RC Club Building Activities

Recruitment. It’s the hardest part of any club and RC clubs are not exception. Despite how awesomely amazing you know your RC club is… others in your area simply don’t know it exists. So how do you build your RC club and gain new members to share the fun with?

Start With Your Hobby Sources

Most likely, the local hobby shop you frequent has others who are already deep into the RC hobby. It’s also an excellent place to find others who are just getting started and are excited to learn more. Make a simple flyer (there are lots of free tools online to make something eye-catching). Include a way to get ahold of you. Make it a QR code if you know how, or simply add an email address. If you have a regular meeting place and time, don’t forget to include that!

No local hobby store to speak of? That’s ok! Many local businesses will put flyers and posters up for their community. Try a tire shop, car repair shop, or other industry-themed resource and simply ask nicely if they would let you add a flyer. Into flying RC? Your local airport probably has a bulletin board. Mine has two! We also have an airport-themed diner that loves to support the community. Many people go there to sit and watch the airplanes, so even if they don’t fly yet, they might like to learn.

The Online World

Social media is probably the most obvious place to start online to promote your RC club and build community awareness. If you don’t have a website for your club, make a Facebook page and/or a listing on Google My Business (to show up on the map). This will give people searching online a way to find you. But don’t stop there – join groups on social media and post to them. You can use Facebook Meta Business Manager for a page and actually post to your page and a group you’re a member of at the same time. Join groups with your page (you can join them with your personal profile, too) that relate to your hobby in your area or groups that promote local events. You could share a post in a “locals” group to share when and where your next race or fun fly event is taking place and invite people to  come watch. The idea with social media is to be visible to people who know you and draw in people who haven’t met you yet, too. Groups are a great way to do the latter.

RC forums are another avenue for establishing an online presence for your RC club. However, many forums are national. Try creating a sub-thread for your area and post activities your club does with dates and times. Make the invitation for others to join. It may be harder to find those in your immediate area this way, but you’re sure to connect with others who share your passion.

Free Event Calendars

Your community may have event calendars you can get your club listed in. Look for local magazines and check with local news outlets. If you’re a non-profit club, or even if you’re not, many of these outlets are happy to have one more event on their community calendar. You could even email your local Chamber of Commerce and ask if they know who publishes these kinds of lists.

Host a Friends Day

My local RC flying club hosts days where they invite a local junior pilots group. They set up trainer planes with trainer-controlled transmitters and let teens who are interested in airplanes fly RC. If you don’t have a local group like this, try something like a “Friends Day” where club members are encouraged (maybe even required) to bring a friend and hold a BBQ. Bring out the trainer planes and let the guests fly with a buddy box. You might even open this up to the public as a “Learn to Fly RC Day” and share it to those social media groups.

Other RC Club Building Activities

There are other ways to build membership in your RC club. Think about activities you can host that you can open to the public. Or try participating in other events with public exposure. If you have a local air or car museum, maybe they have an annual event with vendors. You can probably get a booth at one of these events. Get out there and shake hands with the public and your passion for the hobby is sure to shine through and catch on to new members.