When someone has very little spare time, motivating them to volunteer can be especially difficult. This is not always due to a lack of desire to help, but because of an inability to commit and a long list of other priorities. If you would like to widen your volunteer base and help with motivating busy volunteers, try and incorporate one or more of the following strategies. After all, if you want something done, ask a busy person!

Clear Goals

Establish the purpose of your volunteering opportunity. Whether this is simple or more complicated, volunteers must be aware of the desired outcome. This way, volunteers can decide whether they can volunteer whilst maintaining their other commitments. Be positive yet realistic. 

The opportunity description is the first port of call for opportunity information. Ensure this is filled out with detailed yet clear information as to the purpose of the volunteering opportunity; not just what the opportunity involves.

Recognition

Remind volunteers of their impact! If a volunteer is unaware of the difference they are making, they may be quick to lose interest. Follow the achievement of a pre-defined outcome with recognition. Without recognition, volunteers may lose sight of the volunteering opportunity’s purpose and their achievements.

With TeamKinetic, a volunteer’s ‘achievements’ are visible to the volunteer within the system. As an admin, you can see impact reports of whole volunteer groups. It’s worth using this data to help recruit additional volunteers.

Examples

Don’t just tell volunteers what success looks like, show them! If a busy person sees a real-life example of a volunteer that they can relate to, they are more likely to volunteer. Showcasing real volunteers also adds credibility to your organisation because volunteers can trust that their needs will be accounted for. The same goes for attracting volunteers from minority groups.

Utilise images during your opportunity creation process. A visual representation can be compelling. The chat feature can also be used to communicate with other volunteers. Volunteers can identify their similarities and discuss how volunteering fits into their lifestyle.

Know your Volunteers

With TeamKinetic, you can invite volunteers to opportunities. This is a great tool for saving both you and your volunteers time. However, if sent inappropriately, busy volunteers can be discouraged from continuing volunteering with your organisation.

Create a ‘group’ for volunteers who have expressed that they only want to volunteer a certain amount of hours per month, for example. This way, you can avoid spamming busy volunteers with invites to opportunities they are most likely unable to attend.

With our recent poll showing that 18% of volunteer managers want to engage more working professionals, it’s time to start motivating busy volunteers. Steer away from the stereotype of volunteers as elderly people with an abundance of free time. Your organisation can welcome all types of volunteers!

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