Thanks! :)
There seems to be a webpage officer at each sorority but apparently they are not making it a priority to keep the site updated and current:confused:...plus all the girls need to turn in pix so the webmaster can post them I would think - so it really shouldn't be left up to just one person but rather a focus that the sorority as a whole participates in with adding ideas and getting the gpa standings and philanthropy happenings etc.!

I had a brief conversation with a member who had been one chapter's webpage person, and depending on whether the group is supposed to host the page from the university's website, it gets more complicated with passwords and access than it really ought to be (or at least that's what she told me.)

I think we also have to remember that if the chapter isn't using it internally, then it might be kind of a misplaced priority, despite how much I like well done ones, other than for recruitment PR.

When you look at the webpages for the chapters at UGA, most look like they only exist for the sake of recruitment. They seem to get updates very infrequently. Most of the bid day updates are from 2006.

Believe me, being the webmaster is not all fun. Particularly since, as you said, you spend most of your time bugging other people for pictures. As a webmaster, I could put any information up that people wanted, but I'm not the PR chair, and it shouldn't be my job to collect the information from each member. Oh well. :p

Realistically, a chapter probably doesn't need an internal, password protected website. That's what email lists are for.

That's why I think the PR chair should be in charge of the website. Unfortunately, in my experience the website is set up by a member's boyfriend and then they graduate and no one knows how to update it.

Or facebook groups nowadays. That's where PNMs get their information from, too. :rolleyes:

In the case I mention, the passwords were just for her to update and apparently it was too much from her perspective.

If it's only an external PR tool, then it doesn't have to get updated much but if the chapter tries to put a lot of information only of real interest to members, house menus, for example, which seem to be weirdly common, on it, then it's pretty obvious when they haven't been updated and it makes you wonder, hey, it they aren't really using this, why do they bother pretending?

The chapters at UT-Knoxville have wonderful websites that wouldn't require frequent updates. Chapters could copy these for recruitment purposes and look really good!

Unfortunately, the PR person rarely has the ability to update the website :-/
That's odd, you definitely want a password to update the site. That's something you want controlled. And I'd suspect house members know the menu and it's just another recruitment enticement.

I think in this case, the person who had the responsibility just wasn't particularly skilled at the job. But she was honestly hampered by the complexity and frequency that password and login information was changed on the university site. They are much better off not being on the official university site, and that's something for chapters to consider. It also seems that some groups are linked into the national organization site and design in a way that could be limiting locally.

I agree that menu, etc, could be a recruitment tool, but when it's wildly out of date, it makes you wonder what was up with that?

I'd either set the site up to actually be used by members for timely information and actually keep it timely OR have the content basically be static with a cycle of annual replacement with this year's events: bid day, philanthropy, formal, social, sisterhood events, etc. It just looks bad when it's obvious that it's one thing trying to pretend to be the other.

ttt

That is a great question!
 

I would do it through conversation. At the door, whoever is greeting the PNM's should know them by name "Carnation, we are so glad to see you back" Then there needs to be a reaffirmation from the members when meeting the PNM. "I have heard so much about you. I'm so glad your back" As the recruitment progresses I think they need to be honest with the women they want. I don't think there is any thing wrong with telling these women that they do want them and that they would be "perfect helping us rebuild our Chapter" because they have this quality and that quality. This will take a lot more work then normal, but it would be so worth it.

In terms of crying at Pref- that is a hard one. I think it is so frustrating for a PNM to have to go to party they don't want to be at, but it is part of the process. I think in a situation like this you have to sell your Chapter and your Sisters - maybe even introduce them to women in the Chapter who went through the same thing- maybe it is incorporated into your preference ceremony some way. The bottom line is the Chapter needs to find a way to connect with these girls. If they can not then they probably wouldn't be good members any way and the Chapter just needs to walk.

I also think the Chapter needs some type of system that is set up once these women find there way into the Chapter as a new member. Their goal should be to hang onto these women and the PNM's first instinct is going to be to drop. I would try to put someone in charge of these women who is attractive, friendly and outgoing. If there is not a plan you have these folks dropping and that doesn't help a small Chapter either.

Good luck to this group. I hope they have good alumni support and support from Greek Life. I also hope the other Chapters on campus are helpful too.

I'd like to bump it too.

"As the recruitment progresses I think they need to be honest with the women they want. I don't think there is any thing wrong with telling these women that they do want them and that they would be "perfect helping us rebuild our Chapter" because they have this quality and that quality. This will take a lot more work then normal, but it would be so worth it."

This. If the PNM are upset because they got cut, they feel like they are not worth keeping. Having a sister explain to them why your group wants them will make the PNM feel good and that will make her feel good about your group. She will perceive that you are clearly a group of kind, thoughtful, perceptive women if you can see the good qualities in her.

You also need to make them feel like the sisterhood you're offering is worth having. I think they need to see interaction between the sisters, in addition to forming a connection with the sisters.

During the pref ceremony at my KD chapter, the actives not only preffed the PNMs, they included a couple of sisters who had accepted bids through spring informal the year before in the little preference ceremony that they did. Those sisters had already initiated but they'd never been through a pref ceremony. The explanation from the sister who rushed me at pref was that they wanted those women to know that they were chosen, too. I was really impressed by their thoughtfulness for their newest sisters. I knew that they would treat me well. (Looking back, I now know that must have happened for those sisters multiple times because there were multiple pref parties. They got preffed a bunch of times, not just once. LOL.)