Help! Our Club Needs Members

Some clubs seem to add members easily, while other clubs struggle. I’ve seen this in big cities, where there are millions of residents, and in small towns, where the cows outnumber the people.

Three years ago, I moved to one of those remote, small towns. Most of our residents are ranchers, mechanics, and heavy equipment operators. As you might guess, they don’t do a lot of public speaking. Our town does not have large corporations either. Perhaps your situation is similar.

The question is: If you are struggling in the membership department, where can you find potential members? Are you forced to be a small club forever? Where can you find those hidden prospects who need Toastmasters? Let me make some suggestions.

While most of your locals may be in professions that do not speak or lead, there are opportunities to find members that are common to each town, regardless of size.

The first place to look is your friends and coworkers. Who do you know? And don’t overlook former club members. Two of our recent new members are returning members. Invite them to visit an upcoming meeting.

Another characteristic of every town is a local government. Not only do you have people in political office who may need to work on their speaking skills, there are usually a number of boards and commissions that oversee the various functions in the community. Our county alone has 24 boards, not to mention the city and local college commissions. On top of that, you have candidates for many of the offices who will have to speak as part of their campaign. Are they ready? Or could they benefit from club membership? We have several members from this segment.

Your local political parties may have meetings where you can meet the potential candidates. Perhaps a visit is in order.

While your community may not have a strong corporate base, it does have individuals that fall into the professional category. This would include certified public accountants (CPAs), financial planners, insurance brokers, and others. Some of them speak at luncheons to market their services. If they do, are they good enough speakers to gain clients? And perhaps there are a number of service providers that would speak, if they were confident enough in their abilities.

Who prepares your taxes? If you use a local tax consultant, are they interested in checking out your club? If not, who do they know? What about your local real estate agents? They are not shy about advertising, so they should be easy to contact.

Just about every community has at least one service organization that meets on a regular basis. Not only is this a source of contacts for membership, but most groups also have a speaker at each meeting. If you attend, you will find out who is out there speaking in your community—and which ones really need your help. Also, you could be a speaker yourself, showcasing what your club has to offer.

And are you aware that Toastmasters has an alliance with Rotary International? There is already a connection there. How can you take advantage of this relationship?

Your community may also have one or more networking organizations, where business professionals and entrepreneurs connect with one another and help each other find leads. Sometimes, members stand and give a short pitch at each meeting. Again, which ones need some help?

And, finally, each community has some businesses, no matter how small. Most prominent among them are financial institutions. The husband of one of our Toastmasters club officers works at a local bank. The bank is building a new facility which, when ready, will boast a state-of-the-art conference room. We are exploring the possibility of moving our meeting space there, which would provide two benefits. It would be closer to the city center, making our location more convenient to many more people. And it would also enable us to plug into the personnel at the bank, providing another avenue for recruiting.

No matter how limited your options may seem, you have a lot more than may appear at first glance. All it takes is a little creative thinking and a willingness to reach out to those who could benefit from your club. From what I have seen, a lot of people need Toastmasters. Let’s go help them.

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