CHAPTER SESSION: Why Did They Say “No”?

Induction is a special time for the candidate because your association's chapter is embracing this individual who has dedicated his or her time and energy to obtaining an invitation. This is also a special time for the chapter because new members bring new enthusiasm and energy into the group. However, there will be a percentage of candidates who decline the invitation, or who do not respond at all. Does your chapter know what your acceptance rate is? Has it increased or decreased in the last few years? Do you know how you can increase it?

Understanding why candidates decline your invitation can allow the chapter to make changes to the recruitment and induction processes in order to positively influence the acceptance rates for your chapter.

This session will use the Society Pride and Awareness Recruitment Kit to address:

• The chapter's recruitment efforts. Did you reach your potential candidates early and often enough?
• Did you create awareness among nonmembers effectively?
• Did you host a Prospective-Member Meeting to address expectations of candidates?
• Was the invitation effective?
• How can you follow-up with those who said "no" or "maybe" to see why they did not accept? Via email survey, telephone, or mailed card? 
• Who is responsible for ensuring these actions are taken?

Attendees will complete an activity to determine survey questions that can be sent to those who did not accept their invitation, and learn the best practices to put in place in your retention and induction processes to continue to increase your acceptance rate. Once you have the survey delivered to those candidates, you can address the issues that were raised and re-invite those candidates (and make changes to chapter operations moving forward).

This session will use the Society Pride and Awareness Recruitment Kit as a baseline resource for recruitment and induction processes of association chapter leaders.