Five out of every six phone calls go straight to voice mail. If you‘re in sales, or business of any kind, you know how frustrating this can be. Increase the odds of getting a call back by mentally composing your message before each call. And remember, people hate it when callers state their name and phone number too quickly in voice mail messages – no one wants to listen to a message ten times to comprehend simple information. To improve your chances […]

Melynn Sight details how to evaluate your organization’s value proposition message for members. If you’ve invested in discovering your association’s VP (value proposition), and it’s been around for two or more years, you may feel like it’s time to put new life into it – to verify that your message is still relevant and that your organization delivers on the value you promote. GrowthZone AMS offers a comprehensive suite of productivity tools that allow association pros to do more in […]

The purpose of a press release is to get attention, make news, and generate publicity. It’s cost-effective marketing (free) and they can be used to create brand awareness for your association. The Basics of Crafting a Press Release: Make it newsworthy; it’s not an ad, it’s a news article Use an attention-grabbing headline Be time sensitive – no one wants old news Stick to one topic Write it in a professional tone, or even better, write it like you’re a […]

The welcome email is your chance to introduce your association, so make it count. When a new member joins your association, do you fire off a quick message and move on to the next thing on your to-do list? If so, it’s time to rethink your strategy – the welcome email is an enormously valuable opportunity that only happens once. Because welcome emails occur at an early stage in the member relationship before email fatigue sets in, you have a […]

A guest blog by Kyle Sexton. The events staff is nagging the communications staff to send just one more email to put some cheeks in seats or satisfy the sponsors’ visibility expectations according to the sponsor agreement. Membership staff want an email that pokes members for leads or reminds members of the upcoming advertising deadline. Communications staff bugs the membership team for compelling human interest stories to no avail. And who is going to remind the CEO her the article […]

Imagine for a minute, you’re on a desolate island and your only goal daily was to find your way off of the island. The movie “Cast Away” comes to mind, with Tom Hanks stranded after a plane crash. The only resource you have is an internet connection and 1% of battery life left on the device. How would you best use your time to reach your goal? When it comes to association-specific content, there are five components every association website […]

There are several surefire ways to make sure your email stands out in members’ inboxes. By employing even one of them, you increase the chances of sending something your members will actually open. Remember these important tactics when crafting an association email: Be Mobile Friendly With the surge of mobile email readership on smartphones, consider how your emails display on mobile devices. It is also important to keep in mind that mobile screens are smaller, so your subject lines should be […]

Securing funding for your association can be challenging. While the non-dues revenue route is all-too familiar, an often-overlooked source for funding is grants. There are many sources for grants, the most accessible and obvious being government grants. However, a simple web search for available grants produces thousands of results beyond those provided by local, state, and federal governments. Even if your association isn’t eligible, consider the benefit of communicating grant opportunities to your membership. For example, what if you sent your members […]

A guest blog by Frank Kenny. What story is your association telling with its social media posts? Does your story resonate with your target market? Is it reaching your members? Or is it rendering your message effectively invisible, hidden in plain sight? Get 30 more quick and easy ideas for social media posts for your association now » Recognize that everything you do tells a story. If someone dresses shabbily, it tells a story about them. If an organization is […]

Surefire ways to make sure your association’s email stands out in members’ inboxes: Write a Great Subject Line Never underestimate the importance of the subject line. In the battle of the inbox, you’re fighting for attention. An engaging subject line makes all the difference. It should catch the reader’s attention and give them a reason to open your email. See more ways to win the battle of the inbox in The Fundamentals of New-Member Communications. Use a Recognizable Sender Name […]

A guest blog by Maddie Grant, CAE. According to the 2016 McQuaig Global Talent Recruitment Survey, nearly two-thirds of respondents say it’s hard to find a cultural fit when hiring. And when there isn’t a good fit, we often end up losing people fairly quickly, and that’s expensive and inefficient. So, given what’s at stake here, why are we finding it so hard to align who we’re hiring with what our culture truly is? In short, because the hiring process […]

In the fast-paced world of association management, staying on target with an organization’s mission and goals can be a challenge. Learn about 3 ways to help your association thrive in The Association Success Kit. Association pros are tasked with running their organization’s day-to-day operations, finding ways to demonstrate value to members, and the list goes on… Our Association Success Kit provides proven strategies for associations bundled together in a single document. Its easy-to-read format is ideal for a short break […]