Have you noticed a sudden increase in scooter popularity? Well, you aren't the only one!

After buying a pair of scooters, my husband and I set out to start a local scooter club to raise scooter (and motorcycle) awareness and promote rider safety. Here are the steps we took to start a local scooter club...

Choose a name for your club that will draw attention and attract members. Here are some tips:

Use local attractions, references, or locations in your name (ex: name of a nearby river or mountain range, local industry, tourist destinations)

Don't scare people with your name (try to avoid words like "devils", "demons", and "hogs" - these names have a negative connotation and people might not want to join)

Use your name to give members a sense of unity (choose a name people will be proud to be a part of - this will promote your club via word-of-mouth)

The name we came up with: Clearwater Scoot Crew (named after a local river)

When people can associate your name with a picture, they will remember you easier. So, design a fun logo. Be sure to make it one that people would enjoy wearing on a t-shirt or bumper sticker. Here are some ideas:

Add only the important elements (don't overload the image, get down to the basics - scooter, club name, maybe a local reference like a river or something)

Look to the future of the logo (make it easy enough to convert into a patch, sticker, t-shirt print, business card design, etc.)

Make it colorful (people are attracted to color, but try to be gender neutral if your club is co-ed)

Create a cool website for your club. This is incredibly easy to do at www.freewebs.com . Use your logo wherever you can and offer information on club members, events and activities, scooter safety, and other fun stuff. You can even buy your own domain name for your scooter club (like www.godaddy.com) . This makes you look extra serious about the success of your organization.

We made a website at www.freewebs.com then we boughta personalized domain name at www.godaddy.com and forwarded it to the website. If you want to check it out, go to www.cwscootcrew.com !

Business cards will help you get the word out. Use your logo to design some professional-looking business cards. You can print them from your computer at home! Here are some tips:

Keep it simple (include your logo, club name, contact information, website and email addresses, and maybe a short catchy motto)

Make it colorful (like the logo, the cards need to be colorful to draw attention)

Use actual perforated business card paper (the thicker paper is of higher quality and will look more professional - look serious about your club!)

Distribute them! (after printing the cards out, give them to people you see driving scooters, or when you see a parked scooter, stick a card on the scooter somewhere where it won't fly away - be careful not to look like you are "messing" with other people's scooters!)

Use your imagination to create some eye-catching flyers to promote your club. Much like the business cards, use the flyers to stir up interest. That's how you'll get members. Put up the flyers at intersections or community bulletin boards. Take a stack of flyers into the local scooter shops (Sporting goods and ATV dealers) and ask that they be distributed to people interested in scooters.

Schedule a ride and get the word out! Once you have a time, date, and meeting place, post the information to your club's website, tell other scooter riders about it, tell scooter dealerships about it, and maybe even put an ad in the newspaper classifieds about it!

The more people you tell, the fast word will get around, and the more people will show up to join the ride and join the club.

Summertime is the best time to promote your scooter club. Try to get into some area car shows by contacting the head car show guy and asking for a designated scooter area for your club. Seeing all of the scooters in one location will certainly raise local scooter awareness. Maybe then drivers in your community will look out for scooters (and motorcycles) a little better.

By riding for a cause, your scooter club will probably get more members. Ride to raise scooter awareness, promote rider safety, or simply rally for a local charity. You might want to consider fund raisers for your Boys and Girls Club, or ride to a Veteran's Home to visit some of our nation's heros.