MEMBERSHIP RETENTION

MEMBERS GUESTS TOASMASTERS

GOOD GETS GREATER

BUILDING A STRONG MEMBER BASE
Being an active member at a Toastmaster club
is truly an enriching experience. Yet there are
times when the interest wanes and it feels like
members are slowly leaking out of the door. As
passionate toastmasters who believe in the value
that the fraternity provides, what are some of the
ways that we can make a difference?

Let’s identify some of the ways we can enhance

the membership experiences through tweaking
the traditional modes of communication.
Social Media
How active are you on the virtual platform using social media? Many of our
clubs use social platforms such as facebook, twitter and instagram to share
the information for the next club meeting. Using this platform is a great idea.
However, it can be much more than just serving in a functional capacity.
Create buzz by sharing the latest information on public speaking or
leadership. Provide an editorial and garner input from members. This
creates a positive enrgy where members can participate and feel revitalised
before the next session. When it comes to information, the world is our
oyster. So having an opinion matters. Get the members involved in the
process. Create polls , highlight opinions, vote for the best and implement
them in your club. Remember, an engaged member is a happy member

Engage members to take charge of Experiment and have fun with the Get the members’ creative juices
portions of meetings. Encourage, meeting agenda. Try different activities working! Have the meeting run
handhold and give positive feedback instead of following the usual format. backwards or even conduct a on the spot
when the job is done. Most members Throw challenges to the members to audio challenge to state the most
leave because they have been summarise the speakers’ speeches and interesting sentence using words without
conditioned to see this as a hobby and not award prize or praise to the best. a letter ‘e’ and have members vote for
a self-development course. their favourite.

Our ultimate challenge as the seasoned and inspired members is to ensure that the meeting is enjoyed and have an enhanced sense
of camaraderie. Don’t be afraid to have fun and laughter in a meeting. Mistakes are meant to happen and we must learn to laugh
with the rest. To be better, we must be willing to try the unknown with a spirit of humility and creativity.

As Maya Angelou said,

“Its not what you say or do, but how you make me feel that is important”

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 AWARDED TOP 20 CLUB
IN THE WORLD FOR
Former President of
Nee Soon East TMC CLIFTON ‘DIV G’ JAMES MEMBER TO AWARD
RATIO
2018-2019

BUILDING A CLUB TO A WORLD CLASS ONE

POINTS TO PONDER
4 TRUSTED WAYS TO BUILD MEMBERSHIP
Club Visits Festive meetings

Bring you new members along for club visits. Introduce Make each meeting count. Celebrate completion of
them and give them the opportunity to take part in the projects and levels. Celebrate the personal and work
meetings . Once its over, have a debrief with them. Let them achievements of members. Celebrate the role players for their
take the lead to visit the next club. work.
Engage members
Adopt a club Prior to meetings , give
In my term of A club is only as good as its members. your members a personal
presidency, my exco call. Encourage them to
members were expected to
Value them, engage them, enrich attend. Speak to them on how
have an adopt a club them.Only then can there be cycle of they are valued in the club
strategy. They were and how they can grow.
expected to visit and have a
growth
relationship with the other
club.
Members by nature can be categorized into inexperienced
The rational behind this was to get best practices from and experienced. There is one commonality though. We all
these sister clubs and to allow members to visualise that we wish to be recognized. Engage the members and give them
are all in the process of learning together. This created the personal touch. It is not only for meetings where we
opportunities for my exco to try out different practices for our converse but out of meetings as well.
club and create a more exciting and unique atmosphere within
each meeting

2
 AWARDED TOP 20 CLUB
IN THE WORLD FOR
Former President of
Nee Soon East TMC CLIFTON ‘DIV G’ JAMES MEMBER TO AWARD
RATIO
2018-2019

BUILDING A CLUB TO A WORLD CLASS ONE

CLUB
FIRST
BUILDING A FLAVOUR
We are constantly told every club is different.
But how unique are clubs really? IF we were to
follow the same format and have the same
expectations wouldn’t every club be
homogenous?

The club seniors and exco members have a

strong part to play here. How do they want the
club to be seen? At Nee Soon East for example,
the club has a motto.

As the “king of the north” we celebrate

everything that is the heartlands. We are more
particular with the efforts for being present
GUEST
CONVERSION
during meetings than the dress code.

We take every member and guest seriously

and constantly find ways to improve the
ambience and process while having a laid back,
fun manner during meetings.
PULLING THEM IN
Steps to enhance club uniqueness As a club mentor, advisor 1. BE THE BRAND
and even Area Director, I a. Constantly be a
have been constantly asked, beacon of all that is
 Have members poll what they like good in Toastmasters.
how do we get guests to
about the club Poise, Thought
become members.
 Identify the most mentioned value process and a high
standard when
points
There is no perfect answer speaking to others
 Discuss how this can be further to this question as there are b. Share when asked on
enhanced too many variables to how you have
improved in your
 Set a plan how to enhance the consider. However, during my
speaking.
identified values time working with the clubs, I
 Create a poster at club level , sharing realized that there was one 2. GUESTS MUST BE ENGAGED
that trait. constant that appeared a. Assign members to be
regularly through our the liaison of the day
 Constantly refer to it at meetings planning. for each guest.
 Plan for meetings with themes based b. Share personal stories
around the core values of the club with guests on how TM
ENGAGEMENT has benefitted you
 Meet up regularly to discuss how the c. Contact guests after
uniqueness enhances the member meeting to close the
experience A simple word that has so loop and share the
much power. Here are some positive experience
of the things that we did as a
club.

3
 AWARDED TOP 20 CLUB
IN THE WORLD FOR
Former President of
Nee Soon East TMC CLIFTON ‘DIV G’ JAMES MEMBER TO AWARD
RATIO
2018-2019

BUILDING A CLUB TO A WORLD CLASS ONE

Getting more people aware of

your club
When looking at getting eyes on the club, there are some basic things that should be considered.

 Staple your club information to a Toastmaster magazine and leave it in places that have
greater traffic. (Doctor/Dental offices, Book drops @ libraries, Community Club magazine
rack.
 Be active on Social Media. Update regularly with information and nuggets of interest. Twice a
week at the very least.
 Keeping Club profile/ group page up to date and current.
 Offer the community services or be more involved. Consider taking part as a club to attend
events or volunteer to conduct a free public speaking course for the lower income families
(gather information from your local Grass Roots organization)

The key here is to get together with your Area and Division leaders and find
out ways to improve. Always remember, you are not alone in Toastmasters.
Everyone is a resource and a mentor.

What else can you do to improve the member experience?