by Matt Mattson
For fraternities & sororities, formal rush works. It does exactly what it is designed to do. For people already interested in joining your organization, it provides a really easy way to join.
It’s like opening the big Greek door on campus. Most people get in. It is perfectly designed for people who show up to college looking for the traditional fraternity/sorority experience.
But there is one thing I should mention. If you want the highest quality people on campus, they probably won’t show up. There are lots of reasons why, but the important thing is that most of the highest quality, highest performing, measurably best men and women on campus probably won’t participate in formal rush. It’s not designed for them.
So, if you want people… do rush. If you want to make sure you always get really high quality people… do more than rush.
by Josh Orendi
Ever notice that when you need something really important to get done, you usually ask the busiest person to help (not the person with tons of free time)? Isn’t it amazing how some people are paralyzed by trying to accomplish 2-3 projects on their plate, all the while others manage to get dozens of things done while balancing relationships, work, school, and more. Ever notice how recruitment immediately separates the “doers” in the chapter from the “talkers” in the chapter?
We all know highly productive people. We all know highly unproductive people. At times we have all been both types of people. So what is the secret to maximizing productivity — especially during recruitment seasons when there seems to be so much to do? Here’s a great article by Ilya Pozin called “7 Things Highly Productive People Do” featured in Inc Magazine. Seriously, click the link and read the suggestions. These are simple, practical, and effective.
It turns out there’s some science behind the pleasure attached to distractions. Yes, our dopamine levels actually spike and our I.Q. literally drops. Crazy right!? Though multitasking seems to be a celebrated strategy, there’s a more effective way to actually get things done. Focus.
Most days it feels like technology is designed to make us LESS effective. So many options. Too much noise. Too little is actually getting done. If you’re having a New Year’s resolution sort of day, start with these 7 techniques from Pozin:
Phired Up’s team of recruitment experts has a mantra we live by when recruiting. There’s 100+ hours of work to be done every day. Since that’s not possible, let’s choose to focus on “results producing activity.” We choose to be laser focused on only the most important things that get results and we do them in the exact order of their importance. In full disclose it takes a lot of practice, will power, and willingness to say no. I’m still working on it too.
I hope you enjoy the article. I hope you have a productive day. Now stop reading blogs and go recruit.
The Ring of Phire is a team of undergraduate fraternity and sororitymembers dedicated to delivering the messages of Phired Up Productions to their peers around the country.
by Kate Peer (Undergraduate Ring of Phire Member)
I am stickler for good customer service. If I have a poor customer service experience that should be addressed, I ensure that the appropriate person knows. Fortunately, many companies want me to let them know by providing options like phoning the store manager, submitting a feedback form on the website, or e-mailing the customer relations department. To be fair, I also make it known when I have great customer service. For example, I recently wrote to an airline I flew because I was more than satisfied with my trip. Upon arrival, I made sure to tell all my friends (including my sorority sisters) of the amazing service they provided while I was travelling this past holiday season. People tell stories about good customer service
That got me thinking – does my sorority provide good customer service?
Naturally, through practicing social excellence, I began to see how customer service plays into fraternity and sorority recruitment efforts. Good customer service recruits good clients and with good clients your organization or business can expand. Same goes for fraternities & sororities.
Admittedly, we as fraternity and sorority members sometimes fail to give great customer service to the communities in which we reside and represent. If you heard from a friend that a company is horrible, yells at their customers, is constantly disorganized, and their employees look and act sloppy… would you want to use their services? The same is true for fraternities and sororities. If your organization is known for hazing your members, never showing up on time, and has a reputation for poor behavior… why would anyone want to join? If that is the case it is not too late. You must become that change and re-brand your chapter immediately!
I share this blog to offer a different way of looking at recruitment. Consider the experiences of a) encountering members of your organization on campus, b) visiting your house as a non-member, c) participating in recruitment activities, and d) being a new member – are you providing great customer service in all of these areas?
Maybe it is as simple as just providing exceptional service – above and beyond – to all the “customers” of your organization.
