Marketing Tips

Scouting has sometimes-all in fun-been referred to as an "underground operation." Think about it. Scouts generally meet at night and in church basements. We camp away from town and, sadly, there are not enough occasions when we even wear the uniform out in public. It's no wonder that residents and leaders of many of our communities will reminisce about when there was a great Scouting program in their town, and be shocked to find out that they currently have a number of packs and troops that are actively serving young people!

How can this happen? Because we-as leaders in Scouting-don't do enough to inform the public about our program. That can be easily fixed if we adopt a "tell the world" attitude. Every unit should have a Public Relations chairman who is willing and able to submit news releases on a regular basis to local media outlets. There is a general guide to writing news releases and even some sample, fill-in-the-blanks news releases in the links to the left. You can also download a position description for a Unit P.R. Chairman.

Finally, look at the "Flashbulb Award," a new recognition item that is being rolled out by the Gulf Ridge Council this spring. It's fun and you'll LOVE the results!