Two Way Conversations

During the past several weeks, I have been participating in several online twitter chats - very interesting discussions of what is on the minds of both  association and non-profit professionals. Some of the discussion has centered around communications -- how often, types of communications, and so on.

I have been considering the differences in how an association professional views a member versus the way a non-profit or cause related organization professional views a donor. My perspective had been that they should both be viewed the same. I now realize that was a somewhat simplistic approach.

They are different because a member generally has a year-round relationship with the association, while the donor may only interact with the non-profit during an event or donation drive. Education is usually thought of for a member but doesn't a donor need to be educated as well about how their donation will be used, challenges and successes around the "cause," etc? Volunteers for both types of organizations need to be identified and then engaged in the manner and extent the volunteer wants.

So there are differences - but to me one common factor is the need for two-way conversations.  NOTE:  I said, conversations, not communications.  The member or donor needs to receive information, but they also need to feel that the organization is listening to them and valuing their input.

When we receive a response from a member - do we acknowledge it? When a member posts something on our organization's Facebook page, do we acknowledge it? When a Tweet mentions us, do we acknowledge it? The bigger question is what happens when we don't?

Unfortunately too many organizations are not considering this - and the results are decreasing membership numbers or decreasing donation levels.  Association and non-profit professionals need to understand and respond - or suffer the consequences. Do you agree or disagree? Let me know by posting a comment here or to lchreno@marketinggeneral.com or Tweet me @lindachreno.

To see some of the discussion from one of the chats, go to the #AssnChat summary created by @kikilitalien sfy.co/V1Z

Okay - Blog Preparations for the New Year

I have been somewhat (alright VERY) bad about continuing my efforts to blog.  One thing I have read frequently is that, in order for blogs to be successful, they must be done regularly. Toward the goal of being more diligent in blogging, I have set up an appointment with myself to do this -- I won't tell you how frequently, but often enough to be of interest.

My second realization about my blog was that it does not have to be long to be of interest -- it needs to be of interest and value first and foremost.  I had hoped to present a program, Content is KING, where I included many reasons for the importance of content.  I still hope to present this topic at some future time - or write about this topic in a future blog.

My third idea for this blog was to share some of the information that I often share via Twitter or on my Facebook page.  Not everyone sees these messages, and some of the information and ideas are from other association professionals that you might find of interest.

Here is my "knowledge nugget" for this blog (actually more of a reminder than news, but just in case you didn't see it):

The USPS will be increasing postal rates effective January 22. • First Class Letter rate is increasing to $0.45 (up from $0.44)
• First Class Postcard rate is increasing to $0.32 (up from $0.29)
• Standard A Letter rate is increasing to $0.281 (up from $0.276)
• Non-Profit Letter rate is decreasing to $0.172 (down from $0.174)

This news should not be seen as the end of mailing to members and potential members.  Mail is still an invaluable tool in the marketing mix - just be sure that you mail to the correct audience with the correct message and frequency.

Enough for this post.  I want to wish you a very Happy Holiday season.

Interesting Place To Find Information

I always find it interesting where I find information that I can relate to associations.  I was recently skimming through the October 2011 issue of The Costco Connection when a headline caught my eye:  Five Trends Shaping the Future of Work.  Of course, my first thought was about my own work, but when I read the five major trends as outlined by Dr. Bob Nelson, president of Nelson Motivation Inc. (www.nelson-motivation.com), I began to think about their relevance to associations.

1.       The Growing Shortage of Skilled Workers.
The reference here was not to a labor shortage, but stressed that there will be (according to current demographic trends) a shortage of skilled workers. This will impact associations whose membership is based on skill or training.  Does this mean that associations should be promoting educational opportunities so that individuals can become skilled? How about more student chapters or scholarships to become a skilled worker? Are there opportunities for associations right now to address this issue before it leads to a decline in membership for these associations? Remember that this change affects staff as well (thanks to Valerie Fries Wade, MM, CAE for the reminder!) This might mean that we need to offer staff more frequent "smaller" promotions or recognitions.

 

2.       The Rise of the Millennials.Who are Millennials? Millennials are generally defined as those born between 1980 and 2000.  What makes them of particular interest to associations? Their size (90 million prospective workers) and how they are motivated.  Millennials are ethnically and racially diverse according to PEW RESEARCH, and they expect work to be a part of their life, but not the defining factor. Some studies also indicate that they will change jobs/professions more frequently. They expect meaning from their work, but are not necessarily willing to “pay their dues.” Associations need to find ways to engage them early and keep them engaged if they want them to remain members.  The 8 or 10 year track to become the President of the association might seem too long to them.

