Recruiting for New Member Q & A via Zoom

Question

Starting in April, we'd like to approach the New Member Q & A sessions slightly differently.  These have been running since September and here's what I've observed:

• Real-time attendance has been a bit of feast or famine.  The times when there were 40-ish folks on the Zoom call were a little overwhelming and I felt that I wasn't getting around to everyone who had a question.  Sessions with just a few participants were often very productive, provided that those individuals were comfortable with being in the spotlight.
• The number of YouTube views shows that people are interested.
• Low real-time attendance could have to do with lack of awareness/poor publicity, people being busy at the Zoom times, or people feeling shy. 

Here's what we're trying moving forward:

• A dedicated Free Space Page:  https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:New_Member_Q_and_A_via_Zoom
• Turning to Mentors and Project Leaders to suggest specific individuals whom they think would be a good fit for these conversations.
  • Project Leaders: We're hoping that you can identify individuals who are either in progress or recent graduates of any training experience your project offers (Tartan Trail, Orphan Trail, Trans Canada Trail, etc.)
• Hopefully the recommended individuals would:
  • Be up and running with actively creating profiles
  • Be curious about how things work on WikiTree
  • Be willing to let us make some changes to the profiles they show us 
  • Be comfortable being on camera and in the spotlight
• We'll be moving away from the idea of presenting a monthly topic because I feel that's already being done wonderfully in the WikiTree Tour videos.  Instead I'll pick one profile to "tour" at the beginning of each session.

Our next session is Thursday, April 6.  I know that this is a tight turn-around, but could I ask for recommendations from Mentors and Leaders via private message by EOD on Monday, April 3?  WikiTreers are also very welcome to nominate themselves!  If you're nominating yourself, please answer this post and I'll be in touch.

Answer 1

Yes, my biggest issue when I encounter new members is I don't know how to tell them how to find your meetings. They don't know how to use g2g yet, so telling them to look for the monthly link doesn't work. Having the new space page is amazing! I talk to a lot of new to WikiTree people almost every day now because of USBH, so I'll be sending them your way!

Comments

Much appreciated, Emma!

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Thanks, Emma! I recommended the space page as a much more accessible way to reach out, as even I struggle to find what I am looking for on G2G. This is coming from a guy who has edited wikis since 2004.