How many times have you heard the expression ‘its so hard to get our members to come to our AGM, we barely have a quorum’? I hear it way too often and am asked how I can help the. There are a few quick ideas below followed by a post which was done by Bob Claus, its quite good.
Not having a quorm shows apathy and/or past years AGM have had little value.
There is a special caution at the bottom of this post, suggest you have a look!
Why Your Members Aren’t Voting…
Posted by Bob Claus
In a recent survey, members of a large medical organization were asked to identify the primary reason why they chose NOT to participate in their organization’s election. The top reason given was “Did not know the candidates,” significantly ahead of “Missed the deadline” or “Unaware election occurred.”
If your membership isn’t familiar with the candidates or the issues, they won’t vote. It is in the organization’s best interest to decrease voter apathy by keeping members informed about the candidates and decisions that will help guide the organization in the future.
We recommend associations, cooperatives, unions and other member organizations to inform their membership about candidates in the following ways:
• Include biographies in the online voting ballot
• Create biography packets or booklets, include photos
• Publish interviews of the candidates in organization’s newsletter
• Create a large enough “voting window” to allow members to learn about the candidates
• Produce online videos about candidates and post them on the organization’s website
