The Sorority App Your PNMs Are Asking For

Sorority recruitment season can be exciting, but the prospect of communicating effectively with hundreds of potential new members can be daunting. The meetings, the information, the get togethers – it’s a lot to coordinate and these women are counting on you to help them find their perfect match!

In recent years, Greek Life offices have been turning to mobile solutions in order to help streamline communication channels when it comes to Sorority Rush – even creating a recruitment-focused sorority app in order to simplify communication with incoming PNMs.

The challenges of size

Kahlin McKeown, PHA Advisor at University of Maryland, says that one of their largest difficulties is the sheer amount of interest. “I think the mass of PNMs going through the process makes communication challenging. We had almost 900 women sign up for recruitment.”

Not only can it be difficult to make sure that all PNMs are in the communication loop, but the communication channels themselves can often let down organizers. Jessica Walke, Vice President of Panhellenic Recruitment at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign says, “The most common communication challenge during Greek Life recruitment is a potential new member not receiving crucial information. It could be because they did not see it in time if it was sent electronically or, if it was through verbal communication, they have so many things on their mind they don’t hear it.”

Making it mobile

Kahlin and Jessica inherently knew what Pearson Education officially uncovered – 84% of college students own a smartphone – and decided to use that to their advantage. Both University of Maryland and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign now use a sorority app during their recruitment periods as one of their main communication resources for PNMs.

For Jessica, choosing to utilize a sorority app was about convenience. “Since everyone always has their phone on them and is constantly checking it, I think the major benefit is that it becomes easier and faster for information to get spread to the PNMs in a timely manner.”

Since many PNMs are unfamiliar with the campus, providing important information in a centralized app including maps and guides really helped. Recruitment can already be a stressful time when anxiously waiting to hear back from different houses so the last thing you’d want is having your PNMs worrying about getting lost!

Kahlin added that there’s an added bonus of sustainability and scalability. “It is much easier for us to manage and update each year, and we save money on recruitment booklets. It is also much more sustainable than printing 1,000 books for PNMs to use!”

No more paper or emails

With sorority apps replacing the traditional booklets, packets, schedules, and emails surrounding the recruitment process with easier-to-consume mobile communication – a whole new range of content can be provided to PNMs. Most importantly, more information means making them more comfortable during the process.

“I believe it is a more organized way for the PNMs to have all their information in one place so nothing gets lost,” says Jessica. Traditionally, recruitment booklets served this purpose – but booklets get lost, and they’re hard to carry around to every recruitment event.

For a PNM, navigating the complicated process can be a little nerve-making, so a sorority app is helping to put their mind at ease. They know they can always come back to important information no matter where they are or what they’re doing. It will always be on their phone. With lists of individual chapters, their missions, and their causes, PNMs can make informed decisions and be better prepared in their presentation to existing members.

Sorority recruitment apps are also being used in interactive ways. PNMs can instantly contact their Recruitment Counselor with questions and even take notes right within the app when visiting potential chapters. With an app, even maps become more interactive. Chapter houses can be clearly marked and linked to the information related to that chapter.

Perhaps the game-changing feature of a sorority app is the ability to send push notifications to anyone using it. As locations, the weather, and times can constantly change, it’s important to have a central information hub that’s always up to date. Kahlin says, “Everyone always has their phone with them. There are no extra items for the PNMs to carry around or remember to bring, and we are able to update information in real time if things change or if we find an error.”

Pro Tip from Guidebot: Did you know Columbia University’s School of General Studies saved $15,000 by eliminating printed schedules and boosted their orientation session attendance year-over-year by going mobile!

A sorority app simplifies recruitment

Recruitment season is filled with a constant exchange information. Today’s PNMs, however, are asking for and expecting the processes to keep up with the way they prefer to communicate. Panhellenic Councils have discovered that a dedicated sorority app helps them to keep information current, centralized, and user-friendly.

Want to create your own sorority app for recruitment? Try out Guidebook’s Greek Life Recruitment template for free today!