Managing your informal private club

© Can Stock Photo / webking

With the good times comes the work behind the scenes. Once you've established your IPC, then you need to manage things on the other side. Create a member list, learn to plan ahead, and do the administrative tasks that ensure a smooth-running IPC. If this sounds daunting or busy, it really isn't. If you take steps to automate your tasks, then you can cut your busy time to a negligible level.

Member list
You'll want to maintain a list of your members, with emails and addresses. Even if you invite people through social media, I strongly suggest keeping a list of members with emails and street addresses. This way, you can send physical invites or thank yous using snail mail. Also, if you have a failure with your social media, you have a backup file to use. Additionally, you can track member attendance to events, if that is a concern for your club.

Planning ahead
Planning ahead is a habit you'll want to refine as your IPC grows and you diversify your club's offerings. You should plan your major events in the year, and smaller ones every three to six months. Avoid springing events on your members with less than three weeks notice. Some folks need time to add events to the calendar, and if you consistently create quick-turn around events, you'll risk turning off the members who cannot plan on short notice.

Consider using a free online calendar application like Google calendar. If you do this, I recommend keeping it completely separate from your private calendars.

Administrative tasks
These tasks include maintaining the club's calendar, communication with members, and setting up for events. Other tasks can include member surveys and maintaining the club's social media. Never make the job bigger than it really needs to be. If you can automate tasks, like with an electronic mailing list and templates, do so, but leave the creative aspects of the IPC for yourself.

I'll write about this in-depth at a later date, but what I've listed above are the very basics in administering your IPC.