Recruiting new members has always been a challenge for
associations. And with time and money tighter than ever for many, it's
arguably never been harder to get those new folks through the door.
Here are a few ideas to help you find those fresh faces:
- Give current members a recruiting toolkit. If
you're like most associations, your current members are your best sales
people. How do you support them? Make sure they have appropriate
tools to help explain why someone should join, including talking points about the benefits of membership. This could be
paper-based pamphlets or member application forms, or could simply be
boiler-plate text that current members can copy-and-paste into emails
or Facebook messages that they send to colleagues.
- Offer one event a year at your 'members-only' rate.
If you usually have one rate for members and another for non-members,
pick one signature event and offer it to anyone at the members price.
This is a great demonstration of the kind of value they will get if
they do decide to join -- which you should be sure to mention during
said event!
- Co-host an event with another association.
Cross-promotion can be a great way to grow membership for both
organizations. Consider the possibility of offering discounts to
members of another organization as further incentive to join.
- Simplify the sign-up process. Creating an online membership application form
and using a web-based payment system can make it a lot easier for
prospective members to get on-board with your organization. At the
same time, make sure you don't paint yourself in a corner by forcing
new members to sign-up online -- some of them may still prefer to sign
a form and write a check. Make sure your systems can accommodate both
online and offline payments.
- Run ads on social media sites. Facebook Ads and LinkedIn DirectAds
both start at around $10 per campaign. And because people enter so much
personal and professional information into these kinds of sites, you
can get VERY specific with who you target. Recruiting for the
Philadelphia Fisheries Workers Association? You can reach fishermen in Philly directly using
LinkedIn's targeting.
What recruiting ideas have worked for YOU? Please share them in the comments.
Originally posted by Jay Moonah