6 Secrets that Greeters Know – and You Need to as well!
It’s so easy to be seduced by marketers.
They merely show up and people fall all over themselves in anticipation.
Here’s a secret, though:
They aren’t the most important people in the room.
If you’re at an event and want to know who the REAL VIP is, take a look at whoever is handing out the programs.
The ones smiling and telling everyone where to go.
The Greeters.
Why?
Because that’s who is making sure everyone is happy.
They are the real money makers in the room.
And if you want the membership solution that will really reduce membership churn, that’s who to look toward.
So, here are 6 secrets we’ve stolen from the Greeters.
Stand Outside
It’s amazing how this simple rule of the greeters is so quickly dismissed.
Yet when a greeter stands outside by the front doors, it communicates volumes. For one, it makes it obvious how to get into the event. But beyond that, a warm smiling face outside says that you’re expecting guests, and you’ve rolled out the welcome mat.
How will this help you with membership retention?
Consider the ways you can welcome people before they even join your membership community.
Personally welcome everyone that comes to your “door.”
Greet them with a smile and lay down the welcome mat.
Introduce yourself and inquire about who they are, too.
2. Say More Than ‘Good Morning’
Let’s be honest: most of the time when a greeter says “good morning,” we don’t get all warm and fuzzy on the inside. In fact, by the time we get past the first row, most of us would have a hard time recalling that we’d been greeted, let alone remembering anything about the greeter.
The same goes for you. Which is why it’s important to go beyond the superficial in your interactions with community members.
Some ways to do so include:
Be involved in the community
Show your face. Often.
Ask questions that require more than a one-word answer.
3. Remember the Little Details
The best greeters remember small details about the people joining the event. Even if they’ve never seen the person before, they manage to make the person feel like they’re just one conversation away from being good friends.
Think of being in school and coming in after the first bell. The school secretary, who often serves as the greeter for the school, likely had a major impact on your mood. Did they address you by name? Did they remember you had a dentist appointment?
Those little gestures go a long way toward helping people feel welcome and cared for.
To improve your membership retention, this is a must.
Doing so shows that you’re paying attention and value them.
Let’s say someone shows up for your Q&A session. You can casually mention, “Hey, if I remember correctly, you’re in the middle of a big move. This call must be a challenge to attend. Thanks for being here.”
Or, when someone makes their first comment in the community forum, you can post a response letting them know you appreciate their contribution. Or, you can even bring it up during the next group call, “Hey, so glad to see you getting involved with the community. Thanks for posting.”
If you have difficulty remembering the small details, use your CRM to record notes for easy reference.
4. Draw Them Into Conversation
Exceptional greeters know this approach well. Loop people into the conversation.
Recall the last time you encountered a skilled greeter – at a theater, church, Bingo night…
Chances are, they offered a simple introduction between two (or more) people.
Doing so gets people talking…
It helps them feel connected and important…
And it lets the greeter off the hook for keeping all conversations going.
As a membership site owner, you can do this in a few ways.
If someone asks a question in the community and you know another member can answer it well, loop the other person into the conversation with a simple tag and a note, “I think you’d be a great person to answer this!”
Another strategy is to use group calls to pull people into a dialogue. For example, let’s say you know that your new member is a sleep coach. Meanwhile, another member just had a baby and is struggling with sleep deprivation. You can simply introduce them to one another and explain the commonality.
This membership solution promotes connections effectively.
5. Celebrate Their Wins
Greeters have an interesting way of popping up throughout an event – even after everyone has been greeted.
Whether it be that they arrive late to the event since they’ve been outside greeting or they just have a tendency to enjoy walking around, it seems the greeters are often nearby cheering everyone on.
Likewise, the best membership site owners celebrate wins wherever they are – big or small.
Create a space within the community discussion area for members to acknowledge their wins.
Begin group calls with celebrations.
Acknowledge wins in a weekly newsletter.
Give shout-outs on social media.
Doing so provides momentum.
It helps people feel noticed.
In short, it ushers in better membership retention and less membership churn.
And lest you forget, member wins reflect positively on you as well.
6. Recognize Members in Your Content Creation
You know those monthly newsletters that small businesses often distribute?
Whether it be a school, theater troupe, dance studio, or synagogue, they likely have a regular bulletin.
Inevitably, there’s an area within the bulletin that recognizes members of the community. From retirements and graduations, to volunteers and people who have made donations, they often acknowledge members of the community.
Guess who typically provides that information? The Greeters.
You can do the same!
There’s no need to be limited to a newsletter, either. Invite them to a Facebook Live or podcast interview.
Highlight them in your blog or offer them an opportunity to write a guest blog for you.
This helps improve membership retention AND it often leads to a larger audience. After all, the person being highlighted will typically share their spotlight wide and far.