 

3.       The Rise of the Temp.With the uncertainty of the economy and the rising cost of employee benefits, companies are looking for alternative ways to meet work demands while keeping a watchful eye on the bottom line.  According to Dr. Nelson, there are “22 million companies that do not have a payroll.”  He also identifies a shift from “lifetime employment” to “lifetime employability.”  How will associations respond to this changing dynamic?  If a member is paying their own dues versus their employer paying the dues, the return on investment will have to be shown to the individual. Should an association offer a payment plan for dues or conference fees? Concerning professional development offered by an association or the association annual conference, what happens to attendance if the member has to take vacation or personal time to attend?

 

4.       The Evolving Role of Virtual Employees.Flex time, telecommuting, job sharing – we all have heard these terms, and some of us are even doing it right now.  Thanks to technology, there are many options that can be used in order to get the work done.  But when we are not around co-workers, do we become less connected, less invested in that company? And is that alright if we become connected in other ways, for instance, on a social network or with our association? This presents a challenge to the employer, but also an opportunity for associations to provide a place to connect with others in a profession or industry or involved with a cause.  How about offering a new membership type for the remote member so they can attend webinars and other professional offerings? Associations need to stay alert to the technology affecting their members and potential members, and to be ready to address those changes.

 

5.       The Globalization of the Labor Market.Companies are utilizing workers from around the globe.  For associations, this globalization presents many challenges. Among the first ones that come to mind: language differences, time zone differences, ability to get information to the member in a timely fashion (do we mail it, fax it, email it), differences in legal requirements, and many more.  Can one association offer enough to meet the needs of all the members around the world?

I definitely have raised more questions than answers – but isn’t it better to think of these issues before they become an issue for your association? Whether you are reading a magazine, watching a television news show, or listening to the radio, you can always learn something that can help make you a better association professional – just be alert to the opportunities around you!

Thanks for reading my blog – I appreciate any and all comments and suggestions. You can reach me at lchreno@marketinggeneral.com, @lindachreno, or 510.352.8197. Feel free to tweet, forward, or share this post.

YES - There IS a Membership Gene!

I read Tony Rosell's post Membership Marketing Blog: Is There a Membership Gene? and he shares several great quotes about membership.  I just wanted to provide a couple more and to provide a bit more information about associations and nonprofits.

Another quote from Alexis deToqueville in Democracy in America, 1835:

"Americans of all ages, conditions, and dispositions constantly form associations....not only commercial and manufacturing companies, but associations for 1000 others kinds...religious, serious, futile, general or restricted, enormous or diminutive...they use them to found seminaries, build inns, construct churches..."

President Herbert Hoover, considered the father of the modern trade association movement, said this in a 1927 report to the Department of Commerce:

"In the field of scientific and economic research, in statistics, in simplification and standardization of commodities, in the promotion of arbitration in commercial disputes, in development of foreign trade, and in scores of other directions, trade associations have made a valuable contribution to our economic process."

President Theodore Roosevelt in 1908:

"Every man owes a part of his time and money to the business or industry in which he is engaged.  No man has a moral right to withhold his support from an organization that is striving to improve conditions within his sphere."

A bit more information worth considering:

• At the turn of the 20th century, there were only 100 national and regional associations in the US*;
• By 1920 the Commerce Department identified about 2,000 associations*;
• According to ASAE's website, in 2004, there were an estimated 86,054 trade and professional associations. These organizations include local, state, regional, national and international associations. A number of these are independently incorporated chapters or allied organizations of larger associations. Add to that an estimated 1,010,365 philanthropic or charitable organizations and you begin to get an idea of the scope of the non-profit community nationwide.
•  A study by Johns Hopkins University found that nonprofit organizations are a $1.1 trillion industry worldwide, employing more than 19 million full-time personnel.*

In America, 9 out of 10 belong to at least 1 association, with 4 out of 10 belonging to 4 or more associations.*  YES, I definitely believe the membership gene is in us!

*Information from Robert C. Harris, CAE, Tallahassee, Florida.

Change, Change, Change…Does Anything Ever Stay the Same?

