As the needs of the world grow, so too does the need for Lions. And we’re helping meet the growing needs of our communities through MISSION 1.5, our global initiative to reach 1.5 million members by 2027.
It’s going to take each and every one of us to get there, but don’t worry — we gathered tips from district governors and past district governors whose districts took home the coveted Jesse Robinson Membership Growth Cup. See their advice for jump-starting your membership growth efforts.
- Plan your strategy and incentivize your members.
“At the beginning of the year, we planned our annual membership growth goal. From there, we developed our corresponding annual plans and reward systems to reach our goal and recognize clubs with outstanding development. Empowering your members can help motivate their recruitment efforts.”- District Governor Xia Cui, District 392, China
Resources to get started: Action Plan Template
- Get the GAT involved.
“We worked with our GMT and GLT teams to organize online training sessions for members to help them get involved. They focused on how to retain members; member recruitment, which involved cabinet members being given a target to recruit one new member in the given Lion year; and how to create and utilize monthly reports that showed the number of new members recruited by individual cabinet members, club membership numbers and the number of members lost.”- District Governor Siphiwe Ndlovu, District 412 A, Botswana
Resources to get started: GAT webpage
- Use your resources.
“Lions International has a great deal of information online to aid in membership growth, including eBooks and brochures. The brochures, in particular, are useful — we used them in club visits and will be using more in the coming year.”- District Governor Bill Yelland, District A 9, Ontario, Canada
Resources to get started: Global Membership Approach webpage
- Tap into the power of marketing.
“I regularly shared photos and information on my personal Facebook page, as well as our district Facebook account. We sent invitations to personal and professional contacts for important events such as the 75th Anniversary Dinner and larger fundraisers. I also included material on the Lions Australia website and submitted articles to local newspapers on a regular basis, which were all published. As district governor, I was even interviewed on local radio several times. All of the above needs to be done consistently and often.”- Past District Governor Vin Wen Pang, District 201N5, Australia
Resources to get started: Marketing Matters webpage
- Reach out to younger prospective members.
“There is an ongoing need to recruit younger members who will be the next generation of the organization, so we focused on inviting younger members. They will inject new blood into their clubs and encourage veteran Lions to serve in new, exciting ways.”- District Governor Edna Altar, District 128, Israel
Resources to get started: Connecting to Young Lions guide
- Be an ambassador for your club.
“The old motto of ‘Just Ask’ is a sure method to get people interested. Wear your Lion gear to all your activities and encourage your members to challenge themselves to recruit. It is a proven fact that when you are serving the community, there will be interested people nearby. Make sure your Facebook page and website are up to date and tell people what you are doing in the community.”- Past District Governor Larry Irwin, District A 9, Ontario, Canada
Resources to get started: Lions Shop
The Jesse Robinson Membership Growth Cup is a prestigious award given to each constitutional area’s top district team with the largest membership growth. Find out how your district can take home this honor — all while helping us reach our MISSION 1.5 goal!
Kristin DiMaggio is an associate creative lead on the Lions International Marketing Team.
