Colony to Chapter

[Purch]

Hey guys,
I go to UC Santa Cruz and out TKE colony (#852) has been around for 4 official quarters now and we are on the brink of becoming official. We have 23 actives and we need another 20 in this upcoming Spring rush (April 1-14).
- We do not have a house

I was wondering if you guys have had any killer rushes in the past with really successful events that we could try out. So far I have Frozen turkey bowling, slosh-ball, and some sorority events as well.

We really need a knock-out rush event schedule to blow the other frats outta the water, any help or other threads where this is discussed will help us out more than you guys even know.

Thanks,
- Nick

[excelblue]

Not in TKE, but just some general advice:

- People don't join a fraternity for their events; they join for the people. As a result, any event you do have needs to emphasize how cool you are and why your target group would want to join.

- Continuous recruitment is very important; you aren't going to get the best guys with just one "killer rush." Otherwise, you are likely only either going to get either few people or low retention.

- Have you utilized your HQ or Greek Life Office as resources? If not, they may provide great information and specific tips for your situation.

[Purch]

We are having a night out on the o'neil yacht for a cruise, but not until the day after the pledges accept the bids so they don't just rush for the free ride.

We have been asking around now and getting a lot of students interested, but they dont really know where to go for more info because of our lack of housing.

We have an Inter-greek-council (IGC) but there is no official school office to help us. Lame...

[excelblue]

Do you have a website? If not, try to get something up. Ask around your friends. In fact, even something as simple as a blog (think tumblr, blogger, and wordpress), combined with Twitter is effective.

As for reaching out to members: do you keep lists of contact info? Do you use the info? You should actively call potentials and invite them out to events, if not small meals.

My fraternity is unhoused, and the events are only a way to meet potentials so we can do the lunches/dinners later. Nobody gets a bid without a 1-on-1, and that's where we allow the potentials to convince themselves that they want to join. Just keep in mind that my fraternity's target group consists of (usually) shy engineers, so this may not necessarily work for you.

[jnowak530]

The best thing you can do is stay in contact with them. Killer Rushes help get people to meet your brothers but after that it's making sure you follow up with them that'll make a difference.

[kArSoN RyDaH]

A "killer rush" would only be beneficial if those people who are rushing acctually click with the members in your chapter and they accept the bids.

I encourage you to just keep advertising as much as possible. Honestly, if it wasn't for advertising I would never have known that fraternities on my campus even existed.

You should just put up posters and stuff and make sure you recruit all the guys.


Good luck.

[dnall]

Not a TKE as well, but...

As others have said, event concepts get far too much attention. Think about it like this - a girl doesn't go out with a dirtbag because it's a cool date idea. Well maybe she would, but she probably won't continue to see you & if she would she's just using you and will bail at first chance. You wouldn't want any part of someone like that, be they girl or rushee.

Sure, it's nice to publicize something that'll get people out, but actual events are about making rushees feel very relaxed and comfortable so both sides can make friends as quickly as possible with no pressure.

Not to be harsh, but doubling up your numbers in one rush is neither very likely or necessarily a great idea.

I don't entirely get how quarters work, but 20 fall & 10 spring would be a 100-120man chapter if you had perfect retention. After a year you have 23 guys. You aren't exactly rushing or retaining like a 100-man chapter. No amount of amazing events is going to change that in one rush. You need to worry less about events and completely rethink how you're recruiting.

Someone mentioned recruiting is a year-round process. What that means is you need to be out making friends with guys that weren't necessarily going to go through rush & selling them on you. Those guys will enter the rush process already 90% locked in & you can spend the majority of your effort on new faces. I don't know what the restrictions are on your campus, but if you don't make your goal in formal rush, if you can continue to add people after the fact (COB) then you should do a lot of that.

I don't know if you have 23 guys now because your recruiting badly or you've recruited well and not retained anyone, but either way if you are actually able to pick up anything close to 20 you need to take a hard look at retention because it's going to be very hard to hold on to them.

Since you've been through this colony process, I know it won't scare you when I say you have a lot of work ahead of you. Good luck. I really do hope you pull it off.

[knoxie13]

Originally Posted by dnall

Not a TKE as well, but...

As others have said, event concepts get far too much attention. Think about it like this - a girl doesn't go out with a dirtbag because it's a cool date idea. Well maybe she would, but she probably won't continue to see you & if she would she's just using you and will bail at first chance. You wouldn't want any part of someone like that, be they girl or rushee.

Sure, it's nice to publicize something that'll get people out, but actual events are about making rushees feel very relaxed and comfortable so both sides can make friends as quickly as possible with no pressure.

