Some Ramblers Groups are growing, whilst others are finding their membership is shrinking. We asked volunteers to share their good ideas. If you have any comments on their ideas, feed them back at the end of this page.
- Publicise both your walks and your group as widely as possible, e.g. in local press, shops, libraries, hotels, pubs, surgeries, etc.
- Have a presence at local fetes and carnivals.
- Keep existing members happy as most new members appear after talking to existing members.
- The prospect of suitable walks leads people to join – they take an interest in the other objectives of the Ramblers once they have joined.
- Cater for all abilities – the walks that the ‘serious walkers’ in your group enjoy may not be the ones that attract new members. Alay all fears about Ramblers’ walks being too fast/too slow, always stopping for coffee breaks when they just want to walk, etc.
- Ensure a range of different walks – long, medium and short distances.
- Try themed walks e.g. a historic trail, a visit to a stately home, bird watching or a photography outing.
- Shorter walks bring out more members.
- Family walks encourage children (future members) to come out.
- Vary the walks programme – weekdays, evening in summer, alternate Saturday and Sunday walks.
- One group has an extensive programme including: Mondays: bus-pass walks; Wednesdays 5/6 mile walks; Thursdays: summer evening walks; weekend walks (1 in winter, 2 in summer) which are more challenging.
- Another has a ‘light and leisurely’ 4 or 5 mile programme to help new members find their feet and return for another walk – it is all some people require.
- Get yourself a good web site – one group suggests that the layout and tone of the site is all important – nothing too stuffy.
- Bear in mind that you have competition from many alternative walking groups (some of which are affiliated to the Ramblers) and your offering may need to be different or have an added value considering the cost of membership.
- Encourage new members to lead walks using more experienced members to mentor them and accompany them on their recces.
- Use an appropriate ‘walks ettiquette’ which might include a brief talk at the beginning, information about the group, a welcome to new members or those coming along for the first time who may be potential members and, introduce these people to others on the walk who will make them welcome.
- ‘Brand’ your group as local.
- Introduce a walking festival.
- Social events create a bond in a group which might be missing in other non-Ramblers walking groups – one group has a monthly social evening in winter months.
- Broaden your horizons and walk in different areas of the country – some groups organise several holidays/trips away, both in the UK and abroad.
- The group itself needs to be a ‘bunch of caring and friendly people’.
- ‘Hug’ new members as they are precious – many feel that the current (early 2010) responses from Ramblers central office are discouraging people.
Once a member has joined encourage them to lead walks and help them to understand that the group relies on volunteers – but don’t put them under any pressure!!
Members have noted difficulties resulting from: competing walking clubs, too much work falling on one group member (the ‘willing horse’), problems with the Ramblers membership system, new Ramblers groups being formed taking members away from existing groups and failure of the local press to include group reports prominently. BUT DON’T DESPAIR!! Many Ramblers Groups are growing, so it can be done!
Don't be daunted by the list above - perhaps start with one or two things, and then build from there. Rome wasn't built in a day.
Tips from other readers (to add your own, click the link at the bottom of this page)
Tell your family, friends, work mates etc. what a great time you had on a Ramblers walk and why. There may be many people out there who have no idea that joining the Ramblers is the solution to their fitness, wanting something to do, boredom etc. problems but have no idea what Ramblers get up to. If people you know know you are having a good time they can pass the information on to somebody who could enjoy Ramblers membership. If you don't tell people how will they find out?
With regard to welcoming new members and members from other groups. Somewhere in the leaders material leaders are advised to introduce new members. This can be intimidating to some because of the 'they know my name but who are they factor" . The use of walks finder by members increases the chance of a the leader facing a party of people from different groups some recognised with/without knowing their names. Also the leader might not have met people from their own group but who are obviously familiar to other people in their group.
More practical advice for leaders and especially new leaders would be how to estimate for a given party size how long it would take and how to instigated everybody saying their name and which group they come from or if they are new trying out the Ramblers. Group officers may care to add this too their personal into.
1. A good walks programme - To attract a wide range of people a group should have a mixture of long, medium and short walks (i.e. 12+ =, 8-12 and 5 and below miles long). Not everyone wants to just do one type of walk a mixture will ensure the maximum amount of people are attracted to your club.
The pace / grade of a walk needs to be advertised. Some people like to walk fast others slow. What is important is that people are aware what pace a walk will be. Themed walks are very popular with people e.g. Bluebell walks. A mixture of urban / city walks also goes down well. Walks with an advertised attraction e.g. visit to cave or stately home also attract people. Evening strolls are a good idea to attract people who work - these tend to start around 7pm and be around 3 miles. 2. Walks etiquette
- At the beginning of the walk always give a brief introductory talk on the walk i.e. how long walk is, time of lunch etc.
It is important to make new people feel welcome so make a point of going up to them and giving them some info on the group. You could introduce them to some people as well! 3. Advertising your walks / group
This is key to a successful group. If you have a good walks programme but no one knows about it then you will not get any new members.
- It is important that it is as easy as possible for new people to know about the walks that you are carrying out. The web is the key to this - people find out about new clubs via the web.
Ideally walks should be put on the Ramblers walks finder - this is a specific piece of software which the Ramblers designed for groups. At least your next 5 walks should be displayed on your website. When people find your walking group on the web they want to know what walks you do and how they can go to them. Therefore full details of the walks should be put on the website. People need to be able to find your website when searching on the web. Putting as many links to your website from other websites is an effective way of doing this. Good websites to do this include local online newsletters (e.g. SE1 in Lambeth) or on websites that people look at locally. You can also put links online on Gumtree and Timeout. Running a stall at a local event can also be a good way to get new members, leaflets can be given out to the prospective new members. Putting on walks on walk festivals also highlights your group e.g. Ramblers festival of winter walks Having a good website also helps. This is the first impression people get of the group so it is important that this looks good! An idea is to brand your group as "the local walking group for e.g. Lambeth and Southwark" emphasizing the local aspect of the group helps.
4. Getting new walk leaders
- People will join voluntarily if they like the group. It should be made clear to new people that they can come on a walk with the group up to 3 times before deciding whether to join.
t should be emphasized on a regular basis that the group relies on volunteers to make the group work and that it is always on the look out for new walk leaders. If someone complains that the group only does long walks for example then encourage them to put on a short walk. There should be regular appeals for new walks leaders e.g. every programme. 5. Socials
- Socials create a good bond in the group.
An idea to attract new people is to have a new members evening where people can be introduced to the group. 6. Weekends away
- Organising weekends away is also a good idea and lets members of the group walk in different areas of the country.
The Met Walkers introduced a "weekend lite" concept. Everyone who attends the weekends away organises there own accommodation and travel all the organiser needs to do is put on the walks! People are more likely to carry out a weekend away as a result.
