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Hate selling memberships? You’re just human. Whether it’s membership renewals, event sponsorship, or convincing people to serve on the board, people in the association and chamber worlds are always selling. And for most people, selling is just plain uncomfortable. Consider this: If you don’t like to sell, you’re perfect for the job. You just need to stop thinking that sales are bad for the customer. How Associations Increase Membership Sales >> How to talk with people about your organization: Chances […]

Membership pro Frank Kenny explains content marketing through social media and why digital marketing is necessary to bridge the two. Imagine that you create fantastic content regularly – it shouldn’t be much of a stretch – you’re likely already doing that. You give a lot of thought to each piece you create. You keep your target audience in mind. You solve a problem or speak to a need. You post it on social media, remembering to add context, tag people, […]

Simple things to keep in mind can make all the difference in whether a blog post gains traction. Utilizing these three concepts as part of a larger strategy will help increase your association’s followers. When blogging: Be Helpful, Instructional, Compelling, Interesting, and Entertaining Find the answers to the questions your audience is asking Develop an angle by taking a boring topic and asking yourself the 5 Ws (who, what, where, when, and why) Use facts, numbers, and data Address the […]

Jumpstart your blog with step one of simple association blogging techniques. Admit it, you’re a scanner. We all are. There’s a lot of content out there, and if a blog post doesn’t quickly grab your attention in about 10 seconds, you move on to the next one. Here’s the deal. Quality blog posts drive web traffic. Increased web traffic improves your search engine ranking, creating more awareness about your association. Improving your blog’s readability doesn’t have to be an overwhelming […]

Each page on an association website has a unique address – commonly known as a URL (uniform resource locator). A URL is like anything else on the web: It can be good, bad, or ugly. It’s one of the most important aspects of ensuring that your association website appears in search engine results. So, what makes a “good” URL? Two things (which go hand-in-hand): a positive user experience and an SEO-friendly structure. Familiarizing yourself with URL components will smooth the […]

GrowthZone is proud to share the announcement of the 2023 Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE) 2023 award winners. Chamber of the Year Winners The Chamber of the Year award recognizes the leadership role chambers of commerce have in their communities. Those honored with the designation have demonstrated organizational strength and made an impact on key community priorities, such as education, transportation, economic prosperity, and quality of life. The award involves a multi-stage process, which includes the Dynamic Chamber […]

Part 2 of the 5-Part Series: Why Member Engagement No Longer Means Face-to-Face We blogged about digital engagement and why face-to-face events aren’t the only way to drive member engagement. In this article, we’d like to introduce the concept of content marketing. Get our Member Engagement Resource Guide. Retain happy, fulfilled members and overcome the member engagement challenge. Tactic #2: Content Marketing Content marketing is simply the creation and proliferation of informative content online. If you think about the audience […]

Part 1 of the 5-Part Series: Why Member Engagement No Longer Means Face-to-Face Many associations are struggling with member engagement. There are several reasons for this. For starters, it seems like everyone is pressed for time. From running the kids to sporting events to working longer hours, time is at a premium. Secondly, younger members are often less interested in participating in on-site events. These “digital natives” are more inclined to take part in online groups, chats, and forums. Thirdly, […]

Your website is on the job 24/7 and is a key player in your association. Your association website is often the first interaction someone has with your association, speaking to every person who visits you online. You have one chance to make an excellent first impression, so it’s important to get it right. Most of us are familiar with Inattention Blindness, failing to see something right before us (you’re not alone—it’s a real thing, and a fantastic video demonstrates the […]

According to Techopedia, a keyword (in the context of search engine optimization), is a particular word or phrase that describes the contents of a Web page. It helps search engines match a page with a search query. Think of keywords as a summary of a web page. To determine the most relevant keywords for your organization’s site, list topics, products, or services related to your organization, and put them in a spreadsheet. Next, enter some of the words and phrases […]

GrowthZone is especially proud to share the announcement of the 2023 Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE)’s Chamber of the Year finalists as seven of the 12 named use GrowthZone or ChamberMaster software. The Chamber of the Year award recognizes the leadership role chambers of commerce have in their communities. Those honored with the designation have demonstrated organizational strength and made an impact on key community priorities, such as education, transportation, economic prosperity, and quality of life. “This year’s finalists […]

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, as per the sponsor agreement. Membership staff want an email that poops members for leads or reminds them of the upcoming advertising deadline. Communications staff bug the membership team for compelling human interest stories to no avail. And who is going to remind the CEO that the article […]