It’s a tough time to be an association executive. New associations are being started all the time, corporate investment in professional development is decreasing, people are busier than ever and members are less inclined to attend multi-day conferences. Combined, all this makes attracting and retaining association members more difficult than ever.
On the bright side, people generally still believe that by joining an association, they will be better off than they were before—but they want a clear return on their investment of money and time.
There is a way to keep everyone—current and prospective members—happy and engaged, and the concept is really quite simple: You need to help your members grow, and you need to clearly communicate the value your group is offering to those who intend to benefit.
Focus on fundamental strategies that support members. The concept of growing your membership by helping your members grow may seem basic, but it’s worth rethinking. If your members can improve the performance and profitability of their organizations as a result of their relationship with your association, then your group will, as a result, build a solid base of loyal members. Here are three ways to help your members grow:
1. Be a connector. Bring your members together in interesting ways and connect them to each other. In doing so, you’re building a community where members can share and learn from each other. An effective community provides constant value, one in which members and prospective members are contributing to that value.
2. Form strategic partnerships. Find similar associations, organizations or societies and build an alliance with them. Put on events together in order to add even more value. That said, make sure ahead of time that any organizations you partner with are non-competitive and that they offer something (or several things) of interest to your members.
3. Expand product and service offerings. People consume information and learn in different ways. In-person conferences, teleconferences, webinars, live-streaming events, short videos, monthly newsletters and archived recordings of past conferences are all good and varied ways to provide content. Ask members or prospective members about topics they’re interested in, and then bring in experts who can provide insights on those topics.
Communicate and promote your association’s value. Having a clear message and knowing your strengths are essential to the success of any organization. Clarify what type of group you are. Are you more of a lobby group? A learning organization? Do you focus on networking and assistance with business issues? You and your employees need to be able to tell people quickly and easily why they should join your association and the value you provide. So develop a message that details how your group differentiates itself from others and the accomplishments it has helped members achieve.
Once you are able to clearly communicate what your association offers and your group is enjoying a stable membership base, use current members to deliver the message of its value through video testimonials and quotes. A good place to post these is your association website. You can also design a page that offers access to information or news about your industry. Further, tap members to become ambassadors responsible for promoting the work that your association does and the value it offers—they will help bring new members to you.
Be willing to adapt to the times. Associations that will remain successful and relevant well into the future are the ones that can change with the times and still remain viable to members. They will continue to clearly communicate value and return on investment to members and will come up with new ways in which their members will be better off by being part of their group. They will use satisfied members to help attract a community of new members. And they will offer valuable and relevant events, products and services that forge ties and help strengthen not only individual members and your association but the industry as a whole.