The potential of providing great customer service could help to grow both your chapter and your fraternity and sorority community.
by Josh Orendi
I stumbled into a thought during my drive back to Indianapolis from Columbus, Ohio earlier this week. I think it was inspired by a colony I’ve worked with that will be doing its first winter recruitment in the upcoming weeks. They’re great men that are already feeling the pressure and temptations of doing recruitment like the other fraternities on campus. I found myself thinking:
“The best way to be like other chapters is to recruit like they do … unless of course you’re trying to be something different.”
Consider that the founding members who are celebrated by your organization were not recruited in the traditional way other chapters on campus did it (it’s not possible since there was no chapter to recruit them, right?). And, those original founders didn’t use “rush” techniques to find the members that followed them. They had a unique message that sorority/fraternity could be done in a new way.
The founders of your chapter — of every chapter — wanted your fraternity/sorority to be different — very different — or they would have simply joined another group.
This is the time of year when most chapters are focused on:
In fact, if you step back, most chapters are doing almost the same events during the same part of the year for the same group of potential new members – albeit in different color rush shirts. Remember, if you recruit like them, then the best case scenario is that you’ll become like them. That’s neither good nor bad. It’s logical and predictable. The only down side is that you may be compromising the unique identity that your founders fought so hard to establish.
by Matt Mattson
For decades the leaders of the fraternity/sorority community have implored chapters to engage in something called “Values-Based Recruitment.” But what is it? How do you know if your chapter is doing it?
Good questions. Let’s first say this. Dynamic Recruitment (Phired Up’s philosophy) IS Values-Based Recruitment. You can’t do Dynamic Recruitment without Values-Based Recruitment. However, Dynamic Recruitment is more than just Values-Based Recruitment. So there, that’s clear (If you want to learn about Dynamic Recruitment, check out our website, services, products and free resources at www.PhiredUp.com).
*One other note: Some fraternal organizations have actually named their internal training and educational programs “Values-Based Recruitment” (see Sigma Nu. Also, Sigma Kappa has a good resource similarly named). This blog is more general, however — for all fraternities & sororities.
Now, how do you know if your chapter is doing Values-Based Recruitment. We would suggest that your chapter must do all of the following in order to be a Values-Based Recruiting chapter. If you have more ideas, share them with us via Facebook or Twitter.
1. Use a Values-Based Selection Criteria. This might be the most important requirement. If you’re not using objective, values-based criteria for membership selection, then you’re choosing members for your chapter based on something other than values. Plain and simple. Start here. Here’s a sample for fraternities and sororities.
2. Choose recruitment activities and behaviors that reflect the core values of your organization. If your ritual asks you to raise your right hand and promise to be honorable, charitable, truthful, noble, friendly, pure, scholarly, etc. — recruit in ways that directly reflect those characteristics. If your recruitment strategy can’t be described by any of the words in your organization’s ritual or mission, then you’re not doing Values-Based Recruitment.
3. Engage in conversations with potential members that include topics related to your core values. If, in order for someone to meet the standards of your Values-Based Selection Criteria, you need to know if they’re honorable — engage in conversation topics that unearth that information. If your conversations are surface-level, shallow, boring, or without intention, there is a good chance you’re not doing Values-Based Recruitment.
4. Prior to bid acceptance, ask potential members for full commitment to the chapter’s values, mission, code of conduct, and requirements. Something like “The Two Handshakes” might do the trick. Or perhaps a written “contract” of sorts so that there is no confusion. Something we’ve learned while interviewing former members of fraternities and sororities is that they often quit because the actual experience of membership is different than what they thought it would be while they were being recruited.
Of course, all of this requires a) you to know your organization’s core values, b) your chapter members to know your organization’s core values, c) your chapter to consistently behave in accordance with your organization’s core values, and d) you to know how to TALK ABOUT your organization’s core values.
In Good Guys and I Heart Recruitment, we wrote about “ACE”ing your values — this is very closely related to “Values-Based Recruitment,” so you might want to check that out too. Values-Based Recruitment starts with you choosing to personally achieve, communicate and expect your organization’s values to be exemplified by yourself and your members at all times. That’s a great place for you to get started.