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Pack-recruiting

Here are some guides to help you plan a year-round welcoming environment for your Pack.
This site, gtcscouting.org/recruit, is under development. Your contributions can help.

Keep Your Pack Operating All Summer
Learn how on the Summertime Fun Achievement Page

The best marketing tip is to meet during the Summertime Fun Achievement and open your Summer events to friends and neighbors. The normal friend activities will pay off in more members and better retention.

How to Plan a Signup Night

(1) Definitely work with your District Executive on this

(2) Plan and advertise your event

(3) Use Online Registration at your signup night to collect contacts and applications.

This is a very effective way to do a Join Scout Night.
5 Stations, with 5 or more leaders
This can be done with fewer leaders or just a couple helpful hands to pass out flyers and record information
New families can choose when to arrive and how long to stay. Less of a conflict with other family activities.

Sign-Up Night Unit Playbook - Scouting Wire“Sign-up” nights have been a keystone for recruiting for years, and for good reason: They work! Sign-up nights give parents and youth an opportunity to get to know Scouting at a personal level, face-to-face. Questions are answered, interest is built, and parents see how Scouting is for families like theirs, no matter what that family

Download a helpful list of ideas

RECRUIT 365

Plan to recruit year round. Certainly, Joining nights in the fall are important, but what if someone misses that night or needs more encouragement or a more conducive time to join. Don't give up. "We are always open to new members"

(1) Fall Recruitment
(2) Hold second chance recruiting events "It's never too late to join Cub Scouts!" What matters is you give parents multiple chances to join.
(3) Parents looking for youth activities in the winter
(4) Use normal friend activities, bring a buddy often
(5) Hold regular parent conferences to orient and engage the new parents.

Cub-Scouting-Dynamic-Recruitment-Playbook.pdf

Send in Your Best Recruiting Practices

Do you have a great idea for recruiting in your pack? Click on the patch below to email your ideas that others can use.

Using this RECRUITER patch from the Scout Shop is a great incentive for your scouts to recruit new scouts. Who can earn the recruiter strip?

One Pagers, Ideas for recruiting from Roundtable Membership Moments (from scouting.org)

Do you have a membership growth plan?
Membership Recruitment Resources
Invite the Teachers to your Blue and Gold.
Recruiting Events are as easy as one, two, three.
Don't forget to recruit through the summertime.
Press coverage for Community Service "More than half of prospective Scout parents do not know Scouting still exists. Positive publicity will help your unit and Scouting in your area."
Cub Scout to Scouts BSA Crossover (less than 70% of fifth graders in Packs crossover to Scouts BSA. Let's increase that to 100%.)
Use online registration tools and resources (see video) (see GTC webpage)
Make sure your unit pin is updated on BeAScout.org

Recruitment Part I - How to do a Join Scouting Night

(Video in Roundtable Live June 13, 2024)

Recruitment Part II - What to do after your Join Night?

(video in Roundtable Live, Sept 12, 2024

5 steps to Marketing Success

1 - Print

Print is how we traditionally reach out. You can customize these to help your unit.

Customize a flyer to advertise your Pack or your Joining Night for Scouting. - Choose from the flyers below or create and customize your own.
- Never created a flyer? Here is a video about using Canva to create one. Here is an alternative way to create a flyer.
Customize buddy peer-to-peer cards - use the ones below or create your own using blank business cards. You can find blank business cards here or at any office supply store. Set your Word document to Avery 5371 (laser printers). If you have an inkjet printer, then use Avery 8471. Instructions on the package.
About Peer-to-peer recruiting cards.
Know about BSA Brand Central

Get more items like these at Scouting's Brand Central (create a login for more information).

2 - Social Media

Every unit should have a social media presence.

