage sizzle

Q. How do we find them?A. Don’t lose them in the first place!

Two Meeting Recruitment StrategyMeeting #1

• Plan well in advance (2 months +)• Engage a high profile speaker• Produce high quality invites• Ask every member to bring a guest (cold contacts)• You can invite your warm contacts too• Invite partners, friends, neighbouring clubs• Include no more that 5-7 minutes Rotary content• Hand out club promotional literature• Keep a list of guests

Two Meeting Recruitment StrategyMeeting #2

• Plan well in advance (2 months after Meeting #1)• Use the guest list from Meeting #1• Invite to a “Rotary Open Night/Information night”

(don’t refer to it as a Membership Night!)• Ask 5 members to talk for 5 minutes each about

different aspects of Rotary (or invite district officers)• Ask a member to give a testimonial• ASK GUESTS TO JOIN – they wouldn’t have come if they weren’t interested!

Attracting Young

Professionals

Rotarians39 years of age and under

Rotarians 40 years of age and older

Rotary International Young Professionals Campaign 2013

Clubs must change their culture Social media, marketing and advertising efforts are important, but clubs must be open and willing to make changes necessary to attract younger members

Focus on engagement, not just recruitmentEngaging prospective members and current members in a club is an ongoing process Clubs should build the relationship before asking prospective members to join

Open service projectsInvite non-Rotarians (including Rotaractors, Interactors, and Rotary alumni), family, and friends to participate in club events to maximize impact and expand community awareness

Key Findings

1. Younger professionals are similar to older

prospects in attitudes but not in needs.

Key Findings

2. The image of Rotary is outdated and uninviting.

Key Findings

3. Rotary’s identity is unclear.

Key Findings

4. Rotary’s value proposition is unclear.

Key Findings

5. Overall interest in joining Rotary was low, even after learning about Rotary.

Key Findings

The most immediate opportunities for change are at the local club level:• Challenging tasks• Flexible scheduling• Family-friendly planning and events• Unstructured and modern ways to organise

Key Findings

Changing the message won’t change this situation. Change has to happen in the clubs, FIRST. Change has to be real and visible, in order for the next generations of Rotarians to be willing to believe our message.

Key Findings

Rotary’sPublic Image

Controlling how we appear

Involuntary

Messages

Deliberate

Messages

PublicImage

control these

minimise these

Public Relations!

You cannot control your Public Image…

You can only attempt to control your MESSAGES.

So let’s talk about the messages we send, and how and where we send them.

Up to 80% of communication is Non- Verbal.

Is it possible that up to 80% of our messages that contribute to our Public Image are involuntary?

Examples of Deliberate messages Meeting MessagesClub Projects & Events:• We raised $800 at Bunnings last weekend• Volunteers for our working bee needed

• Letter received from our sponsor child

• Fundraising film night – next Saturday

• Our Matching Grant has been approved

• We are visiting Calperum in October

Rituals: • National Anthem• Prayers / Invocations• Toasts• Sergeant Session

Order / Formality / Punctuality

Dress standard

Guest Speaker Quality

Venue / Meal Quality

LanguageRotary Body

Language

Examples of Involuntary messages Meeting Messages

DeliberateMessages

Control our

• eradicating Polio

• providing clean water

• youth programs

• peace & conflict resolution

• great training opportunities

• meet wonderful people

• promote literacy

InvoluntaryMessages

Minimise our

• attendance requirements

• meeting rituals

• male dominated

• ageing membership

• exclusive

• sausage sizzle central

(Rotary’s body language)

• expensive

Rotary has its own unique language, that even some Rotarians

don’t understand.

Communicating with non-Rotarians• They don’t understand our jargon or acronyms• They don’t care about our Club Bylaws

or Constitution• They have no concept of where D9520

is (or where D9500 starts)

Write like a non-Rotarian, because:

• They don’t care about our annual theme or international president and can’t understand why we would keep changing them.

• Get a non-Rotarian friend to proof read

Some of my favourite Rotary promotional ideas …

Resources