Recruiting

Now that the presence at the new track is established and a way of working has evolved, it is maybe time to look at recruiting new members. The young athletes ran well in both league meetings this year but they were not as far up the table as their abilities and effort suggested they should be, because there were simply not enough of them. In the National Cross Country Championships in Falkirk there were barely enough seniors to make a team. Both could be improved by a deliberate programme of recruitment which would mean all club members - committee, senior men and women, the younger boys and girls and maybe even the parents - becoming involved.
First of all, former or lapsed members could be approached: not everyone approached would return but if even a small proportion did, it could only be for the benefit of the club. It simply means writing, or emailing, to these members and encouraging them to return. I believe that this wouild work.
Second, it has already been proposed that we advertise our presence at the track by hanging the club banner from the fencing on Tuesdays while we are at St Peter's.
Third, we are already geared up to produce flyers of high quality for distribution at the 10K Road Race later this month - in addition we could specifically target those unattached runners finishing in the first 100 (there were I think 16 - 18 in this category last year) by sending them a letter enclosing a membership application form. Targeting like this is done by other clubs in a variety of aports and there is no reason why we should not use a tactic that is fairly successful. A letter lying on the table that you walk past a couple of times every day is better than an email which is looked at and forgotten about.
Fourth, we could offer free membership for one year to new members joining in May and June. For someone joining a club because they think they like it, it is an expensive experiment - membership, registration, club uniform etc all add up and although once you are a member the costs are lighter than for golf, bowling or tennis clubs, it is a big investment if you are not sure. Buchanan Castle, for instance, reduced their subscription last year to £100 for the first year and the Vale of Leven Golf Club offered reduced subs for the first year.
Fifth, make a closer contact with the schools. Get to know the PE Staff and especially the sports co-ordinators, offer to help with their school sports day and even offer to help them get their pupils to the Scottish Schools Championships. It is difficult for a school to release staff for the Friday session in particular biut were we to have a coach travelling through then there is no reason why he/she should not take some pupils with them or, even if that were impossible, enter them at the venue, collect numbers and generally be useful.
That's five suggestions and the committee could certainly come up with more. Then all it takes is goodwill by club and committee to amke it work!