BSA Executive Salaries

[Peter1919]

Ok interesting where you guys have taken the discussion. So in the UK we don't just have Bear Grylls as Chief Scout we also have some more minor celebs as Scouting Ambassadors. Sometimes they do events by themselves other times the accompany Bear to things. What they all do is help get publicity for Scouting, we have been fairly succesful in the last 12 years or so on getting fairly regular national news coverage of Scouting, most usually on breakfast news programmes where they like a good news story, Part of the key to this success has been having a celebrity to hook the news item on and then pivoting that so that the youth members do the talking.

So you take a celebrity, get them to visit a large Scouting event such as a jamboree. This becomes a news item even if only on the local news. They then interview the celeb and some youth members as to what Scouting is about and in recent years this message has been about how we need more adult volunteers as we have more kids wanting to join Scouting than we have spaces for. This drip feed has helped to start to turn the public perception of what Scouting is when they see kids having fun at amazing Scout events.

Classic example of news coverage of a Scouting event visited by Bear http://www.itv.com/news/meridian/update/2017-07-30/thousands-in-kent-for-scout-jamboree/ NB the video at the bottom is what was broadcast on TV.

Oh and the exisitng members seem to love having Bear visit and this is the kids of stuff he can get up to when visiting an event (Steve Backshall is one of the Scouting Ambassadors I mentioned, he is a kids TV naturalist and adventurer)

 

 

Edited June 4, 2018 by Peter1919
typos

[NJCubScouter]

56 minutes ago, oldbuzzard said:

All those Marine Corp ads, including the infamous magma demon ad, weren't about relating to celebraties, but about  doing stuff. Folks who can reflect doing stuff should be better than those who are "famous".

"Follow the Rugged Road", anyone?

[Oldscout448]

5 minutes ago, NJCubScouter said:

"Follow the Rugged Road", anyone?

and I thought I was the only one who remembered that ad from the 60s.     It made quite the impression on all the kids on my block.    

[NJCubScouter]

5 minutes ago, Peter1919 said:

Ok interesting where you guys have taken the discussion.

As you spend more time in this forum you will see that threads often go in "interesting" directions, sometimes 10-15 different directions simultaneously in a single thread.   Quite often all it takes is one phrase that really has nothing to do with the actual topic, and we're off to the races.  

5 minutes ago, Peter1919 said:

So in the UK we don't just have Bear Grylls as Chief Scout we also have some more minor celebs as Scouting Abassadors. Sometimes they do events by themselves other times the accomany Bear to things. What they all do is help get publicity for Scouting...

I did not know that.  Can you give some examples, not necessarily names that we on the other side of the pond probably would not recognize, but the kinds of fields they are in or something else to give us an idea of what kind of people these are.

5 minutes ago, Peter1919 said:

we have been fairly succesful in the last 12 years or so on getting fairly regular national news coverage of Scouting, most usually on breakfast news programmes where they like a good news story,...

Now see, right there is an example of where I could say something in response that would send this thread ricocheting off into parts unknown.  But as George H.W. Bush may or may not have ever actually said, "Not gonna do it.  Wouldn't be prudent."

[Oldscout448]

 I guess you'r right, sorry 'bout that

[NJCubScouter]

2 minutes ago, Oldscout448 said:

and I thought I was the only one who remembered that ad from the 60s.     It made quite the impression on all the kids on my block.    

I suspect there are a number of others here who remember it.  All you have to do is be of the right, um, vintage, and involved in Scouting as a youth. 

[Peter1919]

18 minutes ago, NJCubScouter said:

Can you give some examples, not necessarily names that we on the other side of the pond probably would not recognize, but the kinds of fields they are in or something else to give us an idea of what kind of people these are.

A full list with their backgrounds is available on the Scout Association website at http://scouts.org.uk/about-us/ambassadors/ but a fair summary would be Olympians or Paralympians, Adventurers, TV and Radio presenters oh and Britain's only astronaut

Edited June 4, 2018 by Peter1919

[Ranman328]

Not a fan of our DE.  This is the second DE we have had in three years.  Both have problems losing adult and youth applications.  I have had to send several through multiple times.  Both got offended when asked about the applicants Personal Identifiable Information being lost.  Last year our District did not come close to meeting our FOS goal of $65,000.00 so they decided to keep it the same this year $65,000.00 again even at the urging of District Volunteers not to have it so high since the District is down 15 units.  We are not even half way there as of today.  During our FOS presentation, our Troop was asked to give at least $100 per scout.  Needless to say, our Troop gave what they could.  Recently, someone told the DE how much money our Troop had in the bank and they sent an email to our Troop's key 3 asking that we donate an additional $2,000.00 to the FOS.  I politely declined and informed them that the money in our Troop bank account was not their business and that the Scouts worked for that money.  We would be reinvesting the funds in our own troop.  I am sure there are some good DE's out there but my experience so far in my 14 plus years of scouting has not been positive.  My experience says they are money driven and there is a short supply of customer service.

