Where do members come from?

Hello,

Could you please offer some advice. The knife club that I belong to has a low member turn out and I was wondering what other clubs/organizations do to keep there members interested in attending monthly meetings?
Any help would be appreciated.

Thank you so much.
Jeff

Hello Jeff,
I can not imagine monthly meetings. Most clubs have a hard time getting officers and board members to a yearly meeting.
We get together a few times a year and hope to add more shows to our organization.
This forum, the web site, shows and hammer-ins are how we get together.
Many members belong to this forum and meet on FireTalk also.
The Custom Knife Directory as a whole (including this forum) provides a way to belong to an International group of knifemakers and collectors.
How large is your membership - and widespread. Ours has a good sized membership for a fledgling organization, but we are spread out over a vast state. It is impossible to get together monthly.
Incentive will get them there- but each group is different. Perhaps polling your members on what they would like to see or hear (speakers maybe) at your shows.

I think the problem is universal. When I was into muscle cars (still am, but can't afford the fun), I saw the same thing in the car clubs. I am personally too busy to spend time at a meeting. Some remedies that would keep me interested...

1. Quarterly meetings. And don't just use a room at the local civic center, make it a BBQ or an event people can do something at. Hammer-ins sound great. Meet at someone's shop and work on a project. Take the pass around knife concept to a new height. Imagine at every meeting, lets say you have 8 makers participating. Everyone starts to make the same knife. First meeting, everyone cuts out the blank on their knife (8 knives going) and drills holes. next meeting, everyone hands their knife to the next guy and the rough grinds are done. Keep up the process, keep handing rotating the knives, and keep everyone together so all eight are done at the same time.

2. Teach a class every meeting. Partner up the experienced guys with the new makers and edumacate them. I have had two makers teach me the same thing. the first time I understood mentally, but it just wasn't happening. The second guy showed me the exact same thing, but in a slightly different manner, and both my head and my hands understood.

3. One thing I feel is very important about organizations and meeting is that someone strong has to coordinate, and the proper amount of sharing has to be facilitated. The experienced guys should teach something to the new guys. The new guys should rub their enthusiasm off on the older guys so they are reminded of what a great craft we all partake in.

Geno,

Thank you for the reply to the message.
Finding officers is like coming across hens teeth. The knife club has about 100 members where about 10 percent show up at the monthy get togethers. And live as far away as 40 miles from where the meeting location. But my concern is that in that fourty mile radius there is between 2 and 2.5 million people that don't know about the club, knifemakers and what we do. The club does offer a newsletter, website, mettings with limted entertainment, knife show and a custom club knife each year for sale, but this might be the first year in 21 years that there will be no more show and clubknife.
When you stated that you meet a few times a year, when is that. Is it just around show time or spread out thru the year at approx. equal times. And does demo's bring your members and new members to the meetings? Where should the focus be on bringing in new members? Newspapers, outdoors shows,other knife shows or forms like theses? With limted membership and funds what might one or a few do?

Thanks
Jeff

Jeff,
We do all we can to advertise and spread the word around. Many of us makers buy memberships for our good customers who in turn bring their collector friends into the ring, etc.
Some of the show promoters will let you buy a block of tables for members to be together and represent their club or organization.
Many of our members do demonstrations for Scouts, Lions Clubs, etc. COntact some of the local organizations in your area and see if that helps.