Before the Fair

 

Membership Fee

Decide whether you want to charge a membership fee in order to up your funds.

 

Prepare a rota

Find out who is available to man your stall throughout the day and ensure that no one is left there alone all day. Make sure your stall is always manned by a couple of enthusiastic members. Aim to do an hour each.

 

Make your stall stand out

Make sure your stall stands out because you’ll have lots of stalls to compete with. Make it eye-catching and give out freebies (Sweets, cakes etc), if you have the funds to do so (Check with the SU about how much money is in your account).

 

Plan what information you want to get across

What do new members need to know? (Training times, Social times, important dates etc.) The best way to do this is create flyers/posters students can take away with them. All of your promotion material should have a clear contact name and emails so they know who to get in touch with!

 

Plan an event

Make sure you have a meeting/event or social booked and planned so that you have an actual event to get people along to as soon as they have signed up. Or plan a free taster session so that people know what they are getting into.

 

How to sign new members up

Your clubs will be given individual Google form sign up links and Google spreadsheets (This will be explained in the committee training a week before the fresher’s fair) so you can sign members up on the day, this link can be used on phones, laptops, tablets so make sure you bring enough handheld devices. This will be easier than manually typing new members on a spreadsheet.

 

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On The Day

• Turn up early so that you have plenty of time to set up.
• Be enthusiastic and friendly, confident and chatty, but don’t scare people off with aggressive sales techniques
• Society - Wear committee t-shirts/hoodies if you have them as it makes you easier to spot.
• Sports Teams - Wear club training or playing kit to help people identify you
• Be honest and let people know what they will get from joining your group
• Make sure your stall is manned at all times - keep cash and personal belongings somewhere safe and out of reach. If you find any valuables that aren't yours hand them over to the Union stand.
• If you have any problems on the day speak to someone at the Students' Union Stand.
• Save resources for the whole day so there is still some for the latecomers.
• Bring lots of water/Food and pens to last you the day
• Don’t overcrowd your stall with members otherwise, you might appear intimidating and cliquey.

 

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GDPR

The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has changed the way we collect and process personal data, and, as a result, there are now very clear guidelines. Under the new GDPR we need to state clearly:
 

• Why we collect the personal data
• How we collect personal data
• How long we keep it for
• How we get consent for collecting personal data
• How you can opt out of having your personal data kept

 
There are very severe consequences for breaching the GDPR code including large fines that TSDSU could be subject to if we breach the regulation - and this means that it is extremely important that you know and understand how to collect data.
The biggest implication for you as sport and societies representatives is that you can no longer collect data from your members via any other source than our website - this means no more paper lists containing any information must be kept. It cannot be stressed strongly enough that if you collect data informally on your club members you could be in breach of the new GDPR.
 
It is therefore important that you ask all your members to sign up to clubs and societies via the website at www.tsdsu.co.uk.  All administration of your clubs will need to be done via the website, including emailing out to your members.  You will receive training on how to administer your club or society via Union cloud in September. Today you will be asked to sign up to the website in preparation for the training and to ensure that we are collecting your data online with the new GDPR guidelines.
 
You can find out more about GDPR and its implications on the ICO website. https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/key-definitions/

 

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Things to think about

Knowing your Club/Society

• What are your Club/Societies main aims and objectives for the coming year
• How many members signed up at Fresher’s Fayre and how many have engaged in activities

 

Marketing

• Does your Club/Society have a recognisable name and logo which your members and new students can identify and understand? If not, how can you make this happen?
• Is your Information on the SU website up to date? Do you have active Facebook pages and twitter accounts?
• How else can you advertise your Club/Society? What methods have been most effective? What methods have been ineffective?

 

Recruitment & Retention

• Have you booked a stall at Freshers’ Fair? What does your stall look like/consist of?
• How do fresher’s sign up at Freshers’ Fair or after if they have missed it? (Google Forms)
• How can members get involved once they have signed up?
• Make sure you allow members to pass on ideas and feelings freely
• How can you ensure that members feel like they are part of the club/society
• How can you give ownership of the Club/Society to members

 

Communication

• How are you communicating with your members?
• How can your members contact you?
• How can non-members contact you?
• Who is the main contact for the Club/Society? and who is responsible for replying to emails and queries?

 

Representation & Effectiveness

• How can you find out about what other things are going on in the SU and whether they affect you’re Club/Society.
• How often do you communicate with the SU?
• What can you do to make them more effective
• How often are you having committee meetings? (You should be having at least one per term and then an AGM at the end of the year)