Stop Selling. Recruit.
by RJ Taylor
May I offer a goal for our industry’s growth efforts this year?
STOP SELLING!!!
Most of what fraternities and sororities call “recruiting” is (90ish% of the time) selling.
It’s clear – our organizations weren’t built for selling like the new hottest Instagram brand and (even if we could sell them against all logical pushback) we’re not great at it. Our sales tactics primarily mirror the Girl Scouts* selling cookies outside of grocery stores each Spring.
“Hey! Stop by our table if you’re interested in joining a fraternity or sorority!”
“We’ve got Samoas and Thin Mints!”
“Check out the website for more information!”
Same same, but different.
We’re not going to sell our way into the hearts of interests or prospective members. We are not product organizations meant to impress. We are people organizations built to connect.
We need to stop selling and START RECRUITING!
Here’s are the differences:
Selling prioritizes aesthetics.
Recruiting prioritizes relationships.
Selling prioritizes stats.
Recruiting prioritizes connections.
Selling prioritizes attraction.
Recruiting prioritizes experience.
Selling prioritizes a single buying decision.
Recruiting prioritizes a lifetime of commitment.
Selling prioritizes results as numbers.
Recruiting prioritizes humans finding purpose and passion.
Here are your first 3 steps:
- Put away your table.
- Pull up your names list (on ChapterBuilder).
- Text someone and ask when you can grab coffee or simply catch up soon.
I’ll bet you a box of Tagalongs you see a greater return on that text than that stereotypic table or flyer!
*Special shout out to my favorite Girl Scout, Josie, who crushed her cookie sales goals this year!