Recruitment Best Practices
What is Recruitment?
There is no Relay For Life without the participants who attend, fundraise, and join the fight against cancer. That’s why recruitment is a core part of holding a successful Relay For Life event. Recruiting participants means spreading the word about your event both within and beyond your college’s network. This can include anything from hanging up posters, sending DMs, and tabling on campus to presenting at meetings and collaborating with other organizations. There are countless ways to approach recruitment, and this guide aims to highlight a few examples to help guide you.
Why Recruitment Matters:
- Builds a larger community united in the fight against cancer
- Expands your event’s presence on campus and in your community
- Increases fundraising potential
- Strengthens your event’s atmosphere and impact
- Identifies future student leaders and club members
More Participants = More Fundraising Dollars!
- Registration fees add up quickly
- Attendees will buy food, play games, and participate in challenges at the event
- Nobody likes to attend alone…participants will ask their roommates or friends to come with them. Word of mouth goes a long way!
Tailoring Your Ask
Being a Relay For Life volunteer means sometimes having to do difficult things, like asking others for money, presenting in front of large groups of people, or sharing a personal story about your connection to cancer. Although these things take some practice, being courageous and bold can lead to raising more money and awareness for a cause that we all care so deeply about.
This section focuses on “making your ask” to a specific target. When you are recruiting different populations, you can expect a different level of commitment depending on the person or group. It is important that you know what you are asking of them and be realistic about what resources and time they can provide to Relay.
Making the ask could be a variety of things:
- Registering to attend the event
- Creating a new team
- Volunteering at Relay
- Spreading the word about Relay to others in their network
Your ask will be different depending on who you are talking to. Every recruitment conversation needs to end with a clear question. Don’t assume people will know what you want them to do unless you tell them!
You can make your ask in a variety of ways:
- In-person
- Social media/DMs
- Letter/note
Some communication methods are going to be more effective than others. Consider your target and what they are most likely to be responsive to! Different techniques may be required to reach a broader audience and expand your Relay For Life network.
Approaching Recruitment
Your event already has a dedicated group of student leaders committed to the fight against cancer. Each member of your ELT brings their own network of connections, including friends, roommates, other campus clubs, and community connections. Leveraging these networks can make recruitment far more effective. Although cold outreach can sometimes be successful, a personal ask goes a long way. It is usually a lot harder to say no to a friend than to a stranger!
Recruitment Wheel Resource
50 Teams Resource
Circle of Influence
ACS Staff Partner
Prioritize In-Person Recruitment
There’s no better way to recruit than through genuine, face-to-face conversations. In-person recruitment allows you to share your passion, explain what makes your Relay For Life event special, answer questions, and even guide people through the registration process on the spot. Most importantly, it gives others a friendly face to connect to your event and its mission. There are countless ways to engage in in-person outreach, including:
- Presenting at club or organization meetings
- Tabling in high-traffic areas on campus
- Attending other campus events to network and make connections
- Grabbing coffee or lunch with a potential team captain
- Starting conversations with classmates, teammates, coworkers, or professors
Check out the Recruitment Tools section to learn more about these strategies!