by DJ Reed DTM Club Leads Co-Chair
I was lucky enough to be at the recent Club Success Workshop Presentation, and it was amazing. I have never been a corporate person, so I wanted to know more about how they worked and the best way to reach out to businesses for membership and new clubs. I found, as they progressed through the program, so much was also directed at membership in community clubs.
One point that I felt was universal was changing how we speak about Toastmasters. We all talk and think about clubs which is how Toastmasters delivers their PROGRAM. When we call it a program and not a club we change the narrative to a more businesslike term for this demographic. This a big change that I think needs to happen to bring more people into Toastmasters.
Here is an example of how the narrative changes:
“Hi Friend, I would like to invite you to my Toastmasters club meeting …”
“Hi Friend, I would like to invite you to be part of my Toastmasters Program meeting …”
Which do you think your friend would likely consider? I have really started rethinking my way of inviting and talking to guests at meetings.
This is just one example of how the Club Success Workshop really took a close look at marketing Toastmasters to many different prospective members. Anyone wanting to improve their personal skills can see themselves in this presentation. There are so many takeaways that I could be writing for days to tell you about them. Every member has a responsibility to help with membership growth, and this workshop helped with training the participants to do that easily.
