Need to recruit... a lot

[rispe]

Hi, I'm the recruitment chair for the ri beta chapter at URI. We are a balance man chapter of about 35 brothers, which is on the lower end for my campus with most frats having like 50. There are about a dozen frats on campus with about 12,000 students in total. Right now we are having an issue that half my chapter will be seniors next year and our goal is to bring in enough brothers in order to receive our charter. We have a house on campus BUT it is being rented out to the school until we can get the numbers for a charter in order to move in. This means for the coming year I basically have to double the size of the chapter. The school has an informal rush and I plan on implementing recruitment teams, with each team being required to join an an on campus organization to bring in new guys. I also have the problem that we are considered kind of a lame frat on campus, which is definately not the case any longer with the guys we have now. Besides this I am not sure what can be done besides the ushual poker nights, football on the quad, etc. to do for events. So basically what would you reccommend in order for us to improve our reputation and bring in lots of quality guys?

[pshsx1]

Is RI Beta working on rechartering or are you still a fully active chapter?

Anyway, you have to show potential members why exactly it's great to be a SigEp. Prove that the Fraternity is not just doing great things Nationally, but is a leader on campus. Younger brothers are also very important (especially the ones living in housing) b/c they were freshmen just a year ago and can relate the best. Check out the events that work for the other fraternities on campus and see if you can do something similar. Also, FREE FOOD always gets people out whether they're interested in the fraternity or not. Almost all of our rush events involve food (and every event is free for non-members) and they bring out a lot of guys, some who aren't interested in SigEp who we can eventually talk into joining once they learn what we stand for.

We're facing a similar problem. We lost a small number of guys due to grades, a good number of seniors graduated, and about 70% of the last Fall rush class deactivated. That isn't the norm for our chapter, but we're ready to face this semester with success.

[rispe]

Originally Posted by pshsx1

Is RI Beta working on rechartering or are you still a fully active chapter?

Anyway, you have to show potential members why exactly it's great to be a SigEp. Prove that the Fraternity is not just doing great things Nationally, but is a leader on campus. Younger brothers are also very important (especially the ones living in housing) b/c they were freshmen just a year ago and can relate the best. Check out the events that work for the other fraternities on campus and see if you can do something similar. Also, FREE FOOD always gets people out whether they're interested in the fraternity or not. Almost all of our rush events involve food (and every event is free for non-members) and they bring out a lot of guys, some who aren't interested in SigEp who we can eventually talk into joining once they learn what we stand for.

We're facing a similar problem. We lost a small number of guys due to grades, a good number of seniors graduated, and about 70% of the last Fall rush class deactivated. That isn't the norm for our chapter, but we're ready to face this semester with success.

We are still an active chapter, and right now are considered a colony. Also I have set up recruitment teams which include a mix of younger and older brothers to try and get the younger brothers as involved as possible. My chapter also tries to make as many of our rush events something with food too but we've had mixed success with it. We usually have trivia night at applebees, cigar nights, hooters wing nights and that sort of thing with mixed success. What events have you found to be the most effective for your chapter?

[pshsx1]

By far, Buffalo Wild Wings, Laser Tag (big in the fall, a flop in the Spring), and Shield's (local restaurant) are our biggest (and most expensive) events by far.
Also bowling and a pool tourney seem to pull out a good number of potentials as well.

And our most successful afternoon events are when we bring in Subway and a Guitar Hero Tournament.

[ASTalumna06]

Here is another thread with a fraternity member asking a question similar to yours. I have posted many ideas there. http://www.greekchat.com/gcforums/sh...d.php?t=100682

Originally Posted by rispe

Also I have set up recruitment teams which include a mix of younger and older brothers to try and get the younger brothers as involved as possible. My chapter also tries to make as many of our rush events something with food too but we've had mixed success with it. We usually have trivia night at applebees, cigar nights, hooters wing nights and that sort of thing with mixed success. What events have you found to be the most effective for your chapter?

The recruitment teams can really work to your advantage if you utilize them well. For instance, challenge each team (of no more than 3 or 4 brothers, ideally) to organize one small rush activity on their own, and get at least 2 potential members to attend. It could be something as simple as eating lunch together on campus. This will allow for a few brothers to get to know a few potentials in a more intimate setting. A potential meeting 3 brothers at first is a lot less intimidating than having to meet 35. From there, the potentials will be more likely to attend larger events because they will know at least a few people there.

And I can't stress this enough... have events on campus! If you want to hold a few events at restaurants with potentials that you know will show up (because maybe they're friends with a brother), that's fine. But you won't meet new people by going out to Applebee's or Hooters, because for the most part, potentials who don't know any of you aren't going to show up at a restaurant to meet up with a bunch of strangers.

