Membership Retention Toolkit

Many members drop out of their clubs for perfectly understandable reasons: sickness, economic hardship, and transfer to an area without a similar club.  Others lack the commitment required of a true active member. But most leave for reasons that could have been prevented by a club with a strong membership retention program -- a club determined to retain them.  Rotary Clubs must find ways to capture the hearts of their members early in their membership tenure to prevent lost interest.  Here is a checklist to help you with member retention.   At their most basic level, clubs that function successfully - have appealing service and fundraising projects; hold interesting meetings; involve all members; communicate effectively both within the club and the community; have members that work well together and are a valuable part of the community. Efficient clubs will be able to keep their members active far more easily than one that is unsuccessful in these areas.  Here is a checklist of strtaegies that will help keep your members active and attending club meetings.   A club meeting is usually the only time when members interact directly with the club. What do your meetings say about your club?  Are they friendly, organized, and interesting to all members?  Here are 10 tips for holding a well planned meeting that projects a professional image to both members and non-members.   A good Rotary experience begins with a great orientation.  The orientation should cover all of the logistics of being a member of your club like paying dues, attending meetings, and annual service or social activities.  But it is important that your orientation also includes the cultural aspects of Rotary, including Rotary Internationals beginnings.  Given that Rotary encompasses so many programs and activities, it is important that you don’t attempt to cover them all in a single session.  The following brochure provides the outline for a proper Orientation program. http://www.rotary.org/RIdocuments/en_pdf/414en.pdf   The first six months of membership are the most critical in achieving new member involvement.  Many clubs create "Red Badge programs and assign Mentors to assist members through this period.  We have attached a sample for a mentoring checklist which predefines activities to be completed during the first six months of membership.  Try out this approach and see if you retention precentage inproves.