Not to be harsh, but doubling up your numbers in one rush is neither very likely or necessarily a great idea.

I don't entirely get how quarters work, but 20 fall & 10 spring would be a 100-120man chapter if you had perfect retention. After a year you have 23 guys. You aren't exactly rushing or retaining like a 100-man chapter. No amount of amazing events is going to change that in one rush. You need to worry less about events and completely rethink how you're recruiting.

Someone mentioned recruiting is a year-round process. What that means is you need to be out making friends with guys that weren't necessarily going to go through rush & selling them on you. Those guys will enter the rush process already 90% locked in & you can spend the majority of your effort on new faces. I don't know what the restrictions are on your campus, but if you don't make your goal in formal rush, if you can continue to add people after the fact (COB) then you should do a lot of that.

I don't know if you have 23 guys now because your recruiting badly or you've recruited well and not retained anyone, but either way if you are actually able to pick up anything close to 20 you need to take a hard look at retention because it's going to be very hard to hold on to them.

Since you've been through this colony process, I know it won't scare you when I say you have a lot of work ahead of you. Good luck. I really do hope you pull it off.

I happen to go to the same school as Purch and have been in the Greek system since TKE was starting up. The issue isn't that they have bad member retention, the issue is that we go to a school with a very small Greek life and it's really hard for new groups to break into the system. He's looking for a way from them to stand out in rush from the few big fraternities.

[excelblue]

I'd actually have to say that the advice on reaching out to potentials (active recruitment) actually applies more in this case.

In fact, if Greek life is small, a lot of people probably have the idea that it's all about drunk parties. I'm from California, and talking to a few friends who go to UCSC, this stereotype is pretty much what they perceive the Greek system to be all about.

If you amp up the events, do you really think you'd actually get the people you want? People don't go to rush events unless they're comfortable with the idea of rush in the first place.

So, it basically comes to: yes, there's a need to stand out, but you'll actually stand out much more if you reach out to new members you like in a non-intimidating way and show them what it's actually all about and why they'd be a good fit.

[dnall]

Originally Posted by knoxie13

I happen to go to the same school as Purch and have been in the Greek system since TKE was starting up. The issue isn't that they have bad member retention, the issue is that we go to a school with a very small Greek life and it's really hard for new groups to break into the system. He's looking for a way from them to stand out in rush from the few big fraternities.

I respect that. That's a bad situation. I would have to reserve comment somewhat just because I'm not sure how exactly to overcome a stacked deck. No offense to TKE or the school in question or anyone else, but that's a big reason why my fraternity refuses to go to places like that. Even if you can get them off the ground, you're always going to be small, which equals broke, unstable, and struggling for survival. You can still have an exceptional greek experience in that environment, but it's hard to hold onto a chapter that way, much less get going. It's just not the optimal situation we would look for.

Originally Posted by excelblue

I'd actually have to say that the advice on reaching out to potentials (active recruitment) actually applies more in this case.

In fact, if Greek life is small, a lot of people probably have the idea that it's all about drunk parties. I'm from California, and talking to a few friends who go to UCSC, this stereotype is pretty much what they perceive the Greek system to be all about.

If you amp up the events, do you really think you'd actually get the people you want? People don't go to rush events unless they're comfortable with the idea of rush in the first place.

So, it basically comes to: yes, there's a need to stand out, but you'll actually stand out much more if you reach out to new members you like in a non-intimidating way and show them what it's actually all about and why they'd be a good fit.

If I had to give you advice, I guess I'd incline toward this. Going outside the box & values based recruiting are always the best way to get a chapter started.

[ASTalumna06]

Crashing...

Originally Posted by dnall

I respect that. That's a bad situation. I would have to reserve comment somewhat just because I'm not sure how exactly to overcome a stacked deck. No offense to TKE or the school in question or anyone else, but that's a big reason why my fraternity refuses to go to places like that. Even if you can get them off the ground, you're always going to be small, which equals broke, unstable, and struggling for survival. You can still have an exceptional greek experience in that environment, but it's hard to hold onto a chapter that way, much less get going. It's just not the optimal situation we would look for.

Way to be a Debbie Downer.

You make it sound as though his fraternity is “below” yours, and the national organization set them up for failure.

Purch, this is where that ‘glass half full’ stuff comes in handy. Don’t look at being a small chapter as a negative – make it work to your benefit. A few things to emphasize:

1) A close brotherhood. That’s not to say that larger chapters aren’t close, but SHOW people that you hang out together, eat together, study together, etc. Give them reason to believe that having 20 brothers instead of 100 is a plus.

