VCCA Home Forums GENERAL DISCUSSION General Discussions Brainstorming ideas for growing VCCA membership

Buried in other threads in these forums are many ideas about how to increase the membership of the VCCA.

I am creating this thread to capture these ideas.

I'll start things off with something I did recently.

I took my 1928 Chevy AB Canopy Express (Justin) for a 'show and tell' day at the local high school auto shop. I spent the entire day. It was a blast!

Five separate classes spent their class time exploring my truck and asking questions about it. I also left a handful of G&D magazines for the students to read.

To say they were excited and interested is an understatement. They snapped pictures and both they and I had a ball.

Evidently, Justin was talked about the next week at 'Back to School' night. A lot of the students' parents had great things to say about Justin's visit to school. In a few days, pictures appeared in the slideshow on the high school's web site (http://www.slhs.net).

I think 'grass roots' efforts like this help generate interest in our hobby and club.

Cheers, Dean

Dean,

Just think how much more interest you would have had had you installed a Mustang front end, a 454, loud pipes, a twelve-bolt differential, South-of-the-border type interior, flames on the paint and some hydraulics that made it rear up a side of the back end like a dog taking a leak? Just kidding! Sort of.

I commend you for showing your car to the youngsters. Maybe some of them will catch the notion that sometimes "more is less", i.e. like there is valued satisfaction and a challenge in keeping an old Chevrolet in reasonably original condition and appearance rather than look at it and say to themselves, "What more can I do to this car to make it a one-of-a-kind street rod", etc. I hope they caught the enthusiasm for preservation and restoration you demonstrated by showing it to them.

We need more folks coming aboard the club with the true motto of preservation and restoration foremost in their minds. If not the motto will soon be only an insignificant issue. Just something to annoy the Rod folk. If things keep going the way they are, it will soon be necessary to change the motto it to "Modification and Imagination" so as not to offend the Rod, Modified, Rat-rod, Street Rod, et al folk. Mercy!

Thank you for your thoughtfulness by taking your car to school. I believe such efforts will bear fruit. I do hope so.

I wonder how many of us are willing to fall on our sword in the effort to maintain the true intent of the club when it was formed. Count me as one.

For the record: I don't dislike Rod, et al, folk. All I've met are great people, too. What I don't care for is what they do to the cars, albeit, all the popular rage and fine art that it is.

Also, I don't care for Fulton visors.

Charlie

When we are young we try to differentiate ourselves and standout from the crowd. Our parents become the dumbest people on the face of the earth. They are to strict, backward and just don't understand modern ways and things. I suspect that hormones have something to do with it. After a while we began to experience life outside the home and then realize that those folks who reared us aren't that stupid after all. Older people look back at their past and select moments that were significant enough to recall. One of those just maybe the opportunity to see, touch and appreciate and old Chevy. Mine was not an old Chevy but a Ford. I didn't need to have one exactly like it but at least close. I still have a soft spot for old pickups. I would guess that all you others that read this have a similar pleasant memory that helped decide to purchase that old Chevy and become part of the hobby.

Older folks tend to savor and appreciate the past. Those are the people that VCCA needs to try and recruit. That is not to say that giving young people a pleasant experience with an old car is not a good thing. Sorta like planting an acorn. Can't enjoy the shade until many seasons have passed. Let's plant the seeds and harvest the crop that was planted by someone else in the past.

Good points, Chipper.

Considering how these kids reacted to Justin, I'd say that my truck is a differentiator. One girl asked me how much it was worth. After I told her what I had into it, she said that she paid the same for her modern piece of crap. She then said that it would be WAY cooler to be driving around in something this old and original. ;-)

I agree that a short-term objective for the club is to harvest the trees that grew from acorns planted in the past. A good long-term goal would be to plant acorns now to facilitate future harvests.

Cheers, Dean

I fully agree!

I agree on the "gotta plant acorns now" plan. Tree farmers are smart enough to do it; why is it so hard for us "old trees" to understand?

As a member of the "younger set" recently (only 34 now) I do as much as I can with the kids that come to the shows. I'll talk to them, invite them to sit in whatever ride I have that day, and just make it as positive as I can.

