Some of the most common ways nonprofits raise funds to support their missions are event- based. Events like walks, runs, galas, rec sports tournaments, and bicycle rides all represent great ways for nonprofits to engage with their constituencies, cultivate donors, and reach into new networks through peer-to-peer fundraising. 

Successful fundraising events take volunteer power. And volunteers put a public and personal face on your organization. That’s why it’s critical to create a great volunteer experience with your events.

Let’s look at some helpful tips to help you create a positive volunteer experience.  

7 Tips for Creating a Positive Volunteer Experience During an Event

Start Before Volunteers Arrive

Creating a great volunteer experience starts well before volunteers arrive at your program or event. So, as you plan each stage of the event, identify key details that your volunteers will need beforehand. For example, be sure to let volunteers know about:

• The plan for food and water: You don’t have to provide food and water (bonus points if you do!), but it’s helpful and thoughtful to let your volunteers know what to expect. Let volunteers know if water will be available on site. If not, remind them to bring water bottles. If it’s a long volunteer shift and you are not providing food, encourage volunteers to bring snacks or let them know where they can grab a bite nearby.
• What to bring and what to wear: Let volunteers know what to bring and how to dress to help ensure they are comfortable at the event. For example, let them know if they should bring sunscreen, a hat, a jacket, and comfortable shoes. You might also encourage them to wear a particular color to support the event theme.
• Time and location: Make sure your communications clearly state what time volunteers should arrive, what parking information they need to know, and where to go once they arrive. If parking and walking to the event site will add time to a volunteer’s commute, then let them know to add a few extra minutes before the start of their volunteer shift.
• Assign a volunteer manager: Being greeted by someone who is organized and smiling inspires confidence and excitement. So, ask your appointed volunteer manager to greet volunteers and let them know what to do next. Also, make sure the volunteer manager stays in the same place throughout the check-in period so that there is always someone there to greet volunteers.

Make Sure Volunteers Know How to Communicate

Communication during an event is the oil that runs the machine. Create a text message group or use a messaging app for communicating during the event. This can be a great way to broadcast important details, such as “a rain squall is headed our way, please prepare for windy and wet conditions” or “stage show is starting in five minutes,” to volunteers and staff who are spread out across the event. 

If you’re relying on cell phones/internet/messaging, be sure your event doesn’t have any issues with transmission or connectivity. Create a group for your communications and test it before the event to confirm it’s working as expected and no one is missing communications. And be sure to tell your volunteers what to expect, so they know to keep phones handy. 

Also, make sure each volunteer knows who to contact to report information or ask a question. Map out the flow of information back and forth between volunteers and staff and then share that map with your volunteers to keep information flowing freely and to the right people throughout the event.

Once the event gets going, continue to communicate regularly and proactively with volunteers. For example, a volunteer manager can circulate through various places to check on volunteers. You can also use your text messaging capabilities to communicate important updates. If there’s a break in activities, such as a time when participants are all out on a walk route, some of your staff members can circulate to say thank you to volunteers, answer questions, and make sure volunteers have water or get a bathroom break.

• Prepare your volunteers for emergencies: Be sure that volunteers know what to do if someone gets hurt. For example, do you have a medical tent? When should they call 911? What should they do in case of bad weather? What should they do in other special scenarios that might otherwise catch a volunteer off guard?
• Conduct a special volunteer training session: If your event is large and the volunteer roles complex, plan a pre-event volunteer training session online or via phone call. If your event is smaller and volunteer roles less complex, offer a short orientation on-site before the event.

No matter when you conduct volunteer training, be sure to give volunteers a tour or overview of the location or site layout once they arrive. Highlight key locations that attendees might need, such as bathrooms, a medical tent, and lost and found. For larger events that use site maps, print extra maps for volunteers and keep them at various locations for reference.

As you consider volunteer training, think through the information each volunteer role may need and make a “cheat sheet” handout. Include key details about the event for volunteers to reference. Also, consider including key messages or facts related to your organization’s mission to help ensure that volunteers have answers to common questions close at hand. This handy reference sheet can help volunteers feel more at ease and enable them to present a knowledgeable face to your event participants that inspires donor confidence.

• Schedule pre-event messages: After you have established all of the details you need to share with your volunteers for your event, put them into scheduled pre-event messages. Your email marketing software or volunteer management software should allow you to compose email messages and schedule them to be sent automatically and/or on a recurring basis.
• End as strong as you start: The end of an event can feel somewhat uncertain, especially if many of your volunteers leave at some point during the event. To ensure a stronger finish and more lasting positive volunteer experience, communicate your expectations about what volunteers should do when the event is over or the volunteer role wraps up.

For example, let volunteers know what time it will be okay to pack up and what to do with leftover event materials. Tell volunteers if you expect them to help with site cleanup, and what to do. 

It can also help to ask volunteers to check out so that you can say a big “thank you” and perhaps even give them a volunteer appreciation gift. Not only will this approach give a sense of closure to the volunteer’s experience, but it also lets you convey your gratitude in person and get immediate feedback about the volunteer experience. 

Volunteers are critical to the success of your fundraising programs and events. So, as you plan your next event, be sure to put the ideas in this article to work and consider other ways that you can create a great volunteer experience that keeps volunteers coming back again and again.

About the Author

Jane Kramer, Account Manager
Cathexis Partners 

Jane Kramer has served in the nonprofit space for more than 20 years and across many roles, including volunteer management, participant recruitment and retention, event production, and most recently IT.

As an IT project manager, she loves being the connector between clients, designers, developers, and technical solutions.

About Cathexis Partners

Since 2008, Cathexis Partners has worked with more than 1,000 nonprofit clients. Our focus is to use technology to help your organization raise more funds and engage more supporters.