Preparing for the Fall recruitment season shouldn’t start when you return to campus in August. The best time to prepare is now! Summer recruitment may not be popular on your campus, but that does not mean it can’t be beneficial. There are several strategies your chapter can take advantage of this summer to boost your recruitment efforts and help you win recruitment.

Name Generation: One of the most important aspects of a great recruitment program is name generation, and the summer is a great time to begin. Great strategies include a recruitment scholarship, social media marketing, alumni referrals, and chapter organization referrals. There are several resources available on pikes.org and the myPIKE resource center to help your chapter get started. Check out the marketing tools, the alumni referral letter, and the scholarship program guide to help build your list of potential new members.

Chapter Builder: If your chapter is not utilizing Chapter Builder to execute your recruitment program, you are missing out. Chapter Builder is a recruitment software designed to make your recruitment process more efficient and effective. It does so by making organization and communication effortless, while also encouraging chapter-wide involvement in the recruitment process. Sign up for a FREE Chapter Builder webinar with TechniPhi, or, contact your past recruitment chairman or the Director of Membership Growth (cvanderlugt@pikes.org) to access your account and get your chapter started. You can also read more about Chapter Builder at pikes.org.

Summer recruitment events: There may be cities or high schools that regularly have several high school seniors attend your university. Host recruitment events in these areas to engage with incoming students before the fall semester! Great events could include barbecues/cookouts, bowling, sporting events, and more. Utilize name generation techniques or a recruitment scholarship to collect the names of these men and reach out to invite them to an event!

Retreats: Does your chapter utilize its members to plan for the upcoming recruitment season? A recruitment retreat is a great tool to utilize to ensure all chapter members can participate in the preparation stages. A recruitment retreat is a great time to brainstorm and plan events, build the recruitment schedule, set SMART goals, generate names of potential new members, and create the recruitment committee. Even during this time where we cannot meet physically, chapters can utilize platforms such as Zoom or Google Hangouts to conduct a virtual retreat.

Fall recruitment is not won solely based off what your chapter does in the fall semester. Rather, it takes appropriate preparation and planning to ensure the chapter is ready to execute its program and win recruitment. Take advantage of these tools and strategies and win recruitment this coming fall!