It wasn't too many years ago that I was the kid wandering around the show grounds being ignored by the seemingly tight groups of old fahrts speaking a different language with words like spark advance, generator, F head, etc...

I get dirty looks from some of those guys today who view me as running a playground at a car show. I have yet to notice any dings, dents, or scratches from allowing supervised kids to explore my cars. While I understand the amount of work and $$$ that goes into a restoration I don't understand the lack of enthusiasm for getting the next generation fired up.

Nigel wrote: " A downloaded form of the [G&D] magazine which automatically pushes to a VCCA App would be incredible and really be a draw to younger members."

I think this is an awesome suggestion.

I am surprised that folks haven't added their ideas to this thread, considering that this topic is discussed in other threads all quite often.

Dean

I Agree on two things...

INVOLVEMENT & INVESTMENT

WE have to be involved, and get others involved

WE have to Invest in today as well as tomorrow

Can not look at AGE or any other sort of factor of that sort. approach them and educate them all, out of 100 you may get one. Just remember that one, is one more then there was !!

We talked about the Facebook situation in another thread last week. I think that if it is done right, and monitored correctly, it would be a great tool to recruit new members both young and older. I'm constantly posting pictures of our events, both National and Regional that I attend. My FB profile is all cars, antiques, and vintage stuff. I love sharing our lifestyle with others. We all lead the best lives!

All of you have leaned over a fender,watched from the sidelines while the best,oldest ,new or old car was put on display .at the drive-in ,main street or the local hangout. Do it again with the younger group....works every time.

There has some discussion about the recently approved Motion to establish a non-geographic "personalized" Chapter of the VCCA. This is not a new subject, but one that required the attention of the BOD given the growth of interest throughout the hobby in "personalized" Chevrolets. It was felt that upon the receipt of an application from an interested group of members, the approval of a non-geographic Chapter responsible for their own judging standards, newsletter, dues and activities would offer existing and new VCCA members a separate, additional opportunity to enjoy their "personalized" Chevrolets and their common interests with other owners. Since each Regional, Area and National meet chairman has the ability to decide to invite "personalized" Chevrolets to participate....this is an optional not mandatory offering. Some Areas and Regions have already embraced "personalized" Chevrolets and they has co-existed with "originals" at shows and activities for many years. Others may not be willing to do so at this time. The Motion was carried by an 8 to 3 majority based on feedback provided from Regions to each Area Director. The majority of the Board of Directors agreed that the VCCA needed to broaden our member offerings to stimulate participation, activities and the enjoyment of all Chevrolets. Jim Gebhardt VCCA Vice President Area 9 Southeast Director

I do the same thing when my wife & I take the '47 out. She has pushed me because I'm still a little shy when it comes to that, but she says "it ain't gonna hurt anything to let a kid touch the car". And its so true. We've enjoyed having kids ask "what's this thing?" and "Why are there 4 pedals on the floor", stuff like that. Its huge. Good suggestion for everyone, even with show cars...but I'd be a little more protective of the interior if that were the case. Fingerprints wipe off, and that's why they make Meguiar's. :)

I'll try to chime in with more thoughts soon. This is a fantastic thread and its good dialogue for the club.

I think there is a trend going and I do not know how to stop it. I went to a 100th Birthday party for a friend yesterday and I kept hearing "our camping club keeps getting smaller, our Thunderbird clup gets smaller and amaller, our square dance club keeps getting smaller, our breakfast group is getting smaller".

I think the public has less interest in our cars. They like to see the pre WW II cars and think of the newer cars as used cars. We don't parade our old cars so the parades fill with Corvettes and Jeeps.

Just my two cents worth.

I think a lot of times we miss the boat on promoting our club to the public. While some regions are fairly active and have shows open to the public, anytime we meet as a group is an opportunity to promote our club. As an example the Eastern National Six Cylinder Tour has had many tours, but the public only learns of them by a chance meeting or a news media story after the event. Setting aside a time for "display to the public" and promoting it PRIOR to an event would give us some needed exposure. Having club information and handouts at the time would be good too. Maybe even throw in free ice cream to the first 100 or so visitors. You could probably even get the local dealer to pick up the tab for the ice cream if you let him display a couple of new chevies. The only time that I know of a display during a meet was at the Anniversary Meet in Springfield Illinois, however most participants did not realize their cars would be on display prior to the event.

