We’ve come to the end of this series, where I slowly but surely, give you tools and insights that you can implement to bring your association into the future. But, since it’s been a while, I’ll sum up the major points.
Become a Digital-First Organization
The technology we use in our day-to-day lives has evolved to meet our needs anytime, anywhere. Your association should be able to do the same for your members. If you haven’t done so already, now is the time to take the first steps towards becoming a digital-first organization.
Create a digital strategy. Find a way to drive your members to your website, where you control the message and experience while collecting valuable data that can inform your plan for engagement. And remember, moving to a digital strategy is a cultural change where members’ needs are put first through your use of digital technology.
Understand the Why of Your Association
You need to make sure that all of your stakeholders are on the same page. Start by understanding why your members are members. Do they come for education? Networking? Thought-leadership? Whatever it is, find it and use it to become an invaluable resource for them.
If you need help understanding the why, survey your members. Ask them what their personal and professional goals are. How can your association help them meet those objectives? You can combine survey data with member behaviour to understand your why and adjust your strategy accordingly.
Break Down Departmental Walls
When each department is focused internally, communication with members can become scattered and overwhelming. Instead, break down silos and unify your content strategy across departments. Creating one singular vision will help you meet members’ needs while fulfilling the association’s overall goals.
Make content planning cross-departmental with an annual content calendar. Plan ahead and decide what the content distribution and cadence will be. This will enable departments to work together to fill out the schedule, pool resources, and reduce the cost of creating multimedia content.
Create Strategic Sponsor Partners
One of the biggest challenges of creating content can be the budget. By planning your content ahead of time, you can identify sponsors early in the process and help offset some of these costs. Your potential sponsors are looking for strategic partnerships that can give them measurable ROI and create meaningful content for their own audiences. As an association, you can help them do both.
Your sponsors are industry experts. Give them the opportunity to share this expertise with your members in a video, blog post or podcast. Not only will they cultivate a relationship with potential clientele, but they will also be able to track engagement with the analytics provided by digital media.
Make Your Organization Fluid and Flexible
Assessing your organization’s needs and balancing them with available resources can help you stay nimble in the digital age. Supplementing internal resources with strategic vendor partnerships offers several benefits and allows you to retain continuity in timelines and the quality of projects. If an internal team is fully responsible, then production may be interrupted if your team members become unavailable.
Multimedia vendors also stay up-to-date on the latest trends and best practices in the industry. With the right partner, your association can simplify a complex multimedia process into an organized content-producing system.
Now, it’s your turn.
These are simply some of the ideas and strategies discussed in the book, Moving your Association from Analog to Digital. Use the lessons in the book to embrace change and successfully navigate your associations’ digital transformation. Order your free copy here and start improving member recruitment, retention and engagement.
Check out our Association Insights video series for even more expert advice and insight on a variety of topics impacting your association today.
Chapter 10: Putting It All Together
The tools and tactics have been outlined. The roadmap is in place. It’s up to you to begin the journey. Click here to get your free copy of Moving Your Association From Analog to Digital today.