Attracting millennials to volunteer is a challenge that many nonprofits face. Here are a few tips to recruit young adults
The process of recruiting young adults is a lot like recruiting not-so-young adults. Except there’s a little more of the “what’s in it for me” factor. You’ve got to sell your cause–not your non-profit; one non-profit name is much like another. No. You’ve got to highlight what you do and why it’s worth getting behind.
Then there’s letting young adults know you exist–don’t be afraid to humanize your cause and show them that if they choose to work for you, there are real, tangible results.
3 tips for nonprofits to recruit young adults
The nineties are long gone. It’s now time to accept how ubiquitous the internet is. We are–after all–living in the digital age. If you want to recruit young adults, you have to be where they are, and talk their language.
3 tips for getting young adults to help your non-profit:
Promote your existence and why people should care
There is something like 1.5 million registered non-profits currently operating. How are people expected to know you exist if you don’t let them know?
Now, there’s a good way to promote yourself and a bad way to do it. Cold calling is terrible. It can, on occasion to the right audience, work. But it’s outdated and it’s irritating.
What you require is consistent, clear promotional storytelling with appropriate branding. Find professionals who are willing to volunteer their time to help you look clean and professional because that will go a long way to making you seem more reliable and trustworthy.
Your message needs to be entertaining, fresh, and simple (please don’t just ask for money every two minutes: it sounds desperate). Highlighting your cause is the best method for recruiting.
Show the passion, not the brand name
If you can show your passion for what you do, and show people what your mission is, and how you are achieving that–you’ll go a long way to attracting young adults to your cause. Motivate potential volunteers by showing them they can make a difference–encourage them by sharing stories of how volunteers in the past have helped.
This lets them know you are legitimate, and their work won’t be in vain.
Go to young adults, don’t expect them to come to you
Social media is where young adults are. Create profiles on sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Snapchat. But before you jump on every social media platform ever, think about your target audience, think about your resources, and decide where it’s better to spend your resources.
By sharing fascinating, inspiring, and engaging content on social media you can attract an audience and once they share it with their friends and followers your audience can grow exponentially.
If you ignore social media, you do it to your non-profit’s detriment.
How non-profits can recruit young adults
Having a modern-looking online presence is an essential part of successfully recruiting young adults. Remember, volunteers need to be convinced helping you, and not one of the other 1.5 million non-profits out there, is right for them.
Finding, and recruiting, young adults is crucial to the success of any non-profit organization. VolunteerHub can provide the volunteer recruitment software solution that your organization needs to attract and retain more young adults.
