Put up-Occasion Surveys for Volunteers: 7 Questions To Ask

Think about internet hosting an extremely profitable volunteer occasion to your political advocacy group, serving to extra folks register to vote than you ever thought attainable. However then, you discover out that your volunteers felt overworked, underprepared, and dissatisfied general.

Whereas celebrating the win, you additionally want to ensure your volunteers really feel supported and pleased with their work. Gathering post-event suggestions from volunteers is important, and asking the proper questions makes all of the distinction. In spite of everything, getting perception into their views will aid you enhance your strategy and construct a stronger expertise to your subsequent volunteer occasion.

Let’s discover seven questions that may aid you actually perceive their expertise.

1. Did your onboarding expertise put together you to satisfy your duties?

Onboarding units the tone to your occasion by offering clear expectations for volunteers. It ensures they perceive their duties, decreasing confusion and rising confidence of their work.

As a part of your post-event survey, it’s necessary to guage how effectively your onboarding course of ready your volunteers to satisfy their duties. Particularly, ask concerning the effectiveness of the directions, coaching, and orientation supplies. If volunteers point out that coaching was inadequate, use open-ended inquiries to ask for particular examples or areas that might use some work. 

When studying suggestions about your onboarding practices, give attention to these areas:

• Clear Expectations: Volunteers ought to have an in depth overview of their roles, duties, and any targets related to their participation.
• Introduction to the Workforce and Group: Introduce volunteers to workers members and fellow volunteers they’ll work with. They need to additionally perceive your nonprofit’s mission and the marketing campaign’s objective.
• Software program Coaching: Train volunteers how you can use any tools or know-how they’ll work together with whereas finishing up their duties, akin to a canvassing app or a cell bidding platform.
• Video and Experiential Coaching: Provide a coaching video that walks by important duties. Then, you would possibly pair your learners with skilled volunteers who can present them the ropes in individual.

Even when you have already got these onboarding practices in place, frequently assess how efficient your efforts are. Ask volunteers straight to make sure they really feel assured from the very begin of their experiences.

2. Had been there any assets or instruments that will have helped you carry out higher?

As an extension of your onboarding query, you would possibly ask volunteers whether or not the instruments and assets you supplied helped them carry out their duties successfully. Whereas onboarding supplies expectations and coaching, the real-time instruments and assets they use throughout your volunteer occasion also can influence efficiency.

As an illustration, let’s say you organized a cellphone banking marketing campaign the place volunteers referred to as voters to offer details about the election course of and encourage them to vote. On this case, your volunteers would possibly want greater than only a basic script. Perhaps having specialised scripts tailor-made to completely different voter demographics or points would have made their conversations extra environment friendly and focused. Extra scripts would permit volunteers to interact extra meaningfully with voters subsequent time, rising productiveness.

It’s additionally price contemplating whether or not volunteers had entry to the best know-how. Had been they capable of simply entry and navigate your databases, fundraising instruments, or occasion administration software program? Or did they encounter technical challenges that slowed them down or made their duties more durable? Suggestions on these instruments can spotlight potential enhancements in your occasion’s tech setup.

3. What did you discover most rewarding about your volunteer expertise?

This query permits volunteers to spotlight the optimistic points of the occasion and what motivated them to take part. It helps you perceive what points of your volunteer occasions are most impactful and which areas to place additional effort into. Understanding motivations helps create extra rewarding experiences, resulting in larger retention and a extra passionate volunteer base. That means, you possibly can tailor duties and outreach to resonate with volunteer pursuits and values.

For extra perception, think about asking volunteers to explain particular moments or duties that stood out. Perhaps they felt energized by:

• Seeing the rapid influence of their work, like witnessing a profitable voter registration.
• Taking up a extra important position, akin to main a bunch of volunteers.
• Collaborating with a staff or connecting with different volunteers.
• Utilizing particular expertise, akin to public talking, problem-solving, or organizing.
• Interacting with beneficiaries or listening to a robust testimony.

No matter motivates them, your nonprofit ought to know, so you possibly can proceed offering memorable, satisfying experiences.

