Keeping Volunteers Engaged
Volunteers are the lifeblood of many organizations, therefore it is important to keep them engaged in their work. To keep a volunteer engaged, it is vital to provide ample recognition, rewards, and opportunities to volunteers.
Recognize volunteers publicly and privately. Whether you are working with one volunteer or 100 people, it is important to recognize their individual and group efforts. There are many ways to recognize volunteers, from giving them a hand written card to hosting an annual volunteer awards ceremony. If you are recognizing many volunteers, provide certificates of achievement for most number of hours worked, best suggestion for streamlining a process, etc. Be sure to praise the volunteer for a job well done in front of other people.
Reward volunteers with creative gifts and gestures. Volunteers like to be rewarded for their hard efforts. Consider giving volunteers gift cards to popular restaurants or coffee bars, books, tickets to a movie, play, or musical, or a special lunch at their favorite restaurant. If funds are tight, consider baking a volunteer their favorite treat, give them preferential parking, or allow them to choose among popular volunteer tasks.
Give volunteers opportunity to grow. It is important to check in with volunteers on a regular basis to make sure they are still interested in their tasks or want to change their responsibilities. Many volunteers want to learn and grow by doing new tasks over time. Make time to meet with volunteers once or twice a year or quarterly to catch up on both personal and volunteer related topics. If you are in the position to offer volunteers paid positions, be sure to inform them of openings and interview each volunteer that applies for a job.
Provide food at volunteer functions. Providing delicious food and beverages is a key way to draw volunteers to events. Rather than offer the same cookies and punch at each event, keep it interesting with theme related snacks such as tropical, Mexican, and Italian inspired munchies.
Give volunteers a break. It is important not to tax volunteers by overloading them with difficult or strenuous tasks that they didn’t initially agree to do. If a volunteer is sick, encourage the person to get better and that their tasks will be covered during their absence.
Say thank you. At the end of the day, most volunteers just want to be thanked for their efforts. Strive to say a genuine “thank you” to volunteers at every opportunity.
Keeping volunteers engaged involves interacting with them on a regular basis including rewards, recognition, and respect. When you've earned the loyalty of the volunteer, they will naturally be more engaged and enthusiastic in their work.
