This is the Referral Rundown, the newsletter that helps camps grow through word of mouth.

We're the staff lanyard of newsletters: always there for when you really need it.

Today’s estimated read time: 1 minute 25 seconds

I recently gave a talk about staff referral programs.

Not camper referrals, for once. 😉

Here's the idea the whole talk hung on:

A referral program doesn't create enthusiasm for your camp.

It channels enthusiasm that already exists.

That sounds like a small distinction.

But it isn't, because it tells you where to start.

A good staff referral program has three ingredients, and the referral bonus is only one part of the last one.

The People

Recruit through the people who already love your camp.

Returning counselors, alumni, former campers who are finally old enough to apply.

They already talk about camp all year.

Here’s a short example – my friend Sam brought his friend Adam his second year on staff at our camp. The next year, he brought six more folks.

It turns out, he and Adam were telling camp stories the whole year at college. And other people caught their excitement.

Look for the folks who already want to come back to camp.

You aren't asking them to start a conversation, just to point it somewhere.

The Experience

Give those people something worth recommending.

This is the uncomfortable one.

Recommending a job means putting your name on it, to a friend you'll still see in September.

Nobody does that for a summer they'd rather forget.

So the work starts long before the ask: real days off, good training, and a director who notices their good work.

If it feels overwhelming to consider the whole staff experience, start with the peak-end rule.

At my camp, we pay special attention to the end of camp. Partly because everyone is tired, and also because it’s how they’ll remember the summer.

One thing we do: throw a rave for the counselors at the start of the last week.

Consider – what’s one thing you can do to help the staff go out on a high?

The System

Make referring easy, rewarding, and repeatable.

Easy means one link or one short form, not "have them email me sometime."

Rewarding means a thank-you the staffer actually feels (and is motivated for), and that arrives when it was promised.

Repeatable means it runs every hiring season, not just the year somebody remembered.

The takeaway

If your staff love working at your camp, a referral program turns that into applications.

If they don't, the program will tell you that too, by not working.

So start with the people and the experience.

The system is the easy part.

The talk I mentioned was at the ACA Staffing Summit last month.

The spring edition (Train and Retain) is in April. I recommend it if you’re looking to beef up staff training and get more returners.

Thanks to the organizers for having us!

📚 The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle

Coyle studies groups that work unusually well together and asks what they have in common.

His answer isn't talent or perks.

It's a steady stream of small signals that say "you belong here."

Camp staff either feel that or they don't.

And whether they feel it decides whether they bring their friends.

Until next time,

Peter “Staff Lounge Legend” Elbaum