[pshsx1]

Oh, btw, our Rush is 2 weeks long and most of our big stuff happens 2nd week b/c, by then, everyone's bringing their roommates and floormates.

And we have a lunch event and a night event everyday (minus Sunday). The lunch events are great times for a lot of 1 on 1 because they're on campus at the booth. A lot of time, new guys will come sit at the booth and eat with us at all times of the day.

[Gusteau]

I'm sorry for the crash, but you guys are driving me crazy! Stop focusing on big events, in fact, stop focusing on Rush. You could have an awesome, fun schedule of rush events and no one would show up because they don't know a. anyone in your fraternity, b. anything about the location of events. You can't just expect people to show up.

Meet new guys, become friends with them, introduce them to your friends (read:brothers) and then introduce them to the fraternity. If people know and like you and feel like you've gotten to know each other then they'll want to join. They don't want to join a fraternity, they want to join other people. Please read the thread posted above, ASTalumna gives EXCELLENT advice!

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by Gusteau

They don't want to join a fraternity, they want to join other people. Please read the thread posted above, ASTalumna gives EXCELLENT advice!

Thank you

And yes, holding large events will only cost you extra planning, extra money, and extra disappointment when people you don't know don't show up. Either that, or you'll plan something like a party or concert, and the only people you'll talk to are other brothers (and/or girls).

You think that everyone else sees you as the "lame" fraternity on campus. So change that! Use advertising to your advantage, rather than to your disadvantage (which happens quite often, especially with fraternities). Whatever you do, don't put up posters with a one sentence joke or pun and then say, "Rush Sig Ep!" because every other chapter is probably doing the same thing. ACTIVELY do something positive and/or creative to allow people to know who you are. THEN really work on meeting new people during your two weeks of rush.

For example (and I love this example), I believe I read this on PhiredUp.com (go there after you finish reading this for a ton of information about how to recruit!). One fraternity chapter at some school (can't remember which one) posted bright pieces of paper all over campus for one week.. the paper simply said, in big letters, "ASK HER." Everyone wondered all week what they were supposed to ask, and to whom. On Friday, tons of girls who volunteered to help the fraternity were walking around campus wearing bright t-shirts that read, in big letters, "ASK ME." When people approached the girls, they handed them information about that particular fraternity. *the fraternity cleaned up all of the flyers later that day.

THAT's how you get people to remember you. Or you could do something as simple as splitting up into small groups and walking around campus collecting money for your philanthropy. But keep in mind that that's only the start. From there, you have to go out and introduce yourself to new people.

[Gusteau]

^^^Wow to that example! I wonder if you could do it effectively at both large and small schools...hmm.

But the idea is you have to be doing something active - you can't expect people to just show up because you most likely don't have the numbers or name recognition to lean on that. Has anyone ever told you about screwing guys? No, not like that. When you screw a guy you shake his hand that way he's "screwed in" to talking to you. Its essential to starting up a conversation to meet new people you can recruit. It may not sound like a lot but it's incredible to see in action. If you just say, "Hey" a guy can easily just walk away but if you shake someone's hand you start a conversation.

Funny side story about "screwing" - We were talking about recruitment goals in our last exec meeting of the semester and we were talking about how many guys we would want to screw by a certain date. We set a goal of screwing 300 guys (practical digression - if each of your 35 members screws 10 guys and gets their names and numbers you have 350 potential recruits) Anyway one of our advisers was unfamiliar with the terminology and became very confused for the duration of the conversation but politely didn't say anything. Then someone noticed how confused he looked and asked him if he knew what we were talking about. He said, "I really hope not!"

I'm going to send you a list of ideas from Phired Up that my HQ gives out - if anyone else is interested let me know!

[pshsx1]

^^ Ha wow. We just call that locking a guy in, not screwing a guy in.

[Gusteau]

Originally Posted by pshsx1

^^ Ha wow. We just call that locking a guy in, not screwing a guy in.

Oh, but that's no fun!

[ASTalumna06]

Originally Posted by Gusteau

When you screw a guy you shake his hand that way he's "screwed in" to talking to you.

I have heard this so many times...

Originally Posted by Gusteau

Oh, but that's no fun!

...and it really is that much more fun

[pshsx1]

lol I'll try to get it started at our next recruitment meeting :P


Oh, and to the OP, PLEASE do NOT bid every random douche nozzle that walks in the door. Too many SigEp chapters crap out bids just to meet numbers.