Don’t Spook Your Volunteers Away This Holiday Season

Don’t Spook Your Volunteers Away This Holiday Season

If the smell of pumpkin in the air hasn’t made it feel enough like Fall yet, the sight of ghosts and ghouls roaming the streets soon will. This is Halloween season and with it comes promise of fright as night descends. For children, zombies and witches are the big scare this time of year, but for adults, it’s the looming hustle and bustle of the holiday season, which has now officially kicked off.

For non-profits, this fright is even more terrifying. Not only are you managing your own hectic schedule but you’re doing so with fewer volunteers than usual. If you’ve noticed your team shrinking away from lending a helping hand during the holiday season, here are a few tips to help.

Host a Contest

‘Tis the season for festive fun. Unfortunately, with all that your volunteers have on their to do list, the last thing the holiday season feels like is fun.

To keep your volunteers engaged, excited, and energetic about helping out, host a contest to add some cheer to your non-profit. If you run a thrift store, host a sales contest to get your volunteers excited about racking up hours at the register and on the floor. If you have a few fundraisers planned, host a contest to see how many people each volunteer can get to attend.

By gamifying the volunteer experience, you’ll naturally infuse fun into your non-profit and the results will pay off.

Talk to Community Groups

This is the time of year that many small community groups are looking for ways to give back. Families that want to show their children how to have a giving spirit during the holidays are also on the hunt for places to volunteer.

Publicize the openings in your schedule. To fill the gaps, reach out to community groups or use public forums solicit familial help in your area.

Be Open and Honest

Don’t shy behind your need for more hands on deck this time of year. People want to know where to help but if they don’t know you’re in need of a few extra volunteers, they might not think of your organization first.

Publicize the times when you need help the most and make a call to those around you. Get your volunteers involved with finding other people to fill the gaps. Let the community know that you need some extra help. The more people you tell the more likely you will be to find people who are eager to give their time.

This Will Be Your Year

Don’t be a humbug this holiday season. And don’t let those openings on your schedule send shivers up your spine. By making your need known and engaging those around you, you’ll have enough helping hands to make it through the last few months of the year.

Author Profile Jon Forknell is the Vice President and General Manager of Atlas Business Solutions, Inc., a software marketing company specializing in employee scheduling software, including ScheduleBase employee scheduling software, and other business software solutions. In the past, Jon has been recognized by the U.S. Small Business Administration as a SBA Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Atlas Business Solutions was named as one of Software Magazine’s Top 500 Software Companies in 2004 through 2007 and again in 2010, 2013 and 2014.