IF YOU BUILD IT, WILL THEY COME? An analysis of volunteer recruitment digital strategiesHCOM 512 July 2014
Lisa Carron Shmerling, J.D. 2014 MPH Candidate
THREE ORGANIZATIONS FOCUSED ON VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT
Founded 1994
Founded 1994
Founded 1971
VolunteerMatch.Org
Volunteers – one click away from home page
Non-profits – one click away from home page
S.W.O.T ANALYSIS: VolunteerMatchSTRENGTHS
• Colorful & “happy” • Easy navigation• Extensive Validation • Convinces you to take the
leap• Sustainability!
WEAKNESSES
• Pop-ups were distracting• Non-profit vs. For-profit
distinction could be clearer
OPPORTUNITIES• Amazing way to “do good” and
create a viable business model• Expandable to other locations
THREATS• Individual non-profit sites that
are cause-specific• Corporations may want to
internally manage their volunteer opportunities
• Numerous volunteer sites
On-line Presence/VolunteerMatch
• Facebook 35,900 likes• Twitter 8,859 tweets/ 25.2K followers• Utube, LinkedIn, Pinterest
Suite of Social Media
Links
• Scaled for mobile devices• Easy to navigateMobile App
• Official site came up 1st
• “Impact online” also directs to site• iTunes, Wikipedia
Google Prominence
Recommendations/VolunteerMatch
“Support” vs. Donation
Add new tab & pages for “For-Profit Corps”
Consider more prominent donation/sponsorship
buttons
Volunteers in Medicine
One click to: Champions, Patients, Volunteers
The rest of the site….
S.W.O.T ANALYSIS: STRENGTHS
• Photos are representative of the volunteers and the patients they serve
• History and need are articulated
• Easy to navigate• News is up-to-date
WEAKNESSES
• Old “codger” look• Drab web pages• Poor quality of photos• Haphazard use of visuals• Where is the social media?• Logo --'#@!%’ ear, udder or
kidney?
OPPORTUNITIES
• Harnessing growing population of retired medical professionals to fill unmet need
• Opportunity to leverage a “business model” to propagate other clinics
THREATS
• Website is unimpressive and does not inspire confidence
• Branding confusion of parent organization vs. individual clinics
• Many “Competitors”
On-line Presence/Volunteers in Medicine
•Facebook 765 likes•No other links
Suite of Social Media Links
•Scaled for mobile devices•Easy to navigate
Mobile App
•Google search: official “org” site came up 2nd
•Used 1 videoOther
Recommendations/Volunteers in Medicine
Refresh website graphics & rethink the placement of photos/videos
Update “retiree” image
Social media!
Medecins Sans Frontiers/ Doctors Without Borders
Doctors Without Borders – Field Volunteers
Doctors Without Borders – Office Volunteers
Full Disclosure
S.W.O.T ANALYSIS: Doctors w/o Borders
STRENGTHS
• Well organized “serious” • Effectively use photography• volunteer requirements• Validated (Nobel Peace prize)• Financial Transparency
WEAKNESSES
• Aggressive donation solicitation (may not be weakness…)
OPPORTUNITIES
Huge opportunity to make a difference on a global scale
Household word in medical/health policy circles
THREATS
• Will volunteers be “scared away”?
• Are they so large that they’ve lost the “personal” connection?
On-line Presence/Doctors Without Borders
• Facebook 694K likes• Twitter 11.8K tweets 401K Followers• Google+ 662,068 followers • LinkedIn, Tumblr, Instagram, Utube, Vimeo,
Suite of Social Media Links
•Scaled for mobile devices•Easy to navigate
Mobile App
•Google prominence –website 1st to appear•Blogs, Videos, Press releases, AudioOther
Recommendations/Doctors w/o Borders
Consider “Fact Sheet” or “Executive Summary”
Add a tiny bit of levity/humor/warmth to the site
Revisit donation page as first Google result
COMPARISON?VOLUNTEERMATCH VOLUNTEERS IN
MEDICINEDOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS
CLEARLY ARTICULATES MISSION
Yes, in a “happy go-lucky manner”
Yes, in a mediocre way
Yes, in a “serious, crisis manner”
GENERATES INTEREST
Yes, engaging site with innovative graphics - something for everyone
Not so much – must be interested in what they have to say to continue
Yes, for those interested in global issues. Stunning photo journalism
RECRUITS VOLUNTEERS
Yes ? Yes
STRONG ONLINE PRESENCE
Yes No Yes++
THANK YOU
• QUESTIONS?