Don’t advertise to your audience; connect with it
It might seem like your organization is treading a tightrope between the two poles that hold it aloft. On one side is membership engagement and retention, and keeping the rope taught from the other side is the opposing pull of non-dues revenue efforts. Providing and demonstrating value to your members is, of course, a fundamental task […]
Why first impressions matter for members
Mindset is a funny thing. Once we have made up our minds about something, even unconsciously, that decision informs every subsequent interaction we have with it. Whether it’s an adult wrinkling up their nose at a steaming plate of broccoli as they flashback to their first childhood encounter with the offending vegetable, or your parents being […]
What story does our data tell us?
The digital world is just that: a world. Personal and demographic details, from geographic location to computer literacy, makes it difficult to accurately anticipate people’s behavior or their responsiveness to advertising. But unlike the world outside, a digital space creates a pool of data with which to analyze, predict and ultimately curate the online experience […]
On the hunt for creative and enterprising people
We are looking to bring brilliant minds together to plan the biggest online event for association professionals to date. AssociationSuccess.org is hosting a virtual summit called Surge 2017 on Nov. 7th – 9th, where we will assemble thousands of association professionals under one virtual roof. Consisting of sessions and live Q&As to provoke forward-thinking discussions, the […]
Do you know your association’s value trigger point?
Ask engaged members when they realized the value of the association and many could tell you the exact moment. They can quickly recall a single event or moment when it was clear to them they made the right decision in joining. The moment new members understand the value of the association is the Association’s Value […]
How I increased my audience 10x without saying anything differently
It’s not what you have to say. It’s how you go about saying it. As many of you are probably aware, I’m very passionate about all things cybersecurity-related. In fact, I’d be almost willing to say I’m somewhat of a nerd. This is especially true when discussing authentication (specifically the handling of credentials and the method […]
Overheard at MMC: A collection of offstage insights
We all go to conferences hungry for something: hungry for knowledge and information, for rekindling old connections and forging new ones, or perhaps for what’s on offer at the midday buffet. I often find the aspect of conference-going I most relish comes neither from the session hall nor the lunch menu, but from the hundreds […]
Why do IT people struggle with communication?
As I sat in my first business communication class in college, my instructor told us the No. 1 requested skill for developers is better communication. Ha! There was a group of us sitting together in the back row. We looked at each other, giggled, and continued playing a video game. We were there to become […]
The most frustrating thing new members do
One of the most frustrating dynamics for association staff is noticing that some members join but then never take another single action. They don’t read the emails. They don’t sign up for webinars. They don’t log in to the website. You may be surprised to learn that this is super frustrating for new members as […]
The beginner’s guide to shooting good-looking video
Whether we are judging books by their covers, preparing ourselves for potential romantic encounters or searching for the most appropriate outfit for an interview, we know that how we present ourselves can leave a lasting impression. It’s a powerful way of demonstrating to others how we want to be understood. I’m not here to assess […]