The fact is that the VCCA is not dramatically decreasing in membership. It has been 8400 +/-5% for the past 20 years (maybe more). There was not the anticipated increase in membership with the inclusion of all years of Chevrolets. Doubt that the recent changes will increase the membership either. Just hope that it will not dramatically decrease because current members feel that it no longer appeals to their preservation and restoration principals and don't renew.

I have questioned in my mind what would VCCA be like today if it had stayed 1911 - 1942?

49% of the members who joined the VCCA in 2013 stated that they own 1955 and newer Chevrolets. Almost half of all new members. For some of us, we think that vintage is 1931 or 1917 or whatever. The reality is that the VCCA has a lot of new members who own: Novas, Malibu's, Chevelles, Corvettes, Chevy II's, Monte Carlos, Citations, Vegas, Camaros, Caprice, Impala, Silverados, etc, etc. Whether we believe these Chevrolets are vintage or not, these are the vehicles that we see on many VCCA tours and on the highways. Many members leave their old Chevy ( 1910's, 1920's, 1930's) at home and they drive their 1950's, 1960's or 1970's Chevrolet on VCCA tours. Why? Because we are all getting older and it is easier to drive a 1970 Impala on a tour and leave our 1932 sedan at home in the garage.
When I go on a 1929-1954 Six Cylinder Tour, almost 50% of the Chevys on the tour drive 1950-1954 Chevys. Why? Automatic transmissions, power steering, more horsepower, etc.

dtm

And....most of the Chevrolet models listed above already have their own individual club.

I understand the logistics and reasons that some of the tours are the way that they are… but… one huge thing that limits spreading the gospel of VCCA is the fact that the good tours are booked solid before they are even offered to "the public". I tell everyone I know about how awesome the Eastern Six Cylinder is… but can't get them into it because it is booked! If only we had unlimited space available. The tour in Verona this year has a great idea of inviting for one day only all of the new members in that area (it's being hosted by a newer region) out to enjoy a day of touring with the Six Cylinder group. I believe it may be regardless of the age of car they have as well. Great idea!

Because no one will trade me straight over, their '32-'35 roadster/cabriolet for my '50!

I would have to agree on the lack of promotion, but think that comes down to the club level in the area. I know the local club I belong to here does tours, meets, etc... BUT it is not publicly advertised or promoted, I only know because I am active in the club and get the emails.

and part of the INVOLVEMENT I support is putting the word out there and doing a little advertising. I like the Pyramid effect, If I tell 2 People, and those People tell 2 People, etc... Word of mouth travels fast. But also as the times change so must the ways we communicate and pass the word. The current generation does almost everything electronically. So to get them involved and in the know have to advertise and communicate electronically. if you have to do a club site on facebook for the local chapter, twitter, or what have you. Our local AACA chapter just started working with the local Community college and has drummed up a lot of interest from the younger generation, Funny part was that many of them stated that they did not KNOW there was a club for Old cars and think it is Cool.

It all comes down to INVOLVEMENT & INVESTMENT

A few years ago we attended another Regional meet in another State.(I will not name the State) During the Directors meeting it was suggested that the public be invited to view our vehicles. The answer was: NO THIS IS OUR MEET WE WILL NOT INVITE THE PUBLIC, I thought that was a bad decision.

Our local branch of the Veteran and Vintage Chevrolet Association of Australia held an open day for anyone interested in Chevrolets, we advertised in local car magazines, on the local radio as well as inviting other car clubs and anyone we thought might be interested. We had a lot of Chevrolet literature and collectables on display along with a good turn out of members vehicles and a good number of non members vehicles, it was a good day and we will do it again. If you can find the right venue I think you could do something much bigger and better with the number of Chevrolets in America.

Speaking of VCCA meets, we have a great opportunity to promote the club at the upcoming National meet in 2016.

If there is a car show at this meet, why not let the public know about it so we are overflowing with spectators? I am not suggesting letting non-VCCA folks enter vehicles, but we could let the general public know that a gathering of great Chevys is going to occur.

If non-VCCA folks want to park their special car in an adjacent parking lot, I would not complain. ;-)

I've never been to a National meet, but South Lake Tahoe is on my calendar.

Cheers, Dean