Social Media Playbook (see below)
Social Media Use in Units presentation. (see below)
Updated presentation on how to publicize (link here)
Creating a Social Media Presence for your unit.
Private versus Public Facebook Pages
How to Geofence your recruitment events (your paid advertising that reaches beyond your unit). This is highly recommended and can cost as little as a dollar a day. The key is using your social media to reach beyond those who already know about you. That entails one of both of (1) having your parents all share your posts to their timeline with positive recommendations and (2) paid advertisement through geofencing where you can specify an audience, such as Parents with young children.
Nextdoor - is a social media app designed to connect neighborhoods and communities, allows you to create and post events online, as well as invite your neighbors and community members. Units can make use of this in the best way since it lets people in your neighborhood know what is happening and in the surrounding neighboorhoods. It is less helpful to districts and the council because the reach is hyper-focused on the poster's location.

examples of use

- - https://www.hoac-bsa.org/Data/Sites/1/media/membership/recruitment/cub-scouts/2020-school-night/recruiting-with-nextdoor.pdf (Heart of Ohio Council)
  - https://www.wnyscouting.org/document/nextdoor-app-tutorial/200742 (Western New York Council)
  - (video) https://youtu.be/kW9oNkH_qBw?si=4wlcIugsZ8FKmDgr (Northern Star Council)

BSA Social Media Playbook

File is available, just doesn't preview well.

Social_Media_Playbook_092518_BC.pdf

Presentation on Social Media Use in Units

See presentation in its own window.

Social Media Use in Units_v2_UofS2022.pdf

3 - Video

You can use these videos in your unit's recruiting effort.
You can also create your own. Contact us for advice on that.

Videos - Personalized to Great Trail Council use

Videos are in our Recruiting Playlist on YouTube.

Videos - Nationally Branded Cub Scout Videos

As these are personalized, they will move out of this space and into the one above.

4 - Websites

All About Scouts, Cub Scouts - If you do not have your own website, please use AllAboutScouts.org, or AllAboutScouts.com, the council's website, for information about and how to join scouts.
1. You may choose to use https://www.allaboutscouts.org/our-programs/cub-scouts as a link to start your visitors off at the Cub Scout page.
Create your own webpage.
1. You can use Google Sites to create a website (it is what the Council Uses)
2. Click here to learn how.
Improve the website of your Pack
1. Do not use your troop's website or Social Media Page unless everything a person unfamiliar with scouting and your unit can find all the information about your unit and how to join. Use a landing page (URL or web page address) that directs them directly to that information.
2. Include "for more information or to find a unit that is closer to you or meets on a more convenient night visit AllAboutScouts.org.
Ba A Scout - Does it show your Pack in the best light?
1. Look up your Pack and see your Pack's message. Does it attract you to want to join?
2. Is it what you think a prospective parent or youth needs to know about your unit?
3. Does it say you are always open to new scouts?
4. Would you be attracted to your troop if you read your listing as a non-scout?
5. Edit your unit pin to change what is displayed on BeAScout.org.
Edit your Unit Pin set up to attract youth to your Pack here: https://www.gtcscouting.org/resources/registration-resources/update-your-unit-pin
Set up and activate online registration here: https://www.gtcscouting.org/resources/online-registration

5 - New Parent Orientation

https://www.hoac-bsa.org/Data/Sites/1/media/membership/recruitment/cub-scouts/2022-sign-up-for-scouting/new-family-welcome-email.pdf

New Member Coordinators are important for your unit
Create a welcome to our Pack brochure
Take 5 minutes to listen to David Weyrick, VP for Relationships, explain how your unit can be WIRED for success.

Being Wired is remembering

Welcome,

Invite to return,

Relationship building,

Encourage to volunteer, and

Demonstrate Leadership

Cub Scout One Pagers to be Created

How to create a welcome-to-the-pack brochure
How to do a year-round recruiting plan
How to plan a join scouting night in the fall
How to hold a Spring recruiting event
Create a flier to advertise your next event
How to create buddy tags
How to create a public facing FB page and to use geofencing
How to use Instagram
Reward your scouts with the recruiter patch
How the summertime program builds your Pack
Using online registration in your sign-ups
Transitioning your AOLs into a Troop

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