Should I place participants wherever I have needs? How to allow participants to self-select.

You have a big event coming up. You might need servers, videographers, childcare, cooks, sign-up desk, digital marketing and cleanup... all for the same event. Phew!

OR, let's say you need participants every day for multiple jobs. Monday-Friday you run a consignment store staffed entirely by participants who stock shelves, work the cashier, assist with inventory, etc.

Would it be better to just post an umbrella opportunity and place participants into these varying roles after they've signed up to help? (for example: work at our banquet! vs. help with childcare at our banquet!)

We'd argue that it isn't.

Research shows that placing participants "where they're needed the most" is ineffective for long-term retention. It also potentially removes many of the health benefits associated with volunteering.

The problem that arises when placing participants wherever you have a need is that this removes the participant's personal preference. However, when participants place themselves, they naturally align their motivations with the opportunities they choose to sign up for.

We don't want to place participants based on immediate need. We want to place them based on their passion/enjoyment, in a role where they'll feel most fulfilled.

This is why we always recommend creating different participant opportunities for different jobs, even if they are both taking place at the same event.

"But isn't it tedious to create 10 different participant opportunity listings for the same event/organization?" Not necessarily. This is what we created the "Duplicate" feature for.

Using the "Duplicate" feature to separately post different responsibilities within an umbrella opportunity cuts out the extra work of creating many different opportunities. This functionality duplicates an opportunity that you've already created, then allows you to tweak the duplicate to fit a slightly different need (for example, having "check-in table" and "banquet serving" be two different participant opportunities at the same fundraising event).

Posting specific needs separately allows participants to walk into an opportunity confident and excited to spend the morning, afternoon or evening doing something that they are passionate about!

Here's a great podcast that dives deeper into the topic of participant satisfaction!