Promoting National Volunteer Week
Abstract
Increase public awareness of the benefits of volunteering, and attract attention to celebrations during National Volunteer Week. The purpose of the Week is twofold: to thank volunteers, and to encourage volunteering by making it more visible to the general public. The designation of National Volunteer Week as a special time of recognition provides a ready-made publicity vehicle to accomplish both. Use the guide, Publicity! How You Can Publicize Volunteerism and National Volunteer Week in Your Community for more information.
Issue
The need for volunteers to address pressing social issues is growing, putting enormous pressure on volunteer organizations across the country. It is crucial that the available volunteer force continues to grow and that its members are properly placed, trained, managed and recognized. National Volunteer Week recognizes the contributions to society made by millions of volunteers nationwide, and promotes the spirit of volunteering among the general public.
Action
Launch a publicity campaign
Increase attendance and ensure media coverage of National Volunteer Week events. Plan well in advance to account for media deadlines.
- Set up a committee
- Divide responsibilities among committee members; one person should make all media contacts
- Establish overall theme and specific messages of publicity campaign
- Decide which publicity tools to use
- Create a timetable with specific deadlines for each action required
- Make a list of media contacts most likely to cover the event
- Develop materials to interest media contacts
- Approach key media contacts
- If the event receives good coverage, send thank you notes to reporters/editors. If the coverage was not good or not used, ask for suggestions to make the event more newsworthy.
Find the angle
Exploit unique or unusual aspects of National Volunteer Week events to provoke greater media coverage. Focus attention to significant local statistics, outstanding local volunteers, or the involvement of local celebrities.
Tell the story
Prepare text for reporters and news programmers to develop a story about National Volunteer Week. This can consist of a news release, a public service announcement, a captioned photograph, or a fact sheet. A complete media kit can include all of those and more.
Take stock of media resources
Compile a list of all local media outlets. Refer to a public library for assistance. Study each media source to determine which ones are most likely to cover National Volunteer Week events. Obtain contact and scheduling information to provide those sources with regular updates.
Approach the media
It is ideal for one committee member to be responsible for all media contacts. Send printed material by mail and follow-up several days later with a phone call. Printed material should be organized and concise. Be persuasive and persistent, but never overly aggressive, in developing personal media contacts.
Get into print
Both large and small publications will be attracted to interesting local news. Including the names of local people and organizations will likely draw greater interest. A well-written letter to the editor that draws a connection between National Volunteer Week and current news issues has a good chance of being printed. Ask a member of a paper's editorial board to consider National Volunteer Week for an op-ed article.
Get on the air
To get coverage on radio or TV news, stories must appear to be of immediate concern. Make direct contact with the program or news directors of local stations to learn what type of stories they are interested in covering. Non-commercial radio and television stations are often sympathetic to non-profit causes.
The basics of writing publicity materials
- All material must be well written, yet to the point. All copies must be neat and clean.
- Write objectively. Only include personal opinions as direct quotes from relevant individuals.
- Proofread and double-check EVERYTHING.
- Include full contact information of committee media contact person with all correspondence.
- Use standard white paper. Print in a standard font, double-spaced with wide margins. Print on only one side of each sheet.
- Print copies on letterhead. Use the National Volunteer Week logo if no other is available.
See the source document for detailed instructions and examples for preparing specific publicity materials.
Citation
Canada. Lautenschlager, Janet. Publicity! How You Can Publicize Volunteerism and National Volunteer Week in Your Community. Department of Canadian Heritage — Community Partnerships Program, 1992.
http://www.nationalserviceresources.org/filemanager/download/PR/Publicity.pdf (163 KB)
Reproduced with the permission of the Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada and the Minister of Canadian Heritage.
Posted On
February 14, 2001For More Information
Resources
Visit the Points of Light & Hands On Network web site for more information on National Volunteer Week.
