How can you find volunteers for your sports association?

With the new season upon us, it’s already time to start planning your volunteer management. Recruiting volunteers is a major challenge for all organizations. Volunteers are also essential to the smooth running of sports associations.

MonClubSportif has put together a list of tips to help you make the most of the recruitment period.

Start by determining the positions and occasions for which you need volunteers. For example, how many volunteer coaches do you need for the winter season? How many volunteers do you need to organize your local tournament? The club’s annual general meeting can be an ideal time to define these needs.

Make a chart that lists all the essential elements you need to have on hand to get an overview of your needs.

Example of a requirements table :

You may wish to prepare a brief description of the tasks the volunteer will be expected to perform, so that he or she has a clear understanding of his or her role in the organization.

To recruit volunteers, an association must first and foremost put in place a good strategy. It’s important to determine what kind of person is most likely to want to do the job, and to find the most effective way of recruiting them.

This technique involves asking people who already know your organization. This might include players’ parents, siblings, people who have already volunteered or been involved with your association.

For example, coaches of recreational teams are often parents who decide to get involved with their child’s team. At the start of the season, you can offer parents the chance to get involved in their child’s team.

Depending on the type of person you have targeted, there are several mediums available to you:

Social media

You can use your social media to solicit people who know you and already like your page. However, if you want your publication to circulate more widely and go beyond your network, you can boost your Facebook post. It’s a simple and effective way of giving your content more visibility for advertising beginners. This option lets you determine your budget and target your audience’s interests.

In your publication, it will be important to highlight the positive spin-offs that volunteers gain from their experience, as well as the impact their actions can have on young athletes. It may also be appropriate to publish testimonials from your loyal volunteers, so that they can share their experience of volunteering with your organization. The aim is to show that volunteering with your association is fun and that you feel a sense of accomplishment.

Platforms specially designed to find volunteers

Use matchmaking platforms like JeBenevole.ca to find volunteers. These platforms enable volunteers to find assignments that interest them, and associations to contact potential candidates directly.

In your message, highlight the values of your sports association, the tasks the candidate will be asked to perform and what he or she will gain from the experience.

Remember to thank your volunteers for their involvement in your sports association. This small, simple gesture can have a big impact on your association. Volunteers will appreciate being recognized for their time.

Once you’ve filled all your volunteer needs for the coming year, keep their contact details in a safe place and ask them next year if they’d like to repeat the experience. Make sure you ask questions about their motivations, and remain flexible with them when it comes to task possibilities. Try to offer them a variety of tasks so that they can grow in different ways within your association.

Also, using a sports team management platform can help increase the retention rate of your volunteer coaches. By providing them with the right tools to help them manage their team, you’ll save them a lot of management time, so they’ll be more inclined to repeat the experience the following season.