OPEN HOUSE BASICS

  1. The Open House Meeting needs to be well-organized, with an Open House Team and Coordinator. Open Houses are effective means of membership building and are recommended to be held routinely 1 to 2 times a year. They can be used to celebrate the Club Charter Date Anniversary, a national or local holiday, club, or civic event. 
  1. Should have the involvement in organizing the meeting of some non-Toastmasters in the prospect organization, as well as experienced Toastmasters within the prospective group (if available).
  1. PR materials should be finalized and distributed at least 4 weeks and preferably 6 weeks in advance. Include as many different types of PR media as possible.
  1. An abundance of Toastmasters promotional materials should be present at the meeting – including back issues of Toastmasters Magazine, District and/or Club newsletters, and brochures from Toastmasters International.
  1. Have a printed agenda for the meeting.
  1. If possible have some food at the meeting.
  1. State the objectives of Toastmasters at the beginning of the meeting, and also suggest reading  the Mission of the Club.
  1. Have enthusiastic Toastmasters as meeting participants!
  1. Involve guests by explaining the meeting roles, as each role comes into play.
  1. Explain aspects of the meeting and the Toastmasters program in simple terms.
  1. Keep the meeting roles basic – it’s not necessary to have every meeting role that would normally be a part of a regular club meeting, just the key roles (Toastmaster, Speaker, Table Topics Master, Timer, Evaluator, and General Evaluator).
  1. The Open House Team should be composed of people who are as similar in background as possible to the prospective members within the organization – strive for “demographic” compatibility.
  1. Have a mix of new and experienced Toastmasters as part of the team – this will give prospective members a glimpse of what is possible for them to achieve (via the experienced speaker) but not intimidate them by presenting only an example they feel may not be realistic for them to emulate (via having a relatively less experienced speaker on the team).
  1. Have the Club Coaches, if the club is eligible for Club Coaches, at for the Open House Meeting, club officers and the Area Governor present if possible.
  1. Know as much as possible about the audience and its composition (are they P.R. people? Administrative? Technical? Marketing? – etc.)
  1. Good subject for a speech at an Open House Meeting is one that promotes Toastmasters, and explains the benefits of membership.
  1. Select appropriate roles for your team members at the meeting, roles the members are familiar with and excel in.
  1. Don’t have difficult Table Topics – use them to demonstrate the possibilities of extemporaneous self-expression, not as a “test” of arcane or specialized knowledge or as a way to “stump” prospective members with “off-the-wall” questions.
  1. Allow enough time (at least 10-15 minutes) for a Question-and-Answer session after the main portion of the meeting.  Take 45 minutes or less for the standard meeting so that that additional time will be available.
  1. It may be advantageous to have any members of the District Top 3 who are present at the meeting to stay in the background until later in the meeting.
  1. Even if more than one speech at the meeting is presented, it is best to have just one evaluation – but it should be a good one and not a “whitewash”, emphasizing both positives and areas of possible improvement.
  1. While having 10 or more prospective members present at the Open House Meeting is desirable; however go ahead and start the meeting even if less than 10 are in attendance.
  1. If possible make the Open House Meeting location and time consistent for future meetings, and commit the group to scheduling those follow-up meetings.
  1. If at all possible, get a commitment as soon as possible from prospective members to join, and to write checks for their new membership fee (or at least sign a list pledging to join).
  1. Promote expedited new member orientation by offering mentor assignment after voting the new member in.