[FuzzieAlum]

There are several things a GLO needs to expand:

1) A good reputation that will get its foot in the door for expansions. Locals need to have heard good things about it; the school's Panhel needs to know it has a strong national reputation. Is the chapter doing a good job of keeping existing chapters open? Is it a leader in policy and planning?

2) Alums in the expansion area to help new chapters out. This is where organizations that are strong in one region but not in another can have problems. You want to expand to Wyoming, but you've never had a chapter there or in Montana or the Dakotas. Can a new chapter really get the support it needs, fiscally and in advice and time?

3) Money, sad but true. Some schools, like Justamom has written, have enormous financial barriers to entry - a chapter needs to come in with a multi-million dollar chapter house. But even in the cheapest scenario, the national spends time and money to send consultants, money on parties, a loan for the house - and local alums chip in, too.

Depending on which difficulty a GLO is facing, it can approach things differently. If its reputation is weak, it's time for nationals to come forward with a strong vision; to first bolster existing chapters; to update its web page; etc. If it is regionally weak, it can do a couple of things. Let's say it only has chapters east of the Mississippi. It can creep gradually west, taking advantage of nearby alums to spread its influence. Or it could leap into a major city like LA which is going to have lots alums due its sheer size. If money is the problem, it may be time for a capital campaign, or to add alumnae dues. (Or, it could push for recruiting rich girls - j/k!)

Some of these problems are self-perpetuating. Let's say ABC and DEF both have ten chapters, but ABC is at schools where average size is 50, and DEF is at schools where average size is 150. Guess which one will have more alums and more money (and a more famous rep) after ten years. So in most cases DEF will have the advantage. However, if Small College has an expansion opportunity, it might actually pick ABC, presuming it knows that niche better than DEF.

Most of this is more easily said then done, of course. Cranky old leaders may not want to modernize their org. Poorer alums just can't give as much financially. And you can't export your alums to a different region as if they were corn or something!

You could ask the smaller orgs to stick together, but would that really happen? I doubt it.