How to Keep Your Group Full, Even Before You Have a Start Date

Most advice on filling a group assumes you have a start date. Many group leaders don’t. Some groups are already running and need a steady trickle of new members. Others are still an idea that will start once enough people are ready. Both situations come down to the same research: people stay away when they don’t know enough about a group, they don’t show up when the wait is long, and new members are most likely to leave in their first few sessions. Here is what that means if your group is already running, and what to do if you don’t have a date yet.

Why do groups lose people before and after they start?

In interviews with 67 people who had been offered community treatment groups, not getting enough information was a main reason for not going. So were worry about being judged and anxiety about meeting new people. Small or constantly changing groups were a reason to stop coming, and about six to eight members felt comfortable. Having a choice, such as trying a session first, helped people attend (Dilgul et al., 2018).

Timing matters too. In a study of 2,690 behavioral health referrals at one hospital, only 40% of people came to their first visit. Those scheduled sooner were more likely to come, and a warm handoff on its own made no difference (Pace et al., 2018). Once people start, preparing them for what group involves lowers early dropout (Walitzer et al., 1999), and text reminders raised attendance from about 68% to 79% across eight trials (Cochrane review, 2013).

It’s also worth saying plainly to clients and referral sources: in 67 studies that compared the two formats directly, group and individual therapy produced the same outcomes when the treatment, clients, and number of sessions matched (Burlingame et al., 2016).

If your group is already running

1. Keep your listing honest about openings. “Accepting new members,” “Currently full,” or “Waitlist,” plus the next opening if you know it. An out-of-date listing is the information gap people describe.
2. Ask before you’re short. Send referral sources a short note every month or two, not only when a seat opens. When one does, tell them that week.
3. Add newcomers in pairs when you can. Irvin Yalom recommends adding two new members at a time, so no one is the only new person in a group that has already bonded.
4. Prepare both sides. Hold a short pre-group call with each newcomer, and tell current members the week before that someone is joining.
5. Watch the first few sessions. Dropout is most likely early. Remind newcomers before each session for the first month, and check in after any missed session.
6. Ask instead of guessing. Clinicians are not good at spotting who is about to leave, and routine client feedback lowers dropout (Lambert and Shimokawa, 2011). A two-question check-out card every few weeks is enough to start.
7. Track where members come from. A simple log shows which referral sources are worth your time.
8. Let members share, but don’t ask them to recruit. Members can pass along your public listing. Asking them to recruit, or offering anything in exchange for referrals, puts pressure on them and on the group’s confidentiality.

If you’re planning a group with no date yet

1. Check demand first. Ask five referral sources, “Who would you send to this?” Look at your own caseload and at search demand for your topic and state.
2. Pick a go number and a target season instead of a date: “Starting when six people sign up, aiming for spring.” Don’t start below your number; small groups lose people.
3. List it now. On The Group Guide, set your listing’s Enrollment status to Waitlist and leave the start date blank. People can join the waitlist right from your listing. When you switch to Accepting New Members, everyone waiting gets an email automatically.
4. Keep your own interest list too, for people who contact you directly: initials, how they heard about the group, and when you last updated them.
5. Stay in touch. A short update every few weeks keeps people from drifting away.
6. Offer a first look. A free information session or a no-commitment first visit gives people the choice that helps them attend.
7. Move fast at go. Once you reach your number, set a date two to four weeks out and tell everyone the same day. Long waits between interest and a first session lose people.

Three messages worth having ready

When a seat opens, to referral sources: “A spot just opened in [group name], [day and time]. Same criteria as before. New members have a short call with me first.”

The week before a newcomer joins, in group: “Someone new will be joining us next week. You may remember what your own first time felt like. A little welcome goes a long way.”

While you’re still gathering interest, to people who asked: “I’m still gathering interest and plan to start once [number] people are ready, aiming for [season]. You don’t need to do anything right now. I’ll reach out as soon as there’s a date.”

The full versions, along with a referral email, a welcome email, reminder texts, and a pre-group call outline, are in the free Group Leader Toolkit.

Free printables for both

• Keep Your Group Full: six habits for a running group, with an openings log on the back.
• Before You Set a Date: a go number, a demand check, and an interest list.
• The Pre-Group Call: what to cover with each new member.

Each one can be filled in on screen or printed blank, and nothing typed is sent to the site. If your group isn’t listed yet, your first listing is free.