May 2, 2024
Whether you’re hosting fundraising events, rolling out a new marketing strategy, or staffing your nonprofit’s initiatives, volunteers are a core part of your team. From checking in guests at your fundraising auctions to directly interfacing with your beneficiaries, volunteers do a lot for your nonprofit and deserve recognition.
By regularly showing appreciation for volunteers, your nonprofit can improve its volunteer retention rate, recruitment, and productivity. But regular appreciation requires a framework that outlines when, why, and how you’ll recognize volunteers.
This guide will explore several top volunteer recognition strategies and how your nonprofit can implement them to show gratitude to its vital supporters.
1. eCards
Thank-you letters are a staple of any appreciation strategy, and expressing your gratitude in writing is a simple but meaningful way to recognize volunteers. With modern nonprofit technology, you can elevate this approach by creating custom, stunning eCards.
Just like physical thank-you cards, eCards are composed of an image as their virtual cover and a message when opened. Nonprofits can use eCards to thank donors, raise funds, promote awareness, and of course, recognize volunteers.
eCardWidget’s charity eCard guide shows off an example volunteer appreciation eCard from the nonprofit Youth For Understanding:
For your nonprofit’s eCards, consider how your visuals can emphasize your message. Youth For Understanding volunteers support students in cultural exchange programs, so their eCards have visuals that represent how their volunteers help create a more interconnected world.
Use this to inspire your own eCards. For example, if you want to thank volunteers for helping out at your recent fundraising auction, you might create eCards with an auctioneer gavel, streamers, and other auction-themed decorations.
2. Gifts
Little gifts can go a long way toward showing volunteers how much your nonprofit appreciates them. Plus, having physical reminders of your nonprofit around their homes can remind supporters to keep volunteering and develop a long-lasting connection with your organization.
A few gift ideas include:
- Branded merchandise, like t-shirts
- Snack baskets filled with assortments of cookies, popcorn, nuts, and so on
- Gift cards to local retailers and restaurants
When planning gifts, consider your volunteers’ interests and your budget. For example, your nonprofit might not be able to regularly buy $50 Amazon gift cards for all volunteers, but you might be able to hand out discount passes to your local theater on special occasions, like birthdays, and milestones, like 100-hours volunteered.
3. Video Messages
Rather than delivering your thanks in writing, consider recording it via video. If you already use videos for fundraising and donor thank-you messages, making volunteer recognition video messages should be a breeze.
For those with less experience, here are the basic steps needed to create appreciation videos for your volunteers:
- Ensure you have the proper equipment. Your video production doesn’t have to be movie-quality, but there are still a few basics you’ll need. At the very least, you’ll need a camera and editing software. You can use your cell phone’s camera, but if you plan to use video regularly, going the extra mile to buy more professional equipment may be worthwhile.
- Write a short script. Your thank-you messages only need to be about 10-20 seconds long. Write a script that states your nonprofit’s name and mission, refers to the volunteer by name, and calls out the specific actions you want to recognize them for.
- Record in a quiet space. Recording booths and soundproofed rooms make for the best audio quality, but as long as your videos are recorded in a quiet environment without the risk of wind or background noise, you should be good to go.
For your video messages, plan to record them in batches back to back so you won’t need to set up your camera every time you want to thank a volunteer. Then, upload your footage to a computer with basic video editing software and make any adjustments as needed, such as cutting out awkward pauses, checking the audio levels, and adding any additional elements you may want, such as subtitles or your logo.
4. Appreciation Events
According to Double the Donation’s volunteer statistics report, 35% of individuals volunteer to socialize. With this in mind, give your volunteers an opportunity to connect with one another in a casual setting with an appreciation event.
Volunteer appreciation events are highly flexible, and you can host one by:
- Taking your volunteers out to lunch. Volunteer appreciation events can be as formal or informal as you want. On the more casual side of the spectrum, plan to take your volunteers out to lunch one day at a local restaurant.
- Hosting a virtual event. Appreciate all of your volunteers, no matter where they are, with a virtual event. Host a trivia night, a watch party, or a virtual gala online.
- Planning an after-party for an in-person event. If you host many events throughout the year, especially ones at nice venues, consider planning an after-party for volunteers. When the event wraps up, volunteers will stick around for an extra hour or so to celebrate everything they’ve accomplished and reflect on their experience.
These events don’t need much to succeed. Order food, give volunteers the space to get to know one another, and plan a few activities that encourage socialization.
5. Skill Development Opportunities
Thank volunteers by giving them opportunities to grow and develop their skills. For your trusted and long-term volunteers, have your volunteer manager meet with them to discuss how they would like to expand their role at your nonprofit.
In some cases, the volunteer may be happy continuing their current work, but others may want to explore new projects, take on more responsibility, or try tasks that will help them develop new skills.
For example, a volunteer who helps write your social media posts may want to try writing long-form content on your blog. Or, perhaps a volunteer who regularly helps with your initiatives has experience with graphic design and would like to lend their skills to help you create new brand assets.
Talk with specific volunteers one-on-one or send out a survey to all of your volunteers to ask about their satisfaction with their current work and how/if they would like to grow at your organization.
6. Online Shout-Outs
Some volunteers may appreciate some public recognition for a job well done. Appreciate your volunteers for completed projects, successful events, or years of hard work by giving them a shout-out online.
Your shout-outs can take several forms, such as:
- Feature volunteers on your website. On your website, you might create blog posts or dedicate a section of your “team,” “about,” or “get involved,” page to showcase one of your volunteer’s accomplishments. This feature should have a photo, their name, and a brief description of the work they’ve done for your nonprofit.
- Spotlight volunteers in your newsletter. Consider adding a regular section to your newsletter where you spotlight a member of your community who has gone above and beyond. Depending on recent events at your nonprofit, this could be volunteers, donors, or even staff members.
- Post on social media. Reach the widest audience possible by posting about your volunteers on social media. These posts can be shared with the volunteers’ friends and families who aren’t part of your community. Plus, regularly posting about new accomplishments can help your organization seem active and dynamic to an outside audience, helping improve donor trust.
Before recognizing a volunteer online, check that they’re okay with it. Some may be shy about posting their name and face online while others may appreciate another form of recognition more.
7. Recognition Awards
Some of your volunteers regularly go the extra mile, and you can do the same in return by giving them recognition awards.
A few awards you can give out include:
- Best Rookie Volunteer
- Outstanding Mentorship
- Most Hours Volunteered
While most of these strategies can be used repeatedly and at any time, recognition awards should be given out sparingly to ensure they feel special. For example, you might host an annual award ceremony for volunteers where recipients are honored.
How your nonprofit should recognize volunteers depends on your supporters. Talk to them about their preferences when it comes to recognition, and pay attention to their responses when rolling out a new strategy. Adjusting your approach to ensure volunteers feel recognized how they want to be is yet another way you can show how much you appreciate them.