Step 8

Reaching Milestones and Tracking Progress

Setting Realistic Membership and Engagement Goals for Year 1 of Your Local Branch of the BOVF

Establishing realistic membership and engagement goals for the first year of your local BOVF branch is critical to building a sustainable and thriving community.

The key to success is starting small but thinking big—setting goals that are both achievable and ambitious enough to inspire growth.

If you live in a place with a large British expat community, a practical first-year Local Branch membership target might be to reach 50-100 registered Supporters within the local expat community. Understand that this number depends on where you live. If you live in a country with very few British expats, set a goal that will work for you.

Focus on reaching this milestone by leveraging social media, local British expat groups, and strategic partnerships with British clubs, schools, and businesses to promote your branch’s mission.

Beyond recruitment, it’s essential to engage your members meaningfully.

Aim to have consistent engagement from 20-40% of your membership by organizing monthly or quarterly events or meetings, such as information-giving sessions, advocacy workshops, or social mixers. How often is up to you and where you live.

Engagement goals could include holding six local in-person or online events by the end of the year, maintaining regular communication through newsletters and social media, and ensuring members participate in at least two BOVF global campaigns. In reality, in-person events work best.

What you do is up to you. Make your plan your own and relevant to where you live.

Setting these measurable goals will provide you with a roadmap for the year ahead, helping your branch grow steadily while creating a vibrant and active community that supports the wider BOVF mission.

Evaluating Success After One Year and Adjusting Strategies

After the first year of establishing your local BOVF branch, it’s essential to take stock of your achievements and assess the effectiveness of your strategies. Start by reviewing the membership and engagement goals you set at the outset.

Did you reach your target number of registered Supporters joining in with your branch?

How many attended events or participated in campaigns?

Collect data on member participation, feedback, and overall community growth to gain a clear picture of your branch’s progress.

This evaluation should focus not only on the numbers but also on the quality of engagement—look for signs that your members are genuinely invested in the mission and taking active roles in the branch’s initiatives.

Based on this evaluation, adjust your strategies for the coming year. If certain approaches—such as social media outreach or in-person events—proved more successful than others, consider allocating more resources and attention to those areas.

On the other hand, if some goals were not met, explore the reasons behind the challenges and revise your approach. This might include diversifying your communication methods, experimenting with new types of events, or partnering with other local organizations to extend your reach. Continuous improvement is key, and by refining your strategies based on the lessons of your first year, you’ll set your branch up for even greater success in the future.

Celebrating Small Wins and Building Momentum

Every achievement, no matter how small, is a step toward greater success for your local BOVF branch. Celebrating these small wins not only acknowledges the hard work of your team and members but also builds motivation and momentum for future goals.

Whether it’s reaching a new membership milestone, organizing your first successful event, or gaining media coverage for your branch, take the time to recognize and celebrate these victories. Publicly sharing these accomplishments through newsletters, social media, and at meetings reinforces a sense of progress and creates excitement within your community.

Recognizing small wins helps build momentum, turning small achievements into stepping stones toward larger goals.

As your branch grows, each success contributes to a feeling of collective empowerment. Encourage members to take pride in their contributions and use these moments to inspire even greater participation.

By celebrating together and showcasing how these wins align with the broader mission of the BOVF, you’ll create a positive, forward-moving energy that motivates members to stay engaged and invest in the branch’s continued growth and impact.

We hope this page has been informative.

If you have any corrective or improvement suggestions, please email webmaster@bovf.org.uk