Recruiting for CKI starts with visibility. The more frequently students see members showing CKI pride, the more curious they will be about our amazing organization. Here are seven simple tips for grabbing the attention of potential members — from move-in day to club fairs and more!
Show off the CKI brand. Make sure members are wearing CKI merchandise at the beginning of the school year. Merch can be found in the Kiwanis family store and on our ShopCKI site.
Get creative. When tabling at your club or activities fair, you are fighting for students’ attention. Draw them in with a great table and a friendly smile! Let them know you are approachable by having a few members stand in front of the table to greet potential members. Add posters with photos of past service and fellowship projects to demonstrate how much fun members have together. Have CKI stickers, brochures and candy to hand out.
Create eye-catching signs. Consider including a “Were you in Key Club?” sign at your table. This can help attract members who are familiar with the Kiwanis family and want to continue their experience in college.
Capture contact info. Make signing up for your club easy! Create a simple Google form to collect names, email addresses and cell phone numbers (optional). Keep the form short and sweet! You can collect other information later. Find a free QR code generator code, such as QRCode Monkey, online and create a personalized code to display at your table.
Don’t leave them hanging. Don’t forget to follow up and thank students for stopping by your table. Ask if they have any questions, but most importantly, tell them about your club’s first meeting. Send a reminder email/text letting them know the meeting is coming up, and that you can’t wait to see them.
Tell them about CKI. Be sure to have your CKI elevator pitch ready! This is your opportunity to tell potential members about our love of service, leadership and fellowship and what the club can offer! Learn how to break the ice and get comfortable with recruiting by visiting our recruitment Youtube playlist.
Spread the word online. Social media is a useful recruitment tool. Post pictures of your club events as well as meeting times and dates. Don’t forget to use #ChooseCKI and tag your university. Tag potential members in a post to enter them in a giveaway. Ask current members to share a post like this on their personal pages: “Know someone adding ______ University? Tag them in them this post and tell them to stop by our booth at the club fair for a chance to win a prize!”
Do you have recruiting ideas? Join the conversation by following Circle K International on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Be sure to check out our Facebook group, too!
Still looking for recruitment tips and resources? Visit our recruitment folder in the resource section of the website. You’ll find recruitment our recruitment toolkit, templates and a variety of exercises to prepare your club. Happy recruiting!