Using common volunteer opportunities from hunger relief organizations we’ll discuss best practices for creating listings on VolunteerMatch that will appeal to the volunteers you’re looking for to run your programs. We’ll look at before and after listings, and we’ll discuss how to use our Premium Account tools to pre-screen and get to know prospective volunteers before you talk to them. Sample descriptions, custom questions, and useful examples will be provided.

1. Create Compelling Volunteer
Opportunities on VolunteerMatch
To hear the presentation by phone call:
(415) 655-0051
Access Code: 594-615-399
Jennifer Bennett, CVA, Senior Manager, Education & Training
Matt Wallace, Senior Associate, Nonprofit Relations
Join the conversation on Twitter! #VMLearn

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VolunteerMatch Overview
“VolunteerMatch strengthens communities by making it easier for good
people and good causes to connect.”
92,206 nonprofits… 75,444 Active Opportunities…. 6,811,091 referrals since 1998
• VolunteerMatch has been around for 14 years, and is the top-ranked website for online
volunteer recruitment and employee-volunteer programs
• Our Learning Center offers over 20 webinar topics focused on volunteer management
and VolunteerMatch tools, serving an audience of over 6,000 attendees each year

3. VolunteerMatch & Walmart:
Fighting Hunger Together
What are our goals?
• Support nonprofit organizations that are working to end
hunger in local communities.
• Provide hunger relief organizations with the resources
they need to deploy, manage and expand their volunteer
engagement program.
• Support, train and share best practices for engaging
volunteers, and creating a multi-faceted relationship with
volunteers – donors, advocates.
• Increase visibility of the need for volunteers at hunger
relief organizations.
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Agenda
• Introduction
• Use Best Practices to Create Compelling Opportunities
• Put Community Leader Tools to Work for You!
• Review Real Opportunities Using Best Practices
• Things to Remember
• Q&A

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Get Started with Online Recruiting
• Introduce your program and your work!
– Set the stage – tell your story
• Have a “virtual” conversation
– Answer the question “what do volunteers do at your
organization?”
• Prioritize the information you share
– What does a volunteer need to know to decide if
they’re the right volunteer for your program?

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Create Great Opportunities
• Make the Title Work for You
– Catchy, Fun, Interesting
• Keep it Brief
– One Opportunity, 100 words
• Word it Simply and Make it Easy to Understand
– No Jargon, no acronyms
• Make an Impact
– Include a Strong Call to Action

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• Provide Direction and Support
– Time Commitment, Training, Restrictions
• Make it Visually Appealing
– Include Pictures, Graphics. Make use of White Space.
• Remember to Edit
– Grammar, Spelling
• View your Listing as a Volunteer
– Use a Critical Eye.
Create Great Opportunities

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Best Practices for VolunteerMatch
• Title Stands Out
– Call to Action
• Make Good Use of First Sentence
– Visible to prospective volunteers
• Brainstorm and Use Keywords
– What kinds of volunteers do you want to find you
• Keep Referrals on VolunteerMatch
– Information is only useful if volunteers click ‘I Want
to Help!’

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Make
Your Title
Work For
You

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Review Real Opportunities
Let’s take a look at some examples of good descriptions
and those that could use some work.

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Using
Best
Practices

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A Listing
that
Needs
Work

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Remember…
Your VolunteerMatch listing may be the first time a
volunteer learns about your organization:
• Use language that is welcoming
• Clearly state needs and impacts
• Outline any potential ‘deal breakers’
• Craft opportunities that will attract the
volunteers you need

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Resources
Fighting Hunger Together Resources Page
Visit this page for up-to-date training resources and program information
http://www.volunteermatch.org/fighthunger
Learning Center
Find upcoming webinar dates, how-to videos and more
http://learn.volunteermatch.org/training-topics/fighting-hunger
VolunteerMatch Community
Ask and answer questions after the webinar – use keywords Fighting Hunger Together,
Volunteer Management
http://community.volunteermatch.org/volunteer
Questions?
FightHunger@VolunteerMatch.org

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Thanks for attending!
Join us online:
Like us on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/VolunteerMatch
Follow us on Twitter: @VolunteerMatch
Visit Engaging Volunteers, our nonprofit blog:
blogs.volunteermatch.org/engagingvolunteers/
For any questions contact:
Jennifer Bennett
(415) 321-3639
@JenBennettCVA
jbennett@volunteermatch.org