Use a showcase exhibit at your next event to spotlight your club’s service and fellowship opportunities.
By Julie Saetre
Is your club planning to host or attend a community event soon? Make the most of it with a showcase exhibit. Whether you’re staffing a fundraising booth, hosting a 5K or holding a club open house, a display is an ideal vehicle to get more people interested in your club. Use these showcase ideas as inspiration:
- Picture the possibilities. Select 10 to 15 photos (depending on the size of your space and the expected crowd level). Include shots of service projects, fundraising events and fellowship activities. Enlarge the photos for more impact and consider adding captions or brief descriptions. Choose your images carefully: Focus on children being helped or having fun (and make sure you have photo releases signed by parents or guardians), members working together and other action shots. Find more tips for getting great shots on page 7 of the Kiwanis Tips & Tools guide.
- Show and tell. Include items from past and present projects, gatherings and accomplishments. Examples: a T-shirt from a recent walk-a-thon or race your club sponsored, an invitation to an upcoming fundraiser, a letter of appreciation from a local official or a beneficiary of a service project.
- Power up. Prepare a PowerPoint or similar presentation of your club’s greatest hits. Keep each slide simple and easy to read, with one key highlight or statistic per slide. Intersperse your text slides with colorful photos (similar to the ones suggested in the first bullet point) and contact information for your club. Be sure to include slides that invite new members to join your club!
Suggest taking time at a club meeting to brainstorm on how to best highlight your club. Your showcase exhibit should serve as a conversation starter with future members — so make sure current members are ready to share their own Kiwanis stories!