The Key Club and Circle K International alumni associations offer rich recruiting potential to Kiwanis clubs and districts. After all, former members of Key Club and CKI are service-minded people, and they’re familiar with Kiwanis. Privacy policies prevent Kiwanis and its alumni associations from distributing contact lists to recruiting Kiwanians—but you can still reach alumni association members.
Here’s one great way: Facebook. Each international alumni association has a Facebook page, so you already know the audience for your message when you post. That’s a particular advantage if you’re looking for younger adults for your club or district.
Here are nine ways to make sure your Facebook efforts are focused and efficient:
Post on both associations’ pages. Seize the opportunities available among both alumni groups. And make sure you’re talking to each audience. For instance, make sure you don’t leave a reference to “CKI” or “Key Club” on both posts, which would indicate a cookie-cutter approach.
Be clear on who and where you are. Use your club’s name and community (or your district). Find who you’re looking for.
Use links. If your club has a Facebook page or website, link your post to it.
Be convenient. If your website has a page to invite new members, link to that page. Don’t send them through your homepage if you can meet a need or expectation right away.
Highlight service. Alumni join the associations because they’re interested in continuing their service and fellowship. Show how membership in your club or district gives them that chance.
Use pictures. Everyone loves pictures—add visual interest and attract attention.
Interact. Always follow up with someone who comments on your post. For people who use social media, an ignored response is a bad sign of how the club operates. Get to know the responder by following his or her Facebook page.
Don’t give up. Both alumni associations are in the early stages, with 3,500 members worldwide. If you don’t get a response, your community might not have alumni association members—yet.
Post consistently. You can’t control when people see (or don’t see) your posts. Share information on the alumni Facebook pages whenever you have something noteworthy to communicate. Even for readers outside your community, you can change preconceptions about what a Kiwanis club is.
