Q  After several years of essentially flat membership, our numbers are now declining. What can we do to turn this around? (our members are individuals, not organizations)

A. Here are several initiatives that can help strengthen your membership, are relatively easy to implement and not expensive.

Onboard (welcome and orient) your new members.  Send a thank you message when they join. In their first few months, tell them about their benefits and how they can get involved; most association web sites today also have a 'get involved' page.  Share member testimonials. Messages can be from the membership chair, president, or others to be more personal , rather than "Membership Dept."  Make a welcome phone call to them; it could be the high point of their day!

Engage them.  Members in their first and second year, and those who must upgrade to a higher paying dues category, generally have higher attrition rates. Give these members extra attention to communicate your value and to get them involved. Engaged members - whether they are volunteers or attending events - are more likely to renew, and to become 'ambassadors' who refer others.

Make their day.  Be timely in responding to member and nonmember inquiries. Ensure that joining and renewing are smooth and easy processes.  

Get Feedback. After multiple contacts for renewal, ask why they didn't renew with an easy 5 question survey.

Develop a dashboard.  Track key membership data from the past several years and going forward, such as total members, renewal rates, recruitment numbers, broken down by member type, tenure or other factors pertinent to your organization.

Competitors and your UVP.  Has a  competitor stepped up their game?  Monitor them through their web site and anecdotal information. Know your UVP - unique value proposition - and determine what you can do to better compete.

A free and useful resource is Marketing General's annual Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report. Download a copy for yourself today!

Best wishes!

Jennifer Ian, MBA, CAE

Most recently was Director, Member Services and Chapter Relations at the American Thoracic Society

 

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