It is hard to believe it has been three years since we launched the first edition of Turn Your Organisation Into A Volunteer Magnet and we have been both surprised and delighted with the success of the first edition.

For a start, it was downloaded many thousands of times, which has most likely made it one of the most read books on volunteer recruitment and retention in history! The vast number of downloads created by the first book certainly confirmed our belief that the creation of a free, quality, resource written for volunteer leaders was something that would be welcomed by the broader volunteerism community.

Further to this, the original publication spawned a series of national workshops of the same name that were convened by the three of us at various times, along with our colleague and friend Martin J Cowling. Turning the lessons we learnt from the e-book process into practical training sessions has availed many hundreds of additional volunteer programme managers across Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom to better equip themselves in the recruitment and retention of volunteers.

However, the greatest reward gained from the first edition was the personal feedback we received directly from volunteer managers on the ground, expressing their appreciation about the book and its contents.

For this second edition, we wanted to continue with the same philosophy we brought to the first project - a free resource written by and for the volunteerism community, especially those working at a grass roots level. In addition, we made the decision with the latest book, based on feedback from readers, to use a print-on-demand printing company to produce a hard copy version for those who prefer something a little more tactile! In keeping with our 'free resource' policy, it is our intent that books purchased via this means will incur only printing and some postage and handling costs. (Visit www.lulu.com to order a print edition at cost price).

When we decided to tackle this second edition we again began by posting requests for articles onto the UKVPMs, OzVPM and CyberVPM newsgroups. We were thrilled with the response we received and the extended number of people who were willing to author an article. Combined with the articles we kept from the first book, we believe that the new version represents a comprehensive resource worthy of inclusion in the library of every leader of volunteers.

Finally, we wanted to thank everyone who has contributed to the project thus far and trust that this latest resource will prove to be equally as valuable as the first. We hope you will find some great ideas within these pages that will help to make volunteering for your organisation a truly compelling experience.

Andy Fryar, Rob Jackson & Fraser Dyer Adelaide and London October 2007