Increase Volunteer Sign-Ups for Your Nonprofit: 6 Strategies

Donors are crucial for funding your nonprofit, but volunteers play a vital role in supporting its ongoing activities, including daily operations and special fundraising events. 

However, even if your organization has the most dedicated supporters who truly believe in your cause, it can still be tricky to actually motivate volunteers to give their time. 

This is why you need the right volunteer recruitment strategies on your side to inspire more sign-ups and strengthen relationships with your supporters. Let’s dig into six strategies you can try today. 

1. Leverage your mission statement. 

A strong mission statement is essential to bringing volunteers to your organization.

Your mission statement encompasses your “why,” as in why you’re dedicated to your cause and why you’re giving your time and efforts toward it. It can be easy to focus heavily on your mission statement when your organization is just getting off the ground but then take it for granted as your operations become more sophisticated. Instead, you should think of your mission statement as a cornerstone that guides all of your work.

Actively use this statement to attract new supporters. When a supporter connects personally with your mission statement, you’ve made the strongest, most direct connection you can possibly make with that individual. These supporters then become dedicated volunteers. 

You should focus some energy on revisiting your mission statement and presenting it in the most effective way possible to help build these relationships. Feature it clearly on your “About Us” website page, incorporate it into your social media posts, and include it in your annual report to put it at the front and center of your interactions with supporters.

2. Maintain an updated website. 

Your website functions as your nonprofit’s home on the internet, and it’s most likely where you’re going to direct potential volunteers to find upcoming opportunities. You must keep this information up-to-date and easily accessible. 

Here are a few features you’ll want to include as you make your updates:

• An easy-to-read calendar widget for quick viewing of upcoming opportunities
• Uncomplicated volunteer registration forms, embedded directly within the site
• A call-to-action button to gather contact information from interested potential volunteers
• A donation page where you can direct all website visitors (including current and potential volunteers) to give 
• Links to your nonprofit’s social media profiles so volunteers can stay in the loop
• A blog that, among other things, shares engaging stories from your volunteer program and showcases the impact of your volunteers’ efforts 

If you feel your website could use an upgrade or a total overhaul to better target volunteer audiences, consider working with a nonprofit consulting firm that specializes in web design. The right partner can help you build a site that reflects your mission, values, brand identity, and marketing goals.  

3. Manage volunteer data with a robust CRM solution. 

Even if you have the strongest volunteer force imaginable, you need a comprehensive constituent relationship management (CRM) solution to gather data and effectively manage your volunteers. 

Your CRM software hosts all of the data you gather on donors, volunteers, and any other supporters. With this data, you can:

• Maintain volunteer profiles, tracking information such as engagement history and contact info
• Identify which fundraising campaigns have been most engaging for your volunteers and implement similar ideas in the future
• Identify which volunteers are most likely to convert to donors down the line and contact them accordingly
• Recognize the preferred contact methods for segments of your volunteer force and reach out with new opportunities through the best channels at the right frequency

Setting up your nonprofit’s technology solutions can be a difficult undertaking, especially if you’re a larger organization working with particularly robust software. 

Bringing on a nonprofit technology consultant is usually the best bet to mitigate risk, whether you’re deciding between top providers like Blackbaud and Salesforce or planning to take your data strategy to the next level by implementing a data warehouse.  

4. Use volunteer grant tools to motivate volunteers. 

Did you know that your volunteers may have an opportunity to double their impact on your nonprofit? 

This is made possible through volunteer grant programs, which are typically part of a broader corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy at businesses or corporations. The process is simple:

• An eligible employee volunteers at your nonprofit.
• They submit proof of time volunteered to their employer. 
• The employer verifies this information with your organization.
• The employer sends a financial gift to your nonprofit based on the time given by the volunteer. 

The biggest obstacle in obtaining a volunteer grant is that volunteers are rarely aware of these opportunities. By educating your supporters about these programs and directing them to an online volunteer grants database, you can make it easy for supporters to determine their eligibility and kickstart the process. 

5. Offer flexible volunteering opportunities. 

Research shows that formal volunteerism has declined since 2006 due to supporters lacking time to volunteer and not having the flexibility to fit volunteering into their schedules. 

You can address this pain point for your volunteers by offering flexible volunteering opportunities. Here are a few ideas for doing so: 

• Provide volunteering opportunities that can be done online or at home, like encouraging volunteers to reach out and contact their network or moderating the attendee chat during a hybrid event. 
• Share short-term, project-based volunteer opportunities. Some volunteers may be able to fill a role for weeks, months, or even years. Others may only have the bandwidth to help you complete a certain project or task every now and then.  
• Match volunteers to roles they will thrive in. Every volunteer brings a unique background and skill set to the table. Tap into all your volunteers have to offer and make their experience more meaningful by helping them find roles that best suit their talents and interests. 

The easier it is for volunteers to fit a shift or project into their schedule, the easier it is for them to say “Yes!” to giving their time. Look for ways to adapt your current volunteer opportunities or roles so that they’re more flexible while still driving value for your mission. 

6. Celebrate current volunteers.

If you want your volunteers to continue giving their time to your nonprofit, you need to make sure they know how much you appreciate them! Plus, when you communicate your thanks to your current volunteers, you can show potential volunteers that your nonprofit has a strong culture of appreciation and values all forms of support, which can help drive sign-ups. 

Here are a few volunteer appreciation ideas you can try: 

• Send an eCard with a personalized message thanking the volunteer for their work. 
• Post shout-outs on social media to celebrate volunteers’ milestones (volunteering anniversaries, birthdays, etc.).
• Give volunteers small gifts, like goodie bags or branded merchandise. 
• Host a luncheon or dinner to celebrate your volunteers. 
• Endorse a volunteer’s skills on their LinkedIn profile. 

No matter the specific strategies you decide to run with, remember to cater your recognition efforts to each volunteer’s preferences and interests. For instance, some volunteers may appreciate more public forms of recognition like social media shout-outs while others may prefer quieter gestures, like being given a thank-you note and a small gift. 

Volunteers are essential for any nonprofit to function, but to maintain their support, you need to provide them with fulfilling experiences that resonate with their motivations and interests. Use the strategies above to increase volunteer sign-ups and strengthen your overall volunteer program. You’ve got this.