1. Form a Membership Committee
- Yes! It’s a real thing!
- You can’t do it alone!
- You shouldn’t try!
- I’m serious!
2. Choose a Campaign Theme
- Having a theme generates interest and enthusiasm.
- Display your theme in a high-traffic area of the school.
- Show the results of your campaign.
3. Set Goals
- Together the membership committee sets goals.
- Make sure the goals are reasonable and attainable, though challenging.
- Remember to choose goals that will fit your individual strengths, comfort level, budget, time, and expertise.
- Post membership goals and progress in a high traffic area of the school and in newsletters.
Examples:
“We will increase our membership by 25% over last year.”
“We will get 100% of teachers to join PTA.”
“We will increase our male membership by 50% over last year.”
4. Target Potential Members
Assign committee members specific responsibilities:
- Retaining members
- Recruiting new members
- Increasing male involvement
- Asking teachers and staff to join
5. Have a Plan
Examples:
“We will set up a membership table at Back-to-School Night.”
“We will have an incentive for the class with the highest percentage of members."
“We will post on our social media sites.”
"We will send a 'join PTA' email blast through Givebacks"
"We will add a 'join button' and/or QR code to all school communication."
6. Sell the Value of PTA Membership
- Recruiting new members goes hand-in-hand with making sure they find value in PTA and renew their membership.
- Emphasize to new members what they get for their membership dues.
- Keep members motivated through on-going communication, opportunities to volunteer, and recognition.
- The number one benefit that PTA members receive from PTA membership is the ability to help their own and other children.
7. Incentivize
- Awards/Prizes:
“The Class with the highest percentage of memberships get…”
“The class with 100% envelopes returned gets…” (empty envelopes are okay!) - Ask the Principal to do something wacky if you reach a certain goal.
- Offer “punch cards” or coupons to members for joining.
- Offer discounts to members on PTA spiritwear or at PTA events.
- Free entrance into the school dance for joining PTSA.
8. Campaign All Year Long
- At every PTA event, have an easy opportunity for people to join who are not yet members. Have a QR code or link to your online store, or be prepared to accept a membership payment.
- Continue to ask parents to join.
- Continue to promote your PTA.
- Ask for a PTA table at major school events.
- Include PTA membership materials in new student packets in the school office.
9. Use Your Resources and Follow Through
- Plans are worthless unless they are put into practice.
- Use available resources - don't reinvent the wheel.
- Be sure to schedule your recruitment and retention activities throughout the year, particularly at Back-to-School Night in the fall and at the start of the new year in January.
- Assign a specific person to be in charge of coordinating the different events, but involve all of your members.
10. Evaluate and Adjust Accordingly
- Continuously seek feedback from committee members on issues such as:
- How many new members they are recruiting.
- How they are helping these new members acclimate to PTA and get involved.
- How many members are staying active. - Regardless of whether the evaluation is done through a formal survey or informal communication, it should be systematic, recorded, and used to adjust and improve the goals of the Membership Committee.