You are looking for volunteers and want to post an opportunity / activity in the vacancy bank. But how do you make sure that the right people respond to your opportunity/activity?
Make sure the opportunity/activity is short, concise and complete. Make sure that after reading the opportunity/activity the volunteer knows what they are going to do, with whom and for what kind of organisation they will be working.
Consider:
Who is the volunteer that you want to address? What would this volunteer like to know about the opportunity/activity and how does the volunteer want to be addressed?
What keywords fit the job? Words in the title and text can be found through the search function.
Clarify the organisation and the content of the work:
Tell briefly what your organisation does, which target group you work and what your vision and mission is.
Give as much detail as possible about the tasks.
Specify the conditions such as where (location), when (days and times) and whether the volunteer does this alone or with others. Make this as concrete as possible.
Choose a catchy title and picture. Make sure these make clear what kind of opportunity and/or organisation it is. This is the first thing the volunteer sees in the vacancy bank!
Make the volunteer enthusiastic:
Consider if you want to address the volunteer formally or informally.
Ask a question: Do you like to cook? We are looking for someone with taste for the weekly dinner at the community centre.
Make sure someone feels invited. End the vacancy for example with: 'Are you interested? Then react quickly. We will contact you for an introduction.
Also describe what the volunteer gets in return. What are the advantages, what are the benefits? Benefits could be new contacts, training, the opportunity/activity to develop certain skills, gratitude of the target group.
Writing and style tips:
Do not make the text too long. Use short sentences and easy words.
Make use of headings to make the text more readable.
Don't use jargon or unclear abbreviations - chances are the volunteers won't know them.
Pay attention to spelling, capitalisation and punctuation. Make sure the job posting is neat and easy to read.
Use a quote from someone who already volunteers with you.
Make sure the keywords you want to be found on are in the text.
Have someone else read the vacancy. Is everything clear?
Hopefully these tips will make your job a little easier. Do you have a tip that isn't listed? Let us know!
Good luck and have fun!