Tuesday, August 4, 2015
Why Membership Is a Good Decision
View webcast at: http://www.csae.webcast.guru/s2/
By Ed Rigsbee, CAE, CSP
If you are taking advantage of the "member-only" products, services and activities that (fill in org name) provides—you realize that membership is a smart decision. You demand a reasonable return on your investment (ROI) in membership and you should get it. You have done more than the non-member outliers; you have invested in this organization. Simply put, you deserve more.
You differ from the other industry/profession stakeholders that simply take advantage of the (fill in org name) activities that serve the (fill in the blank) industry/profession. You have decided to actively participate with your time and resources. Let's make sure you are getting all you can.
Several Years of Research
Over the last several years, Rigsbee Research has been conducting qualitative research in the area of calculating the ROI of membership in actual dollar numbers. Surveying members as to their perception of value in dollar numbers for every member-only feature delivered by their organization. Association and society members like you, have valued their memberships accordingly: in the category of Professional Development at an annual real-dollar value of just under $4,000. The number for the Business Solutions category is just over $7,100, with Knowledge Management delivering a little over $2,400.
Professional Development
Professional development and career growth are basically synonymous. Some of the member-only features are as follows:
- Income differential through certifications
- Gained knowledge and experience through volunteer leadership positions
- Peer support and mentoring
- Access to National or State Chapter resources
- Special interest groups
- Career development services
- Peer and Industry prestige
Business Solutions
The business solutions category is a large one for many organizations. Some of the member-only features measured included:
- Safety programs, education and resources
- Business development and peer referral opportunities
- Affinity or partner program discounts
- Innovative business/practice solutions
- Access to other organizations through affiliated membership agreements
- Discounts on organization's goods, services and events
- Access to assistance at organization's field or headquarter offices
- Legal seminars and consultations
Knowledge Management
In days of old, associations and societies were the hard-copy depository for industry or professional knowledge. Today, membership organizations compete against Google daily; however to organizations that excel in knowledge management have found ways to make access by members to their vast resources quick and easy. Some of the member-only features measured included:
- Industry research, benchmarking and compensation studies
- Legislative updates
- Member-only password protected knowledge sections on organization's website
- Industry/profession standards, regulations and codes
- Printed and electronic magazines and newsletters
- Member directories
Buying Motives
In the above listed examples of features of membership delivered my various membership organizations—your specific value might depend on your buying motive for joining and belonging. Of the six buying motives listed in The ROI ofMembership, the three most frequent membership buying motives tend to be:
- Profit and Gain
- Fear of Loss
- Avoidance of Pain
With this in mind, consider the (fill in org name) to be your number one strategic alliance for success. Much of what you and your organization need to prosper is available to you as "member-only" features of membership. Just think how much more value the (fill in org name) could deliver to you in products, services and activities if there were twice as many members. Help the (fill in org name) to help you by recruiting just one new member this year. Then, help that new member to assimilate into the organization by influencing them to attend the annual meeting—and when they do—introduce them to your network of friends and colleagues. This will better assure their long-term membership.
Interestingly enough, we found that most membership organizations today are far better at delivering value to members than they are at calculating and communicating the ROI of membership. It has been quite common for various membership organizations to deliver, annually, in the range of $10 to $50 in return for every dollar invested in membership. What does this mean to you? While the (fill in org name) may not have communicated all the value they deliver to you, you can be assured that if you access all that is available to you—you will enjoy an excellent return on your membership investment.
Copyright © 2015 Ed Rigsbee
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Ed Rigsbee, president at Rigsbee Research, is the creator of the active focus group qualitative research method for calculating the real-dollar value of membership (ROI) that organizations deliver. He is the global authority on member ROI and author of The ROI of Membership-Today's Missing Link for Explosive Growth. As both a non-profit CEO and professional speaker, he has a firm grasp of all sides of the member ROI equation. He holds both the Certified Association Executive and Certified Speaking Professional credentials, something enjoyed globally by less than a hand-full of professionals. Rigsbee is the author of five books and over 2,000 published articles, has been an adjunct professor at two universities and is the founder of a non-profit public charity. Learn more at www.rigsbee.com
Permission to reprint is hereby given to all print and electronic media.
Ed Rigsbee, CSP, CAE
The ROI Guy: Alliances, Relationships & Associations
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8dWTxWtpA8
Rigsbee Enterprises, Inc.
1746 Calle Yucca, Suite 200
Thousand Oaks, CA 91360
www.Rigsbee.com
ed@rigsbee.com
805-498-5720