From SecularPortal

Freshers' week is the first week of each university academic year, in which there is generally no teaching for undergraduates, giving the opportunity for a week's worth of partying and socialising. Many departments use it to do some induction as well as university registration.

Societies fairs

Most unions run a societies day (or days) in which societies can book a stall. These are important as new students usually come round to look for societies they want to get involved with, or to officially sign up to societies they have already looked up online. Presenting yourself well at this event is very important, and it's always worth trying to come up with original and interesting methods of drawing people to your stall. Always remember to check with your university as to whether your idea is allowed; some universities will not permit you to use stickers, for example, and some do not permit money to be exchanged at the fairs (in which case, if your society charges a membership fee, then you can only get people on your mailing list). If you can, try and get a stall right in with the religious societies and argue away!

Raising awareness

The key to a successful freshers' week is just to get the word out there about your society. Therefore you want to make sure you have a presence on campus every day. It doesn't have to be anything fancy. Just head down your local B&Q, spend £5 on a paste table, set it up outside the union and stand around in your society t-shirt and hoodie. People will come up and ask you about the society.

If you don't belong to a campus university, raising awareness can be a bit more tricky. A strong presence in the student press will make this easier once your society gets going, but early on something as simple as throwing up posters everywhere can be very effective. If you attend a collegiate university, try and ensure that you get a few posters up in each college, advertising yourselves and your events. You can also put posters up in departments. Don't be afraid of being provocative: make sure your material stands out!

Other promotion methods

It is also important to be active beyond just sitting behind a desk with a sign saying "sign up here". Getting around campus and getting noticed is also important as not everyone will attend the fair, it may not be on every day and societies fairs tend to just be a little boring and suffer from a lack of interactivity.

Other ways to promote a society...

• Hand out free tea and coffee
• Hold events during Fresher's Week
• Hold a Prayer Contest!