Let me be clear right of the bat.
There is nothing more important to your small group ministry than the quality and quantity of your volunteer leaders.
That being said…your priority needs to be that.
Normally when I talk about the job of getting leaders I talk about treating it like a job interview. You can’t be desperate…and you can’t take just anybody. You have to find the right people. I meant that…and still do.
For this post however…I want you to think like a salesmen. Not that you need to sell the job…but you have to think like a salesmen thinks.
Here’s how a salesmen thinks.
1. I make about 1 sale every 5 meetings.
2. I get one meeting for every 10 cold calls I make.
3. If I’m going to make 3 sales a week, I need to have 15 meetings, and therefor I need to make 150 cold calls a week.
Here at North Point Middle School I think we get around 1 out of every 3 people that come to see the program. By the time they get through the long process, agree to the three year commitment, and get through interviews, 2 of the 3 have fallen off for one reason or another.
In addition to that, it seems that we get 1 out of every 3 people who say they’re interested after an intitial “sales pitch” to actually show up to observe. Whether they say they will to get us off their back or feel inspired in the moment, I have no idea. The reality is, that’s how hard it is to get people in the environment so you can cast vision and talk about the program.
So, in order to get the 80 new leaders we need a year, we have to get 240 people to come and observe, meaning we have to make 720 “sales pitches” a year….whew!
Let’s say you need 10 new leaders a year. That means you need 30 come to observe and 90 “sales pitches” a year.
Here’s my point. That’s not how most of us think. We think the 10 we are talking to are going to work out. We’ve got to get realistic.
Here’s point #2. You can’t do that alone. You definitely can’t do that if you have to worry about programs, curriculum, speaking on Sunday, crazy moms and dads, picking up a case of Ready Whip for the game on Sunday, and be a decent parent and a spouse to your family. You need help.
You need a system.
Check back soon for Part 2 and some practical ideas on what to do. For now, how do you do it? Let’s share our best practices.
Great post man, there is a balance between the process and recruiting that must exist. Thanks man
Thanks MIchael,
Thanks for the RT as well. Hope to have some helpful practical steps on Thursday.
I like how you think – thanks for the inspiration. You have made me think about being more strategic in securing more leaders. Love it.
Awesome…thanks for reading
Awesome post bro! I’ve already tweeted about it…I may even steal this for a blog post soon if that’s cool…all things pointing back to you of course
Give me credit the first three times…after that it’s your idea. This isn’t my idea originally for sure…
Thanks man.
How do we do that at my church? I am the guy who worries about programming to free up those who do recruiting most of the time.
The fun part is when I get to recruit leaders. I truly love hearing peoples stories and how God is moving in their lives. I have found that my issue is accepting those who might not be a perfect fit out of fear of not having enough to fill the positions. How do I get over that fear? We start in plenty of time so it is not a time crunch fear…maybe I need to trust more.
I have completely lost trust in my “meter” to judge who will be effective. I have so many leaders who I would have guessed wouldn’t work that are Rock Stars. So…I have a really tough application process and I have more than myself involved. I always let someone else talk to them if I’m not convinced. That being said…in our worlds…”Creeped Out” is a valid emotion that you should ALWAYS honor. That is NOT what I mean by not being convinced. Makes sense?
quick question on an old post. Are you saying you do cold calls? Secondly if you do, how do you determine who gets the calls. What are some ways that you are tipped off to call people or pursue them?
I would love to know these answers. Feel free to post a blog if you think it’s worthy enough of a topic.
Thanks for all you do.