Beyond the Basics: Innovative Member Engagement Strategies

Many associations need help to engage their members. While 67% of associations moderately engage members, only 20% strongly engage their membership. Member engagement deserves a place at the top of each association’s list of priorities.

Deepening your interactions with members can boost satisfaction levels and inspire them to connect with other professionals. Higher engagement can also benefit your association financially. Engaged members are more likely to renew, register for events, and buy from your eStore.

In this guide, we’ll explore a few strategies your organization can use to engage its members with the help of your association management solution.

Personalize engagement opportunities.

Tailored experiences are becoming the new norm. 69% of customers expect to have personalized, consistent experiences with companies—your members are likely looking for these experiences too.

To get started, Fonteva recommends sending out member engagement surveys, segmenting members by their interests, and offering a variety of ways to engage. Next, customize engagement opportunities with ideas like these:

• Make personalized recommendations. Use a system to track members’ interests and engagement histories. Leverage these insights when communicating with them. Mention upcoming events or meetings that relate to their interests or areas of expertise. Reference past behaviors to show that you pay attention to their preferences. For example, a veterinarian association could write, “Since you attended our exotic pet webinar, you may enjoy our new blog post about managing reptilian patients!”
  
   
• Set up one-on-one mentoring. Match members with mentors or mentees based on their goals, expertise, and special interests. These programs establish more interpersonal relationships between members and help welcome and orient newer members. Additionally, mentors can practice their leadership skills.
  
   
• Provide continual learning opportunities. Recommend courses or certifications to take members’ skills to the next level. Base these recommendations on their career goals and build out personalized learning pathways. For instance, a member pursuing a promotion may want to earn a new, industry-specific certification and take a leadership course.

Another way to get members involved is to accept and share member-generated content. A member could write a blog post, host a webinar, or lead a workshop. This allows them to share their interests and shifts them from passive to active participants in your association.

Foster member communities.

Associations are a great place for members to make new connections. Networking provides more professional development opportunities and strengthens your association’s industry contacts. While some members might network on their own at conferences or by using your membership directory, your association should also encourage and facilitate these relationships.

Promote connection, collaboration, and knowledge sharing to foster a close-knit member community. Start by creating online forums and discussion groups. Consider writing discussion prompts to motivate members to participate. For example, you could set up discussion forums related to each of your meetings or pose weekly questions relevant to your industry.

Hold a variety of networking events to help members meet new professionals in their field. Balance casual options like mixers and happy hour meetups with structured meetings like roundtable discussions.

You can also establish special interest groups that cater to specific areas of interest, expertise, or demographic segments. A marketing association might have one group for young members and another for members with social media expertise, for instance.

Leverage gamification.

Gamification is the application of gameplay elements, such as points, to a non-game scenario. Organizations use this method in a variety of ways, from engaging employees to motivating Duolingo users to learn new languages.

This strategy fosters a sense of accomplishment, provides clear goals, and makes the associated activity more fun. Try out these ideas to gamify your members’ experiences:

• Establish a system where members can earn points for participating in events or activities. Set thresholds for badges or other rewards (e.g., earn 50 points and receive a gift).
• Organize challenges or contests. Depending on the focus, these can motivate members to engage in member recruitment, content creation, and events.
• Track progress toward association-wide goals. For example, you may create a fundraising thermometer to show how close you are to reaching your goal.

To motivate members to participate, offer prizes or incentives alongside your gamification tactics. For example, winners of your trivia night might receive gift baskets or free registration for your upcoming conference.

Frequently show your gratitude.

There is plenty to thank your members for. They pay to be a part of your association and take time out of their busy schedules to attend meetings and events. To motivate loyal members to keep engaging, make sure they know that you appreciate them and their support.

To get started, reference your data. Make note of insights you can use to personalize your efforts to each member. For example, greet them by name, mention past interactions, and message them via their preferred communication channel.

Next, decide how you’ll show your gratitude. eCardWidget’s guide to member appreciation recommends several options, including:

• Member appreciation eCards: eCards, or digital greeting cards, allow you to quickly send personalized messages to members. Design your own set of branded cards and add tailored messages to them. Consider sending the eCards to new members, event attendees, or high-achieving members.
• Member appreciation day or week: Use this time to show your appreciation for all of the members of your association. Offer them special discounts on items in your eStore, hold exciting giveaways, or send them free branded merchandise. Local chapters could organize a dinner, luncheon, or networking event to show their appreciation.
• Gifts: Choose gifts that align with your sector or industry. For example, hospital associations might gift loyal members a new set of scrubs. You can also opt for tried-and-true options like gift cards or branded coffee cups.

Another way to show that you value members is to ask them for feedback about how your association is doing. Send out a survey that asks them to rate how satisfied they are with your association and provide suggestions. Implement members’ suggestions whenever possible to show that you’re listening.

Next Steps

A robust member engagement strategy will help your association reach its full potential and protect it from potential hardships. To get started:

• Reference your data to gain a deeper understanding of your members.
• Spread awareness of ways members can connect (and the benefits of doing so).
• Add gameplay elements to non-game scenarios to encourage members to engage.
• Show members that they are valued members of your network through frequent expressions of gratitude.