FreeCEN

Advertising and Promoting the "County Team"

Aims:

While each Co-Ordinator's method for achieving success may vary, it will be evident that certain "promotional" activities can help to increase the number of volunteers in a team.

Promotion does not need to be spectacular, nor necessarily extensive.
There are many contacts on the CO-ORDS List who will assist with the preparation of a "County Project" Web page, or there may be a team member who can accept responsibility for producing a web page.
A typical page would proclaim the progress with the work, provide the Co-Ord email address as a contact point for new volunteers, and link to the FreeCEN Web pages, especially drawing attention to the Searchable Database; the FreeCEN pages will, in turn, link to the known County Pages. Links to other non-profit sites (e.g. GENUKI) can be beneficial to the FreeCEN Project.

A "County Newsletter", if emailed regularly (monthly?) to members of the County Team, proves to be very beneficial:

Volunteers gain the feeling of "belonging" - less chance they may quit with possible "loss" of the source images.

Announcements regarding "tips and hints", programme developments, and general "team progress" strengthen the individual's awareness of involvement with the project.

Maintain Contact:
Ensure that all members of the team respond to periodic requests for a "personal progress report". Follow up for reluctant respondents quickly - they may need help or encouragement.
It is acknowledged that circumstances can change after a person has volunteered. Some volunteers find themselves over-whelmed when they discover the magnitude of the project; others may suffer changed family or work commitments which affect their ability to continue as volunteers.
Unfortunately, some others seem to regard FreeCEN as a "free" means of obtaining their own set of Census images!

Regular contact with team members is the simplest way to keep problems under control.

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02Sep2003