Building your chapter’s membership is one of the most important ways to set it up for success in the new school year. But what are the best ways to recruit within the “new normal” of more virtual interactions and less in-person activities? Learn how to recruit new members the socially-distant way with these top tips.
1. Make Online Enrollment Easy
Signing up new members in-person may not be a reality this year, which makes it the perfect time to bring your sign-up process online! Work with your advisor to transfer your chapter’s membership application to a tool like SurveyMonkey or Google Forms. (Bonus: This makes it super easy to share links to sign up through email and social media!) Also talk to your advisor about creating a cashless payment method for membership fees, like a chapter Venmo account. You may find that these improvements make enrolling members even easier than before!
2. Create Your Chapter’s Digital Identity
If your school is planning for mostly online classes and activities, your chapter needs a strong digital brand to help create awareness among potential new members. Find a member with solid graphic design skills to create a set of digital assets that reflect your chapter’s unique DECA brand or yearly theme. Must-haves include custom backgrounds for Zoom/video conferences, badges or frames for profile pictures and cover photos. Share these with your chapter officers and members for use on their own accounts so that they can bring a little DECA into every digital interaction!
Don’t have a chapter theme or graphic designer? Use our set of #NextLevel graphics, videos and templates at deca.org/recruit!
3. Step Up Your Social Media
Having a strong social media presence keeps your chapter top-of-mind among potential members, even if the rest of your social interactions are from a distance. Kick-off your social strategy by making sure your chapter has accounts on platforms where potential new members are, like Instagram and TikTok (just check with your advisor before setting these up). Then, create a social media calendar to plan out your posts for the next few months. Be sure to include a variety of engaging formats like quotes, memes, videos, polls and story templates. (Look no further than your own Instagram feed for inspiration!) Share the calendar with your chapter officers and assign responsibilities for creating, posting and replying on each channel. Also, encourage your officers and followers to share your chapter’s posts for more visibility!
4. DECA Door Dash
Fewer in-person events doesn’t mean your membership recruitment has to lose its personal touch. Surprise potential members at home by dropping off a personal package with information about DECA, a handwritten note and maybe some DECA gear, if you have it! Let these prospective members know how DECA creates amazing opportunities, share some highlights from 2019-2020 (#DECAICDC Week, anyone?) and include updates on how your chapter plans to take it to the #NextLevel this school year. Work with your advisor to get a list of DECA-eligible students and their addresses to help create your distribution list. (And if you’d prefer to keep it all digital, send the same information through email instead!)
Has your chapter found a great way to recruit new members virtually? Share it with us at deca.org/chapterbuzz.