[ParkMan]

1 hour ago, HashTagScouts said:

My bad- you are correct! Star Lord came with Chris evans and they did the Boston celebrity hospital circuit

I did read today that Chris Evans said he modeled the Captain America character on a childhood friend who is an Eagle Scout.

[HashTagScouts]

1 hour ago, Peter1919 said:

Ok interesting where you guys have taken the discussion. So in the UK we don't just have Bear Grylls as Chief Scout we also have some more minor celebs as Scouting Ambassadors. Sometimes they do events by themselves other times the accompany Bear to things. What they all do is help get publicity for Scouting, we have been fairly succesful in the last 12 years or so on getting fairly regular national news coverage of Scouting, most usually on breakfast news programmes where they like a good news story, Part of the key to this success has been having a celebrity to hook the news item on and then pivoting that so that the youth members do the talking.

So you take a celebrity, get them to visit a large Scouting event such as a jamboree. This becomes a news item even if only on the local news. They then interview the celeb and some youth members as to what Scouting is about and in recent years this message has been about how we need more adult volunteers as we have more kids wanting to join Scouting than we have spaces for. This drip feed has helped to start to turn the public perception of what Scouting is when they see kids having fun at amazing Scout events.

Classic example of news coverage of a Scouting event visited by Bear http://www.itv.com/news/meridian/update/2017-07-30/thousands-in-kent-for-scout-jamboree/ NB the video at the bottom is what was broadcast on TV.

Oh and the exisitng members seem to love having Bear visit and this is the kids of stuff he can get up to when visiting an event (Steve Backshall is one of the Scouting Ambassadors I mentioned, he is a kids TV naturalist and adventurer)

 

 

To me, this is the type of advertising that is needed and been desperately needed here in the USA for some time.  I recall as a youth in Scouts, there were some national ads. I vaguely recall sporadic TV commercials on Saturday mornings, but also radio ads.  This particular video was from the 70's, but the quality from the 80's ads weren't much better (and used that same jingle).

 

 

 

Edited June 5, 2018 by HashTagScouts

[qwazse]

1 hour ago, Ranman328 said:

... Recently, someone told the DE how much money our Troop had in the bank and they sent an email to our Troop's key 3 asking that we donate an additional $2,000.00 to the FOS.  ...

Okay, not too far down from my rule #1 (never ask for a rule) is this one from Hezikiah: Don't show the Babylonians the treasury! 

[Oldscout448]

qwazse,  you know the good book better than many a preacher-man I've listened to.    

Question that you need not answer,   is the rest of your byline  " showing another beggar where the bread is"?

[Jameson76]

1 hour ago, Ranman328 said:

Recently, someone told the DE how much money our Troop had in the bank and they sent an email to our Troop's key 3 asking that we donate an additional $2,000.00 to the FOS.  I politely declined and informed them that the money in our Troop bank account was not their business and that the Scouts worked for that money.  

That DE would not be welcome any longer at any or our functions, we would be Scoutlike (as much as possible) in that communication.  Sounds like you are doing fine without his help.

[ParkMan]

1 hour ago, Oldscout448 said:

and I thought I was the only one who remembered that ad from the 60s.     It made quite the impression on all the kids on my block.    

Back in college the local marine recruiter spotted me and a couple of buddies on day.  Got to admit- the challenge it represented was really exciting.

There's a couple of paths to getting youth excited in what we do.  Whether it's ambassadors or something more rugged, I think both have merits.

It think it both cases, the paint a compelling vision of why Scouting is great.  One is more about rugged individualism, one is about highlighting people who are already role models to youth.  Me, I'd go the ambassador route - but this wouldn't disappoint me.

[DuctTape]

2 hours ago, NJCubScouter said:

But as George H.W. Bush may or may not have ever actually said, "Not gonna do it.  Wouldn't be prudent."

"Thousand points of light..."

and we are off!