4. How would you price our communication earlier than, throughout, and after the occasion?

High quality and common communication is a cornerstone of any profitable occasion. By asking this query in your survey, you possibly can decide how knowledgeable volunteers felt all through the method, whether or not by pre-event directions, real-time updates, or post-event follow-ups. From the second volunteers enroll to if you present post-event appreciation, well timed and clear communication ensures volunteers really feel supported and assured.

To go one step additional, comply with up with a query asking volunteers to establish any gaps in communication or areas the place they felt the data supplied was unclear or premature. You may additionally ask in the event that they acquired all the data they wanted on time.

As an illustration, perhaps some volunteers felt like your e-mail communication was too imprecise or didn’t embrace sufficient particulars, leaving them not sure about expectations. Others might word that necessary updates — akin to last-minute reminders or adjustments in occasion logistics — had been communicated too late and would’ve been more practical if despatched by faster channels like SMS.

5. Did you’re feeling your effort and time had been valued?

Volunteer satisfaction in the end determines whether or not somebody will return to assist out with future occasions. This survey query gauges whether or not volunteers felt acknowledged for his or her contributions. You would possibly present a follow-up survey query that asks about how they like to be acknowledged and supplies volunteer appreciation choices like:

• Thank-You Letters: Customized notes expressing gratitude for his or her effort and time can both be despatched digitally or by mail.
• Cellphone Calls: A private name from the occasion organizer or volunteer coordinator presents a direct thanks that opens the door for a two-way dialog.
• On-line Shoutouts: Public recognition on social media, your group’s web site, or a e-newsletter is an effective way to showcase excellent volunteers. First, make sure that people are okay with public appreciation.
• A Goodie Bag or Branded Merchandise: Considerate items akin to event-related objects present an amazing memento of your volunteer occasion.

In your survey, you would possibly present a listing of choices for volunteers to select from, making it simpler to investigate responses and guarantee your recognition efforts are sensible. Tailoring these efforts will in the end strengthen your volunteer program by boosting retention. Plus, you’ll create a optimistic fame to your group when the phrase will get round that you just present appreciation.

6. Have you learnt in case your employer presents volunteer grants or volunteer day without work (VTO)?

Volunteer analysis signifies that 84% of employers imagine volunteerism is an efficient strategy to have interaction staff. Consequently, many companies supply office giving applications, akin to:

• Volunteer Grants: Firms donate cash to a nonprofit the place an worker volunteers. These grants are sometimes awarded as soon as a sure threshold is met (e.g., $50 for 20 hours of volunteer work). One other well-liked choice is to donate per hour (e.g., $10 per hour).
• VTO: Companies supply a set quantity of paid day without work particularly for volunteering with nonprofits. For instance, full-time staff would possibly obtain two VTO days per 12 months.

Your post-event survey is the right time to ask about volunteers’ eligibility for these alternatives. For many who are not sure, present a software that lets them search a database of company-specific volunteer applications. This software ought to cowl particulars on particular person companies’ program choices, worker eligibility necessities, and the method for requesting grants or day without work.

7. What options do you’ve gotten for enhancing future volunteer occasions?

This open-ended query invitations volunteers to provide constructive suggestions. Volunteers usually have distinctive, unbiased views on how you can make issues extra satisfying or environment friendly. Their recent concepts can enhance your volunteer administration and create higher experiences for everybody concerned in future occasions.

In response to this query, they may present suggestions on areas akin to:

• Occasion construction: Strategies concerning the general circulation of the occasion, together with its timing, breaks, and pacing
• Obligations: Suggestions on whether or not roles had been well-defined, organized, and manageable
• Logistics and venue: Ideas on the bodily atmosphere, akin to occasion location, accessibility, consolation, parking, or signage
• Workforce collaboration: Insights on how effectively volunteers labored collectively, together with options for enhancing teamwork, communication, and group coordination

Place this query in direction of the tip of your post-event survey so volunteers can present options that haven’t already been lined in different sections. This strategy respects their time and permits them to supply extra in-depth responses.

By the point they attain this part, they’ve already addressed extra particular points of the occasion, which allows them to offer well-rounded and considerate options for enchancment.

Each volunteer occasion presents a wealth of studying alternatives. The easiest way to uncover them is with a well-crafted post-event survey that dives deep into their experiences. Remember to pay attention and implement suggestions. When volunteers really feel heard, they’re extra more likely to return, making your group stronger with every volunteer occasion it hosts.