Membership Month

My dear friends,

We often talk a great deal about membership. Quite naturally, the focus is on recruiting new members, but in the process, we lose sight of an equally important task — that of retaining existing members.

As Rotary celebrates Membership Month, I want to ask what Rotary means to you. I invite you to share your story not only with Rotary but with your personal and professional networks — not only why you joined, but why you are still a member of Rotary today. Is it because of the difference you’ve made in your community or because of the lifelong friendships you’ve made? Speak of the personal benefits that you have derived from your membership in Rotary, whether it’s the satisfaction from reaching out to someone who desperately needed help or the gains in your own life that came from the opportunities and connections available to you through Rotary. Sharing your Rotary story could help inspire someone to join.

Promoting our exciting member benefits program, Rotary Global Rewards, will not only help you get more transformative work done but will also show new and potential members the added value of being a part of the Rotary network. Find out more yourself about this new program and how it can be used to enhance the Rotary member experience. Encourage others to do the same.

The Member Center is now home to a number of resources to help you better serve your clubs and districts, including brochures like Be a Vibrant Club and Strengthening Your Membership: Creating Your Membership Development Plan. Exploring, understanding, and using these tools can help you engage and retain your members.

Every year, the Rotary International Convention serves as a great way to experience what it truly means to be a part of Rotary. A promotion kit for the 2016 convention in Seoul is now available. The kit provides digital and print resources to promote the convention to your club or district. Go to the Seoul convention site, find the kit in the Resources section, and use it to encourage your fellow Rotarians to attend. With your help, the 2016 Rotary Convention could be the biggest yet! By encouraging a new member to attend the convention, you will have given him or her the opportunity to be well and truly convinced of the reach and breadth of Rotary.

Membership is important year-round. We must continue to give potential members more reasons to join, and current members more reasons to stay. Let us work together to strengthen our membership base and to encourage others to join us as we work to improve our communities and to Be A Gift to the World.

In this video message, I share my additional thoughts on membership:

Sincerely,
K.R. Ravindran
Rotary International President