Getting Creative with Non-Dues Revenue

With the direction of the economy and membership numbers starting to take hits, it is important to find new ways to make money for your organization. Keeping your organization financially stable will allow it to continue to thrive and prepare for when members are ready to start rejoining. If you are looking for ways to raise some funds, try some of the following!

1.     Focus on sponsorships. Find new ways that sponsors can get involved in your organization. This may be simply including them in a newsletter or social media post. It could also be something more in-depth like allowing them to have a few minutes to talk to members on a webinar or virtual conference. Sometimes placing these “commercial breaks” in the middle of educational content allows attendees a minute to relax from the information while giving sponsors an opportunity to connect.

2.     Open up shop! Sites like Café Press allow you to integrate personalized merchandise onto your website. This allows members to buy things like coffee mugs, clothing, stationary and more with your organization’s logo on it. Not only does it bring in money from purchases, it also advertises your organization to non-members.

3.     Create advertisement options. Send information to previous sponsors sharing that they now have the opportunity to advertise on the website. Create contracts between different advertisers and make sure not to go over board with the amount of ads you allow on your site at one time. A scrolling banner ad might be the best way to go about this option.

These solutions might help you to get started on non-dues revenue but this idea itself should remain a continued conversation. You, your board, and your members know what would be the most beneficial for your organization and should always be brainstorming on new ideas.

Planning for a Recession

Preparing for a recession should be something associations are thinking about during their strategic planning each year. This is something that, now, is coming into play more than ever. You might be wondering, how can Impact Association Management help our clients to successfully plan for an economic downturn?

Impact AMC can help!

Facilitate strategic planning and create a strategic plan, which considers and accounts for the possibility of an economic downturn. The organization will be much better off if this is done in advance rather than scrambling at the time.

Assess the historical impact recessions have had on membership, conference attendance, grant and partner funding, other key revenue sources and make recommendations based on this data.

o   Should special membership pricing or discounts be in place for renewal?

o   Should dues forgiveness be used for unemployed members?

o   Are renewals automatic?

o   Automate messaging leading up to conferences and renewals – why should they attend the conference or renew their membership? What benefits will they reap or haven’t they used yet?

Confirm their reserve model is prepared for risk.

Adapt content and messaging of member programming to reflect a near-term recession where appropriate.

o   Marketing should still be happening! It just needs to be efficiently targeted.

o   Reinforce the value of the association.

o   Offer more networking and career assistance.

o   What is the business case for attending the conference during an economic downturn?

o   Is their a collaborative forum for members to proactively engage with one another? If not, now might be the time to roll this out. It’s a low cost/low staff time engagement tool for members. This can be done via Association Management Software (Wild Apricot) and LinkedIn or Facebook groups

Using data, identify which programs meet the members’ needs the most and ensure they’re recession-proof and can sustain future economic trends. These programs should reflect the association’s core purpose. Conversely, identify which programs should be cycled out and retired.

o   These might be tough conversations, but they should be happening. Develop a way to assess program value and returns as well as when programs should be cycled out and retired.

Identify how your association can become a source of things your members cannot get anywhere else.

o   What is the association’s niche? Is the board of director’s view of this the same as the association’s members?

o   Hone into this and use it as a differentiator as to why people should join your association versus another one.

This might seem like a scary thing to deal with and something you only prepare for when the time comes. Being prepared, however, is what will help your association to thrive at a time that might seem unlikely.

Dealing with Spooky Scammers

Over the past couple of months, our team at Impact, has noticed several scam emails filing in from various unknown sources.  After doing further research, we noticed this was a trend among many associations and association management companies. These fraudulent emails often came with the request of a money transfer. Keeping money in the correct hands is incredibly important and because of this, we have created a list of tips to help associations keep an eye out for suspicious emails and scams.

• Look at the email address of the sender. If the email is unfamiliar or appears odd, this should be your first red flag.

• Pay close attention to messages during times where money is already being transferred. If your association is dealing with an upcoming event, membership renewals, or other busy times, make sure that nothing fishy passes under the radar. This is a prime time for scammers to target associations.

• Alert other association members and leaders. Scammers can often use a leader’s name or email to send the request. Talking with the person in charge can clarify whether the email is from them and can spread the word of the issue. This can help to further prevent the problem in future cases.

Keep an eye out for scam emails and follow our tips or it just might come back to haunt you!

Evaluating and Increasing Fundraiser Participation

Getting people to participate in fundraiser events can often feel like pulling teeth. Understanding what motivates people to participate, why those who choose not to attend opt out, and what could push people to participate in future events are key components in increasing future participation. Here are a few ways to encourage involvement.

1.       Widening your reach. One primary cause for people not attending fundraising events is simply because they did not know about the event. It is important to look at your current marketing strategy for events and see where the plan could be better. Some solutions to this would be to be more active on social media, in the community, or building partnerships with other companies or associations.

2.       Spreading your mission. Making the cause of the fundraiser known is vital. The cause of the event can be a strong driver in participation. Emphasizing the cause in marketing messages will make people feel that their time and money are worth it. This can be done by showing who or what they money raised will be going to after the fundraiser.

3.       Creating a unique experience. Another important motivator for participation is creating an enjoyable and unique experience. Being innovative engages your audience and makes them more likely to participate. If you are stumped on ideas, we suggest 200+ Fundraising Ideas Proven to Raise More Donations For Your Cause.

4.       Bring a friend. Encouraging people to bring a friend to the event, not only increases participation, but also makes people more likely to go. Having someone to go with and socialize with makes the experience more fun and comfortable. Setting up a Facebook page for the event is a great way for participants to see if anyone else they know is going.

Improving marketing messages and creating a unique experience for participants can lead to a successful fundraising event. These small adjustments can lead to a bring return for your association.