As association professionals, we are accustomed to change – the change in the board, committees, and even members.  Then of course, there is the change in staff, change in meeting locations, change in education programming formats, change in vendors – you get the idea.  On top of that, there is the change outside of the association that affects how we do business – Google adds a bunch of new tools that are free, Facebook changes its design and how it works, Microsoft updates its operating system again, and then there is the newest version of Word and Excel and Powerpoint which our association may or may not have! Our “tried and true” ways of doing things won’t work as well any more. The question then becomes, how do we keep moving forward with all of these changes while still accomplishing the mission and vision of the association?

As we are doing our association work, we often think of how things should be done differently – or we hear of a new tool that might streamline an operation or task. How do we keep track of these while trying to decide if, how, and when we implement them?

Most of us have checklists or some sort of document that outlines the major steps of a task or program.  As we are living or working through the event or process, we think of steps that would improve the process.  The question has now become – where do we keep these steps so we can find them when we need them?

Here are a few suggestions of ways that might help you:

• Evernote is a suite of software and services that helps you: “Capture anything. Save your ideas, things you like, things you hear, and things you see.”  The note can be text, a picture, voice, or a webpage.
• Outlook has tasks that you can enter – and add reminders that you should do it.
• Checklist Wrangler allows you to easily manage templates and auto create checklists weekly, monthly, or yearly. Available on the App Store.
• Most smartphones have a way to track notes, take photos, or even record voice memos. Learn how to use them!
• Dropbox is a web-based hosting service that lets you store and share files and folders.
• Screenshots of webpages can be helpful – of something that needs to be changed or updated, or of a suggestion for something that your association should do.

NOTE: Some of these are free, some have a cost.

I know there are a lot more ways to track and keep information, but the bigger issue is the discipline that is now needed to implement these changes! 

SUGGESTION 1:

Immediately after your conference, board meeting, or committee meeting , UPDATE your checklist and timelines to incorporate what you noted from the experience. Don’t put it off or think you will remember when it is time to go through the process next time – you won’t!

SUGGESTION 2:

Make an appointment on your calendar to review the new Board material at least THREE MONTHS before you will need it.  By scheduling this time, you will be able to change and/or update anything that needs to be made more current.

SUGGESTION 3:

Ask for help in reviewing your website – whether it is another staff person, a member, or someone totally outside of the association.  Come to think of it, you should use all of them for review!  If the material is not current, it will not be helpful.

SUGGESTION 4:

On a regularly scheduled basis, review the notes, screen shots, files, etc, that you stored in the locations I suggested above – and delete the ones that are no longer relevant or useful.  We need to be diligent in this process or the amount of “helpful” information will overwhelm us.

What do you use to address changes, new ideas, and new tools? If you share them, I will include them in an upcoming post.

Thanks for reading my blog – I appreciate any and all comments and suggestions.  Please feel free to forward or share this message.

Back In California - Time Zone Readjustment in Progress

In my new position with Marketing General, Inc., I am going to be traveling more as well as trying to connect with colleagues in different time zones.  I totally understand the reason for time zones, but with the advent of all this social media and 24/7 availability, I have to determine the best way to handle time zones.  I scheduled several meetings while I was in DC last week, and my "calendar" did not always adjust to the time changes. This, of course, created a few hiccups in my meetings.  But everyone was understanding. So now, when I place a meeting on my calendar - I place in the title what time and time zone for the meeting.  And if I use my calendar program to invite someone, hopefully this will help them as well.


I began thinking about how this affects associations and their members.  Do we consider where the committee members are when we schedule a meeting? How about the staff - especially if there are remote staff members as part of the meeting. This can also be impacted by their travel since members also travel.  Using doodle.com or another scheduling program can help determine the best time for the meeting.


Beyond just the scheduling of the meetings, when we send materials to the attendees, do we consider when they will receive it? Does that matter?  If I am on a committee and there is something that I need to review for the meeting, and it comes into my inbox at 8 pm at night in my time zone  for a meeting at 9 am the next morning, I doubt that I will be able to review it. Do we give our meeting attendees sufficient time for review? I realize that there are issues that come up and that, sometimes, late delivery of material is inevitable - but if it becomes routine, aren't we sending a message to the volunteers that we don't care about them? Volunteers are a precious commodity for any association or nonprofit - we need to consider their needs and best interests as we engage them in the work of the association.


PS If you need a copy of the 2011 MGI Benchmarking Report, click here.  And let me know if you have any questions - or if you have questions you want included in future surveys! Just send them to me at Linda (lchreno@marketinggeneral.com)