TOP 10 WAYS TO ENCOURAGE STUDENTS TO ATTEND A CONFERENCE

1. Clearly know the purpose of the conference.

Know if it is an evangelistic retreat, a leadership conference, or a

conference for growth and training.

2. Sow broadly with students.

Promote the conference widely. Get your leadership students involved

early. Train them how to explain the conference and keep track of

those you challenge. Have the students write down 5-10 friends they

want to invite. Use creative skits, announcements at meetings,

mailings, registration give-aways, testimonies of those who have

attended before. Early registration deadlines are often a help to get a

core of students registered early.

3. List possible students to challenge and determine their needs.

Brainstorm a list of students you want to ask. Think through the

benefit to each student and communicate that benefit to them.

4. Pray for the students.

The Lord desires students’ growth more than they do or we do. Ask

Him to show the students their need for Him and give them the

desire.

5. Challenge each student individually.

Already knowing needs that will be met by the conference for each

student, approach students with a heart for them to “discover” it

themselves. Ask them questions about their desire for spiritual

growth. Mention conversations you’ve had where they expressed the

need to grow spiritually or mention the hunger for God you’ve seen in

them. Begin with your leadership students and proceed to students in

your ministry. Be ready to mention any of their friends you know are

going. Don’t be afraid to ask the student to work through barriers,

such as asking for time off from a coach or employer, asking a parent

for permission, or going without friends. Your invitation may be the

opportunity for them to trust God in a deeper way

6. Get the students’ feedback.

What are their questions, their initial response? Tell them how to

register, when registration deadlines are, about fundraisers, etc. Have

them verbalize any hesitations they may have so you can talk them

through.

7. Deal with barriers.

Validate their concerns for any of the barriers, which they feel exist.

Discuss the practical solutions to each problem. Be aware that

sometimes students have issues that block them from going but may

be afraid to tell you because they do not want to disappoint you. Let

them know that you will think no less of them if they do not go, but

that you want their best. Also be prepared to work through the

solutions to their problems in going.

8. Talk to parents, teachers and coaches.

As an adult, you can offer some credibility and influence for the

student as they speak with parents, bosses, and coaches. Demonstrate

a true servant’s heart by respectfully, yet confidently, speaking to

these people. Be ready to communicate how crucial you believe this

conference is to the student. As a leader, you can often clarify

miscommunications the parent/coach/teacher and student have had.

For example, the parent who thinks this is just an unsupervised wild

time at the beach, or the coach who thinks the student is just going

with their friends for a vacation, or the boss who does not understand

the potential benefit for the student.

9. Raise funds.

You should already have scheduled or have in mind, several

fundraisers. Money has to be raised for most students and we can help

by being creative in our fundraising techniques. Fundraising also

deepens the students’ commitment to the conference because it will

“cost” them something.

10. Communicate other details and follow through.

As the event approaches, make sure that everyone is being informed

of specific details (departure, arrival, phone number, what to bring,

etc. Put yourself in the role of a parent. What would you want to

know if your child were going away for several days? Don’t assume

people will just figure it out.