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Spring is officially here! And while it may not feel like it yet, it’s never too early to start indulging in a little spring cleaning - and that means at your office too! (Clear space = clear mind.)

As you organize, check out these recommendations for what to keep and what to toss:

Many associations and chambers toy with the idea of adding a Learning Management System (or LMS) to their tech ecosystem. This especially holds true if you’re in an industry that depends on continued education and certifications.

But, finding the right combination of cost, accessibility, and functionality always seems to stump those in search of an LMS that’ll accomplish organizational goals. Here are some do’s and don’ts that should send you down the right path:

So a new member joins your association or chamber - YAY! That means more growth for your organization and another person who believes in and supports your mission.

But in order to keep that member long-term, it’s important to engage them right off the bat, and that means having a solid new member onboarding program in place.

Whether you’re starting from scratch or simply need to revamp your existing program, check out these best practices for onboarding new members:

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend a webinar hosted by the Georgia Society of Association Executives (GSAE). The topic was “Developing a Sustainable Internship Program,” and the presenters were Tracey Dowling, Program Director of Experiential Learning at Florida State University (FSU), and Li Pon, Senior Assistant Director of Experiential Learning at FSU.

The webinar was PACKED with information about how to create and maintain a successful internship program, but it kicked off with the question...should you?

Maybe you’ve pondered the idea of hiring an intern before. Or maybe you have hired an intern before, and you’re wondering whether or not you should do it again.

Either way, before seeking an intern (whether it’s for the 1st time or the 21st time), Dowling and Pon recommend asking yourself the following three questions:

Are there some people on your association staff who are less than thrilled when it comes to database use?

We get it. For many, learning how to use technology can be tedious - even downright stressful if it’s a particularly robust system. But we all know that the more of your staff that’s on board with using your database (and following your association’s specific processes), the more useful it’ll be!

Here are a few ways to inspire some energy among your staff when it comes to using your database:

As an association or chamber professional, you likely plan a lot of events (or assist your members in their events). But hopefully you’re able to attend a few events of your own for professional development purposes.

If you do attend conferences during the year, do you feel like you’re getting your time and money’s worth? What do you do with all that information once you get home? To fully maximize your conference experience, take a look at these four post-event best practices:

Recruiting, engaging, and retaining young professional members continues to be a hot topic. After all, generations do vary, and you can’t just treat them like you would your more senior-level professional members. (Well, you can, but that may not get you very far.)

The one thing all generations of members have in common, though, is this: They ALL want value. It’s just what’s valuable to each generation that varies.

So what’s valuable for young professionals? Materials and services that can help them start building their career - or get their foot in the door, even. You probably have several offerings that align with that already: a mentoring program, networking events, a job board, etc. But the more you can offer, the better. And with that said, you may want to consider creating a “young professionals toolkit.”

One of the most frustrating things about communicating with members is actually being able to reach them in the first place. People move, change email addresses, change their names, change their job...and when they don’t tell you what’s new, how are you supposed to keep your own records updated?

In a perfect world, members would make keeping their contact information updated with you a priority. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case - but there are a few things you can do to keep it top of mind:

The following blog post was written by Association Analytics, an industry leader in data analysis and management products, services, and training.

An analytics strategy offers many benefits to your organization and now more than never, analytics is changing the way organizations run their day-to-day operations.

For your organization to stay relevant in the minds of your members, your team needs an analytics strategy to guide the decisions, so you can deliver an optimal customer experience. Without a proper analytics strategy, you’ll see a loss in productivity among your team members, incorrect decisions being made, and an incohesive customer experience.

With these costs in mind, it’s worthwhile for your team to invest the time and money into an analytics strategy.

Wondering how to even proceed with developing an analytics strategy? Consider breaking it up into these four focus areas:

Even though the failed Fyre Festival took place (or rather, didn’t) in 2017, it’s still very much the talk of the town. And a lot of that has to do with the fact that Netflix and Hulu recently released documentaries, exploring what really happened. (I mean, how does a heavily promoted event just NOT happen...with attendees being kept in the dark the whole time?)

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Fyre Festival, here’s what basically happened. (Note: This is a very summed-up version.) The Fyre Festival was marketed as a luxury music festival. It was supposed to take place in the Bahamas (nice, right?) and attendees were promised a VIP experience. We’re talking luxury villas, gourmet food, yacht packages - the whole nine yards.

Only...when attendees actually showed up, there was none of that. The “luxury villas” were actually leftover hurricane tents, and the “gourmet food” turned out to be cheese and bread. Seriously, that was it! (See pic below.)