Technology, Awareness and Engagement

Tips for Illinois Fraternal Organizations

By Mark Schmidt

Today’s Masonic Lodges and other appendant bodies face any number of challenges: shrinking membership and increasing difficulty in keeping members active in the Lodge; lack of public awareness of the purposes and benefits of Freemasonry; and continuing challenges in the ability of a Lodge to publicize its good works and upcoming events – particularly during this time of decreasing newspaper readership and increasing reliance on online news sources. Additionally, recent challenges posed by right-wing Christian groups opposing Freemasonry by distributing “manifestos” in the community pose an additional level of challenge.

As a result, many Lodges and other Masonic-related organizations are seeking new and better ways to get out the word concerning their purposes and activities.

Three years ago, RWB Wayne Spooner’s essay on Reclaiming the Message of Illinois Freemasonry described significant changes that were being undertaken by the Grand Lodge of Illinois to improve its visibility and relevance to those performing internet searches on the topic of Freemasonry. Brother Spooner correctly noted that new ways are necessary to spread the knowledge of the craft, which had previously been spread through family contacts and small, closeknit communities.

While those efforts have, to a certain extent, been successful, at the state level, repeatedly I see evidence that the use of technology to keep our lodges and other organizations active and relevant has not made its way to the level of our local organizations. Many local Lodge members do not have the awareness of the tools that are available, or the familiarity to use them effectively. An internet search reveals that many Grand Lodges discuss social media use on their web sites. However, when visiting these sites, one finds a list of general rules and prohibitions, rather than actual suggestions for effective utilization. Simply put, rules such as “remember your obligation,” “don’t post anything negative or divisive” and “don’t text while in Lodge” do not offer any real assistance to Lodge members seeking to use technology effectively.

In this article, it will be my goal to offer a beginner’s guide to tools, strategies and tactics that can help a lodge become more active, engaged, and visible in its local community. The strategies and tactics listed in this essay are intended to be neither comprehensive or nor exhaustive. They are meant to be a starting point. Begin here and then expand your activities as you gain experience and knowledge.

STRATEGY ONE: ACTIVATE CURRENT MEMBERS

Tactic One: Use Call-Em-All to remind members of upcoming events. The Grand Lodge of Illinois makes the Call-Em-All service available at a very nominal price to Illinois Lodges and appendant bodies. Once enrolled in the service, Lodges simply upload a list of emails and/or telephone numbers to the system. Once this is done, it only takes ten minutes or less to log into the system and send a brief email or (preferably) recorded phone message to every member in the Lodge’s data base. Messages can be up to two minutes in length and will come from a local phone number belonging to one of the lodge members. Call-Em-All can be used to remind members of stated meetings, degree work, fundraisers, or other special events. Many Lodges which use the service report an increase in attendance from the very first call. Most Masons WANT to attend Lodge functions. With busy schedules and competing activities, sometimes all they need is a reminder to attend an event. For more information on Call-Em-All contact Anna Sinnott at the Grand Lodge office.

Tactic Two: Develop a bulk email program for more formal communication. While reminders are important, there are many times when Lodges require more formal and detailed communication of plans for upcoming events, newsletters, announcements of new initiatives, etc. Delivery via US Postal Service “snail mail” has become costly and unreliable. For this reason, I strongly recommend Lodges consider the use of an online bulk email delivery service. There are a wide variety of these services available. Many of them offer free or low-cost options perfect for fraternal organizations. For example, mailchimp.com offers its services for free to any organization with fewer than 2,000 email addresses on its list and which sends fewer than 10,000 pieces of email a month.

While not all your members may use email, I would wager that the vast majority of them do. Any plan which avoids paying postage on a high percentage of mailings while at the same time guaranteeing instantaneous delivery should be of interest. Bulk email constitutes a low cost/high return proposition for most Lodges.

STRATEGY TWO: DEVELOP A CONSISTENT SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE

Tactic One: Begin with one social media channel, probably Facebook. Too many organizations try to do too much at one time, creating a Facebook page, an Instagram page, a Twitter feed, and a YouTube channel at the very beginning of their efforts. Unless your Lodge has a social media professional as a member, this is a recipe for disaster. Within weeks, at least half of your newly created social media outlets will have gone dormant. Believe me, there is nothing worse than a social media channel that does not receive regular, newsworthy posts! Learn to walk before you run. Develop a consistent strategy on one channel, and then expand if you wish.

Tactic Two: Make your Facebook page public. Do not create a private or a secret group. A Facebook page can be an excellent tool to build public awareness. However, it will fail if only your members can see what is going on! Let us be clear: we all know the information about the fraternity that can only be shared with members. Do not put that information on social media! However, this is but a small part of what Freemasonry is about. You can and should share EVERYTHING else!

Among the things you should be focusing on are new members (indicative of a growing organization); community activities (one central Illinois lodge supports their local academic bowl team, building much community support), honors and awards (50-year members, other awards), upcoming meetings, fund-raisers, and informational pieces about Freemasonry (including information on prominent Masons). There is plenty of information available if you look for it. Post as often as you can, hopefully not less than once a week.

Tactic Three: Photos, photos, and more photos. Pictures and informational graphics with your social media posts help build interest in the community. Try to make your photos informal and active. Here is an idea: Instead of the standard lodge photo of 12 members in aprons standing in the East, take informal photos of your members conversing before the meeting or relaxing at refreshment. Brothers who could not be present will want to see who was in attendance. Community members are more likely to want to learn about your Lodge if they see people, they know having fun. Informal photos of members enjoying fellowship are more interesting than a staged photo in the East! Share photos of and information about scholarship winners, local youth sports teams sponsored by the Lodge, Brothers serving pancakes or washing dishes during a fundraiser, or marching in a parade.

Tactic Four: Invite others to like your page. Of course, all the members of your Lodge should like your social media page. But it should not end there. Invite members of neighboring Lodges, appendant bodies and youth orders, organizations you sponsor, community leaders and media representatives to like and follow your page. Many people will like and follow your page if you simply ask them to do so. Your goal here is to create as broad an audience as possible.

To bring these tactics to life, work to find a social media chairman for your Lodge. This should be a person who is familiar with the basics of social media and who can use a phone or tablet to take pictures during an event. You do not need a professional photographer, just someone who can take clear and fun pictures.

STRATEGY THREE: GET TO KNOW YOUR LOCAL NEWS MEDIA

Even though newspapers are in decline, and while it may be difficult to attract attention in large media markets, this can be a major step in helping build awareness of the Craft.

Tactic One: Develop a list of media contacts. Get the phone numbers and email addresses of local reporters. While large daily newspapers may not be interested in your stories, small weekly newspapers that can be found everywhere are often hungry for stories. Radio stations may be interested in those who could be available for interviews during drive time, and even TV stations can be attracted by a good human-interest story. The contact information you are seeking can often be found on the website of a media outlet.

Tactic Two: Find opportunities to get to know reporters. A key here is to develop a relationship with a reporter BEFORE you have the need to pitch a story. Introduce yourself. Provide the reporter with information about Freemasonry in general and your Lodge in particular. Consider providing them with a free ticket to an upcoming fundraiser. Ask questions about the types of stories they would like to cover. Learn about their deadlines (this is particularly important with weekly newspapers). This knowledge will help you provide them with the best possible information when you have an important story deserving of coverage.

Tactic Three: Promote major stories with good photo opportunities. Television and newspapers (even weeklies) love engaging photos. A few years ago, during a Grand Chapter session of the Order of the Eastern Star, the balcony of the convention center was draped with hundreds of blankets made by members of the Order and donated for children across Illinois. That was a unique visual that earned space on the front page of the daily newspaper and the evening news. Your Lodge might not have a balcony full of blankets, but you might have twin octogenarians receiving their 50-year pins together. You might have an academic bowl team that recently won the state championship. You might honor five members of your Lodge returning from a local Honor Flight to Washington D.C. I am convinced that our Lodges have many human-interest stories that are going untold. You just need to look for them.

Tactic Four: Share your coverage on social media. If you do receive media coverage, make sure that a link to the story is included in your social media fee. The fact that a local newspaper, radio station, or TV news department covered your story will impress those who follow you on social media, increasing awareness of your Lodge.

As I stated at the beginning of this article, this list of strategies, tactics and suggestions is not meant to be comprehensive. I am confident that our Brethren throughout the state can share many other fruitful ideas. If you take nothing else away from this article, please realize that well planned use of technology can pay impressive dividends in building engagement of your members, awareness in the community, and support from Masons and non-Masons alike. You do not have to do everything, but you do have to start somewhere. Where will your Lodge begin?

(Editor’s note – W.B. Schmidt spent seven years as the Chair of Publicity for the Grand Chapter of Illinois, OES.)

W. B. Mark J. Schmidt Associate Editor, Rochester Lodge No. 365

By Edward Walker

Right Worshipful Brother Auston E. “Gene” Smith is the Junior Grand Warden of The Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of the State of Illinois. He was elected to that office October 8, 2021 and works closely with the other Senior Grand Lodge officers to execute the activities and priorities of our grand jurisdiction. Having been raised to the Sublime Degree of Master Mason in July 2011, Brother Smith has enjoyed an active Masonic journey spanning more than 10 years of dedication, leadership, and support for our ancient and honorable fraternity.

Brother Smith’s home lodge is St. Clair Lodge No. 24 in Belleville, IL, where he is a Life Member and served as the Secretary from 2012 to 2014, Junior Warden in 2014 and then as its Worshipful Master in 2015. He is also a Life Member of Kaskaskia Lodge No. 86 in Red Bud, IL where he served as Treasurer in 2015 and then two years as its Worshipful Master during 2016 and 2017. In addition, he has been elected as an honorary member in several lodges in Illinois.