Recruiting Tips

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Recruiting Tips

Post by Bombcat »

Interested in starting your own squadron, or seeking additional members for your unit? Here are some recommendations to consider:
  1. Spend time on the servers! As a squadron Commander, recruiting officer, or member, you are looking for people who enjoy YS, and who actively play online. The best place to find such people is on the YS servers. By spending time, showing your flag, and doing whatever it is your squad does, you become your own best advertisement. People who like you, or think what you are doing looks fun, will ask you if they can join. While on the servers, if you see someone who shares your interests and is currently unattached, feel free to invite them.
    Just one small reminder - Get the server operator's permission before recruiting on his/her/their server! This is especially important with servers run by squadrons, as they can be a little touchy about people recruiting on their home turf. All this brings me to point 2...
  2. Run your own server! If you have the resources to run a server, this is a first rate recruiting tool. It also lets you tailor the server experience to your own squadron's specialty. The 171st tends to run big maps with lots of water, good ground target ranges, and frequent night time flying. All of these are things which our squadron values as a naval wing with a strong attack emphasis and night flying sections. Pick a map which highlights your squadron's missions - target ranges? open skies? challenging places to land for simulated rescue missions? A small, dogfighting arena? It's all up to you, and getting a map that encourages your style of play will also encourage people with similar interests to hang out with you.
  3. Make squadron signatures! A squadron signature is a good way to advertise your squadron all over the forum. Here on YSFHQ, we provide squad unique tags next to your name, which play a similar role, but an impressive, personalized squad tag is just one more thing which can make a newbie interested in your group. If you have some sort of recruiting link in your signature, so much the better.
  4. Release a good squadron aircraft pack. Good squad planes are a valuable recruiting tool. Their release advertise your squadron, their presence on the servers reminds people of you, and if they're attractive enough, people will be tempted to join so they can "own" them. It's particularly valuable if you include a degree of personalization - sub unit paints, ace paints and sub unit colors/insignia are all things which encourage squad pride, and encourage people to want to join you.
  5. Be an active, friendly forum member. Building up a positive reputation on the forums is a good way to sell yourself, and to convince others that you are someone they want to hang out with. And that, after all, is the point of a squadron, isn't it?
  6. Film a squadron recruiting video. If you have someone who likes to make YS videos, see if you can put together a recruiting film. It's a good way to showcase your fleet and your missions efficiently.
Anyone else, particularly squadron commanders, may feel free to add to this list of recommendations.
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Re: Recruiting Tips

Post by Fariiniq »

I'd just like to add something quick from a server operators point of view.

I tend to kick and sometimes ban anyone who tries to recruit people off my server. It's rude, it drives a way pilots and it is not tolerated. Also requesting that a server operator of non-squadron affiliated server like mine, to administrate the server according to a squadrons co's or squadrons wishes are rude. Like I wrote on the VPS discussion, the variety of servers is richness in ysflight so you can ask for advice but not command people to act according to YOUR squadrons policy. Also like Bombcat empathized, the servers are the key for your squadrons (and VA's) success. So be polite, keep your pilots in a tight leash for flying according to server rules and respect the people who work sometimes day and night to give You a good working server to fly on.

This should be default protocol for any YSFHQ squadron and VA pilots.
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Re: Recruiting Tips

Post by Welshy »

Just something to add:

Get friendly with other Sqn OC's, for example at the 323rd we got friendly with Bombcat and the rest of the 171st, they even lent us Misfit (only really because I wanted to steal him :P), this allowed us to get our skills up to scratch quickly by training with some of the best pilots on the whole of YS!!

Also just get friendly with non-combat members, even if they don't want a sqn. This allows you to have a good selection of people who like your Sqn.

Just my 2 cents!!!
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Re: Recruiting Tips

Post by Flake »

...And don't rage like a thousand suns when one of your members leaves ... learn from them instead.

That generally helps.
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Re: Recruiting Tips

Post by Welshy »

I'd agree with Flake,

Also don't get too stressed about inactivity, people have commitments much more important than YSFlight
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