2) Leadership opportunities. Because you’re in a smaller chapter, it gives more of your members the ability to take on leadership roles and join committees. Your members have more of a say in what happens with the chapter, and in which direction it will be heading.

3) The challenge. Some people love a challenge… they like working hard for something. Be humble, but not down on yourselves. Tell people that you’re trying to working hard to become a chapter and establish yourself on campus, and it may be a long road, but in the end it will be worth it.

If there’s nowhere for students to get information about your chapter… give it to them. And don’t just set up a table outside an eatery on campus… and don’t simply hand out pamphlets. Advertising isn’t just about making yourself visible, it’s about making yourself KNOWN. Formally request (through a nice, well thought out letter) that TKE be able to make short speeches/presentations at the beginning of different student organizations’ meetings. It doesn’t have to be anything extensive, just an introduction – making sure to mention the benefits of joining your fraternity over the others (without putting the others down, of course). Mention the points I outlined above, or any others you think of. This is your opportunity to show who you are, but also to compliment your audience… say how you’re looking for involved students who are dedicated to expanding and improving your chapter (in terms of brotherhood, GPA, involvement on campus, etc.) and you thought that this would be the place to look.

Also do this with the sororities. Sorority girls know guys on campus who aren’t in fraternities. Make the same presentation you did with the other organizations, but follow it up by saying, “If there are any men on campus that you believe would be interested in being involved with an organization such as this, we would greatly appreciate your help in bringing them to us..” (but make it sound less cult-like than that ). Hand out paper for all of the girls to write down names on, then contact these men.

Join other student organizations. It’s amazing how many people you can meet this way. Just be sure it’s not a chore for you. With guys, I usually suggest participating in intramurals.

Think outside the box. I know I’ve posted the video on Greekchat before, but I absolutely love these guys: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QShPNcjgtfs

And here’s an article with some great ideas: http://www.phiredup.com/index.php?op...p=418&Itemid=2

On my campus, Theta Phi Alpha had an event every year called “Pie a Theta Phi” where you could pay a dollar to smash a whipped cream pie in a TPA’s face. What a great way to start a conversation, to laugh, and to have a good time with someone new!

If you DO set up a table, do something different. Example: You could have a sign that says “Are You Smarter than a TKE Brother?” and have little puzzles or random trivia questions that a brother and another person has to answer (shouldn’t take any more than a couple minutes), and you can give them candy or something small if they win. For the guys that participate, hand them info about your chapter. I saw something similar to this work wonders for a chapter on my campus years ago at the Student Organization Fair. While students strolled past the other fraternities’ and sororities’ tables, they all spent at least a few minutes at this one fraternity… even if only to look on while other students played games. This allowed the fraternity members to actually converse and interact with the students. The chapter didn’t display paddles or plaques; just a pamphlet that was optional to take, and a names list in order to request more information that no one was pressured into signing. Only a handful of the brothers wore letters, and they had just a fraternity banner hanging from the front of the table. Keep in mind that for potential members who know nothing about Greek life, the letters all look the same to them, and paddles have no meaning. What they’ll remember is a good conversation.

One more thing I’ll suggest you do at your next chapter meeting, and this one is simple – do the same thing I mentioned earlier with the sororities, but do it with your own chapter (obviously excluding the whole presentation part of it). At the end of the meeting, hand out a piece of paper to each of your members. Instruct them to write, as quickly as they can, the names of ALL of the men on campus they know who are not part of a Greek organization – their friends, roommates, guys in their dorm, fellow athletes, the guy who sits next to them in class, etc. When wondering who to invite to those 1-on-1 hang out sessions that excelblue mentioned, this is a great place from which to start pulling names.

I know this was a lot of info, but hopefully it helped!

[knight_shadow]

Originally Posted by dnall

Even if you can get them off the ground, you're always going to be small, which equals broke, unstable, and struggling for survival.

[33girl]

Originally Posted by dnall

No offense to TKE or the school in question or anyone else, but that's a big reason why my fraternity refuses to go to places like that. Even if you can get them off the ground, you're always going to be small, which equals broke, unstable, and struggling for survival. You can still have an exceptional greek experience in that environment, but it's hard to hold onto a chapter that way, much less get going. It's just not the optimal situation we would look for.

Wow, I missed this megadick quote.

Small does not = broke if you don't do dumbass things, like buying too big of a house or having foam parties with 20 kegs every week. Size has ZERO to do with stability. They're not "struggling" if everyone is around the same size. If you honestly don't get that, I seriously question how you got to this stage in life.

Not only that, I see plenty of what some people refer to as "directional schools" on your chapter roll, bucko.