MC Talks
The MemberClicks Blog

As you may know, a few weeks ago, we had the opportunity to attend the American Society of Association Executives’ (ASAE) 2018 Annual Meeting & Exposition. All of the breakout sessions were great, but one in particular really stood out: “Limited Resources, Big Opportunities: Small-Staff Success Story,” presented by Eloiza Altoro, Principal Consultant at Mind Redesign Consulting, and Stefanie Reeves, Executive Director of the Maryland Psychological Association (MPA).

It’s no secret that we love small staffs, so any tips, tricks, hacks, and secrets that we come across that would make the lives of small-staff association professionals easier, well, we feel like we HAVE to share.

Here’s one hack in particular we think you’ll love:

Chances are, as a MemberClicks customer, you haven’t interacted much with anyone on our Operations team - and that’s a shame! These Clickers literally keep our business running. From managing company finances to saving us when technology doesn’t want to work to keeping us constantly stocked with the essentials (aka, coffee) and more, we would be absolutely lost without them!

Introducing, the MemberClicks Operations Team!

If your organization is struggling to bring in new members, it may be time to look at reworking a few fundamentals. Take your dues options: What kind of flexibility is there for members and potential members?

Sometimes, ya gotta get creative! Many organizations are finding success in a multi-year dues option, where members can receive a discount when paying for three to five years at once. Here’s our take on why you should consider instating a multi-year dues option, and how:

Sometimes it can be hard to remember that outside of the association world, most people don’t know what an association really does. And while that’s understandable, it doesn’t help your case when it comes to attracting new members to pay dues for your association’s membership.

Let’s take a step back and look at three major stereotypes that are often connected to associations so that you can know what to avoid for prospective members!

It’s the excuse we hear over and over and over again: “I want to get involved. I’m just so busy right now!”

Does that mean engaging those members is a lost cause? Absolutely not! It just means your approach needs to be a little different.

To engage the “I’m too busy” member, consider the following:

Former members represent a whole pool of potential new members who are a little easier to recruit. Why? They’re already familiar with your organization, so you don’t have to spend time explaining who you are and what you do!

That said, they left for a reason. Here are a few solutions for overcoming common non-renewal reasons when reaching out to your lapsed members:

We’re coming off a hot summer of events and trade shows, and it sure isn’t lightening up any this Fall! Here’s where we’re going to be - and where we hope to see you!

But first - let’s take a look at some upcoming opportunities for training and best practices on the system YOU use every day:

Working remotely is something that’s becoming more and more popular at companies and organizations. But from a management perspective, it requires a bit of extra consideration. When you can’t see that employee, how can you be sure they’re actually getting their work done? And with them being out of the office, how can you make sure they still feel engaged?

Those are just a few of the things managers need to think through, but according to Anna Hofmeister, Partner at Tate & Tryon, Nicole Banks, Associate Director of Membership at the American Welding Society, and Kimberly Mosley, President of the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association, there are actually 10 key variables managers need to take into account when working with remote employees.

Here’s a recap of those variables, which they presented (along with a lot of other great info!) at the American Society of Association Executives’ (ASAE) 2018 Annual Meeting & Exposition:

While it’s a win for your industry for any newcomers to join an association in your space, wouldn’t it be nice if they ultimately picked yours? If you’re looking to stand out from amongst the crowd, take a look at a couple of ways you can impress anyone looking to join your association!

As an association professional, you wear many, many hats. You’re in charge of marketing, events, fundraising, advocacy - and that’s just the beginning!

Having your hand in so many aspects of an organization is hard for many reasons, but one in particular is the fact that you can’t necessarily specialize in one particular segment (simply for lack of time). And as a result, mistakes happen.

We want to help you minimize those mistakes. So today, we’re honing in on marketing and identifying four common mistakes for associations to avoid: