CakeWalk is a weekly column by Mary Ann Porch dedicated to every baker who has ever struggled to achieve the right consistency with their icing, unsuccessfully searched for the perfect cupcake topper or just wants to learn something new. Because with a few helpful tips, cupcakes are a cakewalk.
For the past four weeks, we have discussed the initial steps of planning your city's very first CupcakeCamp - laying the groundwork, finding a venue, lining up a graphic designer, and recruiting bakers. This week, we tackle the next level of recruitment: volunteers.
Similar to the baker recruitment, I find this step somewhat easy. I was lucky enough to have an 80 percent success rate in volunteer retention. By this, I mean that 80 percent of the people who offered to volunteer actually volunteered at the event.
For anyone who has ever had to organize volunteers, you know that people typically have good intentions when sign up as a volunteer. Their enthusiasm is great, but there is only one problem. That initial blast of enthusiasm fades quickly and many folks either don't show up at all or cancel via e-mail about five minutes before the event starts.
One of the great volunteers from CupcakeCamp NYC 2009
- 1 volunteer to answer questions at the door
- 3 volunteers to help bakers as they arrive get set up
- 1 volunteer to take pictures
CupcakeCamp NYC 2010 is already shaping up to be a bit more complex than in 2009, so I imagine that my volunteer count will go up by a few, but not many. I'm a big believer in keeping things simple, especially when you're doing something for the first time. Remember: if you're not having fun, rethink what you're doing.
Volunteering at CupcakeCamp means unlimited free cupcakes!
As far as timing goes in regard to having volunteers sign up, the closer to the event the better. That way, people will have a better idea if they can really commit. For example, the average person knows what their schedule is going to look like two weeks from today versus a month from now.
As mentioned, be prepared for people to flake out. You'll learn first hand that being able to adapt to the situation is an important trait to have when hosting CupcakeCamp, and going with the swing of things will help you keep a cool head.
One way to prepare for keeping a cool head (is that even possible?) is to stay organized. When planning for CupcakeCamp NYC the first time, my life revolved around Excel worksheets. I had three sheets: one for bakers, one for volunteers, and one for eaters (i.e. general RSVPs). Since everyone had to RSVP via e-mail to be a baker, volunteer, or eater, I put together mailing lists that allowed me to stay in touch with all three groups on a semi-regular basis (no need to be a spammer). Because I stayed in regular contact with everyone, I knew of most cancellations ahead of time.
At this point, you're in the home stretch of your CupcakeCamp planning! Next week, we'll discuss marketing and publicity for your event.
Also, since I already mentioned CupcakeCamp NYC, keep your eyes peeled for some major announcements about the event. We've got big news to share in the coming weeks!
Mary Ann is the founder of the New York City chapter of CupcakeCamp NYC, an ad-hoc gathering born from the desire for people to share and eat cupcakes in an open environment. She is also the founder of Puff and Choux, a blog dedicated to the pastry and dessert arts. You can contact her at mary_ann_porch@hotmail.com with any questions, ideas or just to chit chat. You can also follow her on Twitter at @MaryAPorch.
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