The volunteer life cycle: a marketing model for volunteering

As the competition for volunteers becomes more acute and volunteer managers become increasingly concerned with the recruitment and retention of volunteers, marketing techniques are playing an ever more important role. Using the findings of a series of focus groups, this article examines the recruitment and retention of volunteers in northeastern England. The findings indicate that volunteer behaviour goes through a number of stages. A ‘volunteer life cycle’ model is developed which emphasises the relevance of voluntary organisations using marketing communications, recruitment and retention strategies to facilitate the volunteer’s experience, so that it results in continued volunteering rather than an exit from the activity.