By Susan Sanow, CVA
Senior Manager, Volunteer Management Education
Appreciate What’s Ahead
The holiday season sees a surge in demands – from both service recipients as well as people seeking the volunteer experience. It is after all, the season of giving. Even in September, there are preparations we should be doing now.
Did you know:
- 30% of all donations for nonprofits are made in December.
- 16% of adults volunteer about 2 hours a month between Thanksgiving and Christmas (5% more than the rest of the year).
- Businesses are more likely to take part in holiday giving providing a source of volunteer groups.
Source: https://get.noblehour.com/holiday-volunteering-a-great-time-to-start-lifelong-passion/
Make it Easy to Hear from Potential Volunteers
Don’t lose anyone during the holiday volunteer inquiry/registration process. Check and double check the process of how holiday volunteers will connect with your organization. Look at all your communication vehicles: email, website, text or phone call. Let your current volunteers know what you are seeking during the holiday season. If they reach out to their networks, too, you want it to be a successful connection.
Make the Benefits of Holiday Volunteering Known to Your Colleagues
Ask other departments now if they have potential needs/projects for holiday volunteers – this can be skilled-based tasks or general support? Colleagues can also put the word out to their networks for the call for holiday volunteers.
Make it Easy to Find the Surge of Volunteers
Reach out to volunteers that have joined your volunteering team during the year (attended an orientation, a training, and have begun to volunteer). Make sure they know the process – and priority – to register for volunteering during your holiday season. If you hosted a corporate day to serve, be sure to reach out to these hot prospects. Deepen the engagement, by reminding them they joined the volunteer family and they are invited to register for the holiday period.
Increase Your Communications Methods on How to Become a Holiday Volunteer
Use your email signature and out-of-office message to remind people what they need to do to become a holiday volunteer. They may not know the process – when does registration open, what type of tasks will be available, when is the defined holiday period, etc.?
When All Your Volunteering Holiday Slots are Full, Now What?
As Volunteer Managers, are we always thinking about volunteer retention? When the door opens to holiday volunteers, what should we do to help a seasonal volunteer join us at other times during the year, too. If you are 100% full for volunteers, be prepared with a message of “thank you for your interest, we have slots open after the holidays. ”
When the Phone Rings the night before Thanksgiving or Christmas
Personally, this is my most frustrating ask. The response needs to be part education (“we begin setting up our holiday volunteers in October; our volunteering slots are filled for tomorrow.”) and recruitment (“We love your interest; let’s have you attend our next new volunteer orientation in January”). Another option – have an at-home project flyer ready to go. The secret is that these calls are 100% about volunteer recruitment.
Statistics to Track Hosting Holiday Volunteers
Tracking key statistics during this special time of year is essential. Consider monitoring these data points (Make it easy, Pick 5 data points):
- Number of Volunteer Sign-Ups: Track both early and last-minute registrations to determine the flow and identify peak periods for demand.
- Retention Rate: Track how many holiday volunteers return for future opportunities, helping you assess the effectiveness of your holiday engagement strategies.
- Waitlist Size: are you filled and moving to a wait list? Note how many individuals express interest after slots are filled. That’s an indicator of program popularity and potential for expansion.
- Volunteer Hours Completed: Log total and average hours served per volunteer. It can help identify shifts that may be understaffed or overburdened.
- Task Coverage: Follow which tasks attract the most volunteers and where gaps exist. It will help anticipate needs and opportunities in future years.
- Cancellation and No-Show Rates: O the frustration! Keep a tally of last-minute cancellations and no-shows to spot patterns and improve scheduling contingency plans. Is this happening closer to the actual holiday?
- Volunteer Satisfaction: Develop a short post-holiday volunteer survey to gauge morale and gather feedback for improvement. It also is an opportunity to educate for future volunteering needs.
- Source of Volunteers: Track whether volunteers come through internal requests, external networks, or corporate partnerships. It will help refine future holiday recruitment efforts.
- Follow-up Engagement: Measure how many holiday volunteers sign up for subsequent opportunities throughout the year, revealing your retention and conversion success.
By keeping an eye on these metrics, you can not only manage the surge but also prioritize building up your year-round volunteer community.
Best of luck to you during this volunteering holiday season!