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When it comes to your tour, getting students signed up is the most important part of the planning process. The recruitment meeting is your chance to frame for students and their parents the benefits of travel. It can be stressful, but if you follow these 5 easy tips to help you knock ’em dead.
01 / Hang those posters
The first step is hanging those destination posters in places around the school everyone is going to see and engage with: the cafeteria, the library, or the gym are perfect spots. Urge your students to take photos with the posters and share them on their social media accounts.
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Have flyers available with meeting information for students to take home and share with their parents.
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Set up an info table for a couple periods, add music, food, and decorations that are all related to your tour destination.
02 / Take to the halls
Speak with your colleagues about letting you give a short 5-minute elevator pitch for your trip at the beginning of their morning classes. Don’t be afraid to get creative and hand out flyers detailing the destination of your tour, where they can find more information and when your meeting is being held.
Some of our Group Leaders have shared using costumes, culturally significant music or tasty “peanut-free” treats to drum up interest in their recruitment meeting (and trip).
03 / Student ambassadors
Do you have students who have travelled on an EF trip before? Talk to them about being your ambassadors and speaking to classmates about their experiences abroad. They can engage students on their level and hype them up enough to get their parents and their friends and their friends’ parents into your recruitment meeting.
Have one of them speak at your recruitment meeting about their personal experiences on an EF tour. What the saw. What they did. And especially, what did they learn about themselves throughout the experience.
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Let students and fellow teachers know you’re planning an educational tour—build up the anticipation for a big reveal!
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Everyone loves a great story and testimony of their experiences.
04 / Personal experiences
EF provides you with all the materials needed to have a successful recruitment meeting but don’t discount your personal experiences. The parents want to hear from you! The changes you’ve seen in your students after returning home from a tour. Why you think travel is so important. And why you think your particular tour will be so beneficial.
Is this your time leading a tour? Great! Speak to why you believe starting a travel tradition in your schools is important. What you hope the students get out of it. This will help parents to understand the importance of allowing their kid to experience different cultures in an immersive environment.
05 / Trust your Tour Consultant
Your Tour Consultant is your best resource in planning your recruitment meeting. They are there to field your concerns (“What if nobody comes?”), your fears (“What if nobody comes?!”) and to answer your questions on how to run an effective meeting (“Should I have culturally relevant snacks? Can I have a contest?”). They have the inside scoop of what’s worked, what hasn’t and the kinds of promotional materials available to make your meeting a success.
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Your Tour Consultant is your trusty sidekick to help you pull out all the stops.
