Member Acquisition and Retention
To retain existing members as well as grow through new membership, associations must excel in Trillium's Value Builder Fundamentals: Value, Process, Tools & Metrics.
Value
The value delivered to members is the fundamental driver of your organization- its the reason members join and renew. Whether your organization holds an annual meeting , provides educational services, advocacy or testing, your members belong because of their perception of your value to their lives or careers. Consider:
- What do your members/potential members value?
- What makes them join? What makes them continue to belong to your organization?
- Is there a gap between what you provide and what they believe you should provide?
- Are the current services you provide as member benefits relevant to your members?
- How often do you assess the perceptions your members have about your organization and the benefits it provides?
Process
Your association's processes drive the experience of members. How do you ensure identifying potential members, converting them to paying members, and renewing membership are as member-centric as possible. Here are some questions to ask about your organization's member services processes:
- How long does it take for a new member application to be processed, from start to finish? How long does it take for current members to register for future events and conferences?
- Can potential members find application forms quickly and easily on your website? Can they submit their application electronically?
- Can you capture and process dues information electronically?
- How long does it take for member services requests to be addressed? Do you have self-service options, or does every issue require a member to call your headquarters?
- What processes do you have in place to ensure membership/member service inquiries are followed up on a timely basis and resolved to the member's satisfaction?
Tools
Tools must support the people and processes running your organization. Too often processes are built around them instead, drawing resources away from serving members and mission. When you think about the tools you use to support your member acquisition and retention efforts how would you answer:
- Does it take hours, days or weeks to obtain reports from your member database?
- Do you have separate systems for event registration, customer service, member data, and accounting?
- How do you track member interactions with your organization?
- How do you track member satisfaction with your organization?
- Do you understand what impact your operations may impact member satisfaction when your members are interacting with your organization?
Metrics
Finally, consider how the measures of performance your organization captures truly reflect whether Value, Process and Tools are working together to fulfill your organization's mission. Ask the following questions about the kind of data you are collecting:
- What metrics are you using to measure how well your organization is fulfilling its mission? When was the last time these metrics were evaluated for relevancy?
- What is the focus of the data you capture about your members? Is it used just to communicate with them? Or can it be used to anticipate trends and behavior?
- How clean and up-to-date is your data? Can you act on the data you currently capture?
- Who receives your organization's performance data on a regular basis? How often do they receive performance reports?
- Do data bottlenecks exist between your reporting tools and key decision makers?
Success Stories
Seniors Organization Member Acquisition & Retention
Our client will generate $9 million in new annual revenue and save $4.5 million per year.
» View this Success Story
Medical Specialty Board Operations Assessment
This client reduced operational burdens on staff to focus on strategic concerns driving the growth of their organization.
» View this Success Story
Why Value Builder Solutions for Member Acquisition & Retention?
Our Value Builder Solutions for Member Acquisition & Retention is a proven roadmap to success for associations. Using our proven approach will:
- Drive successful outcomes for new products and services;
- Introduce critical new processes and skills to the organization;
- Transfer methods and materials bringing value to your future projects;
- Deliver critical expertise and build internal teamwork;
When you need results, based on proven processes, you need Trillium Solutions Group.
Let Trillium Solutions Group be your partner in successfully optimizing your Member Acquisition & Retention value, processes, tools and metrics to drive growth for your association.
Contact us today at 847-272-2202 to see how we can deliver results for you.