Give Those Recruitment Numbers a Boost
Where is your next member coming from?
A variety of things can prompt someone to join your association. They may be looking for networking opportunities, ways to bolster their career or education, or the chance to get involved with a cause they care about.
But there are folks that may believe that they can do all of those things without joining an association. That’s where recruitment comes in – it’s on you to sell the membership. In a time when younger generations may not see the value in associations anymore and people are using social media for networking, recruitment has gotten a bit trickier. Not to worry, technology can help make it easier. Here’s how:
Track and Target Your Prospects
Association Management Software typically includes Customer Relationship Management (CRM) capabilities, allowing you to store prospect records in addition to member information. Here, you can see a 360 view of your prospect. You can determine what messaging resonates with them based off of what emails they open and click. Evaluate how engaged they are by analyzing what events they have attended or courses they have taken. Figure out what makes your prospects tick so you can develop messaging that encourages them to join!
Personalized messaging through segmentation has proven to improve win rates in the for-profit world, why couldn’t the same logic be applied to member recruitment? CRM functionality allows associations to specifically target subsets of prospects. By listing information in the CRM record, it can be used to create lists for segmentation. It can be something as broad as demographics (gender, ethnicity, age, location) or something even more granular (like volunteer experience, socioeconomic status, education). If the information is in the CRM, you can segment on it.
Offer a Deal
You could always rely on old faithful to improve recruitment – a discount! Association Management Software offers a variety of ways to offer deals to prospective members. You can bundle several items to membership like event registration, products in your online store, or continuing education courses that then prompt the individual to register as a member for a discount.
Association Management Software also allows you to automate membership registration discounts. You have the ability to set discounts for certain time periods or limit it to a group (like event registrants).Setting a discount has never been easier.
Look to Your Current Members
Who better to help you recruit new members than your current members? They know what the benefits are, they know your organization’s gaps and shortcomings, and they have friends. You could encourage your current members to recruit their friends because they know the value of being in your organization better than anyone – add on an incentive for recruiting a friend (like a membership or event discount, or free merchandise).
Another way to determine how to recruit new members is by analyzing why old members left. Those may be the same reasons why new folks aren’t joining. Is your organization lacking a certain program that people want? Are membership prices too high? What is the perceived value (or lack thereof)? If your association asks for that feedback, you can use technology to identify a trend allowing you to rectify a problem. This is a win-win, as it helps both recruitment and retention.
Recruitment is essential to grow and improve an association. Usher in your next class of members with the help of technology. To learn more about how technology can impact your recruitment and retention strategies, check out our white paper “What Good Is an Association Without Members?”
If you want to see how MemberSuite can help you with initiatives like the ones above, watch our web demo by clicking here.