Developing a membership growth strategy for an association takes time. You can spend hours debating the best methods to reach prospective members, creating marketing materials, a marketing strategy and tactics. Membership retention and membership growth strategies can be very time consuming and stressful. How can you effectively reach potential members and convince them to apply for membership?
Blog By Erin Colladay
Member Services Manager
Word of mouth recommendations! According to a recent survey, 69% of associations report that word-of-mouth recommendations get their organization the most new members.
People trust reviews and personal interactions. It should not be surprising that a most effective channel for increasing your membership is through personal recommendations. Consider reaching out to some of your members to create a combination of in-person meet-ups at your annual meeting or create a virtual online community to discuss your organization. Create a community where interested prospects can participate in discussions but restrict full access to members only. Building a community is a great way to showcase all of the valuable networking opportunities to potential members. Networking with others in the field is still a top reason that members join their selected organizations.
Remember your purpose, and your goals and don’t lose site of the value of your members to help grow your membership!
