Increase Your Association Memberships

Does your association membership need a boost? Most do- even if current numbers are good, it is always important to recruit new, younger memberships to ensure a strong core moving forward. Increase your association memberships, the value of your memberships.

Define Your USP:
Your Unique Selling Proposition is the answer to the question “Why should I choose this association instead of another one?” Think about what makes your association unique, and use this as the foundation for your marketing efforts.

Market Where Your Members Are:
If you are a professional organisation, advertise in an industry specific publication, or write a sponsored article. You can also use social media to discuss industry news using #hashtags that will generate followers and endorsements. You can also participate in LinkedIn discussion groups on topics related to your industry.

Make Your Events Special:
Most associations are known for their events- whether it is an annual expo, meeting, or an online webinar. These events drive many attendees, so make your event ‘must see’ by offering great speakers and great topics. You will gain credibility by holding a WOW event, and you will also have the opportunity to add additional members. You can also encourage current members to bring a guest for free, who will experience what it is all about and potentially join.

Offer Something Valuable in Exchange for Details:
Offer a free webinar or event to prospective members in return for them signing up to your mailing list, or invite them to an event for members. You are showing them the value they can receive as a member, and you now also have the ability to contact them regarding membership and its benefits.

Run a Competition:
You can hold an annual membership drive or competition and reward those who generate the highest number of new recruits. If you are using Sticky Tickets to take membership payments, you could provide each current member with discount codes to provide to their potential members. This way you can track the numbers that each member has recruited.

Contact Current Members:
You need to understand your current members, and the best way to do this is to get feedback from them. By contacting your current members, you will know what you need to improve and how you can increase the value of your membership benefits. Surveys are a great way to collect feedback, and a very good way to impress your members- they see that you are listening to them, and acting on it. They are then much more likely to recommend your association to others, and a personal recommendation is always a great way to get new members.

Keep Your Members Happy:
You may want to increase your membership, however it is vital not to forget about retaining current members. Maintain constant contact and make sure they are satisfied, or find out what they need. It is also a good idea to maintain contact with new members, as those in their first year are the most likely to drop off.

Renewing Memberships:
Don’t wait too long to start renewing your memberships. Remind members EARLY and regularly- it may take several contacts before they take action. Create a sense of urgency to register by having an early bird membership rate for a limited time to encourage early registrations, and remember to constantly remind them of the benefits of registering.

We have many associations using Sticky Tickets to take membership payments, or registrations for events. Sign up to create yours now, or contact us for help.

In order to gain new members, you really need to make it a priority, and start planning on how you can work on boosting your membership year round. Good luck!

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