Published by: Arj Devadas, VP of Sales & Marketing, ACGI Software
We’re in the thick of summer baseball season. For me and many other baseball fans, keeping track of team and player stats is part of what makes the game so enjoyable. In fact, the entire realm of fantasy sports owes its very being to “rotisserie” baseball, popularized in the 1980s (if you’re a fan, check out this short documentary from ESPN on the subject).
And, fantasy sports are just another manifestation of our culture’s interest in and predilection for keeping score.
Across industries, there is a growing reliance on data-driven decision making, as all types of organizations look for ways of maximizing financial, human and operational resources. People want to know their investments are providing real value – this includes spending on trade association programs, products and dues.
Ah yes, dues…For trade associations serving institutional or corporate members, the connection between dues paid and benefits received can be quite foggy. The problem stems from the relationship between the member and all of the individuals – often the member’s employees – who partake in association benefits. Having visibility into all of the related-party interactions and connecting them with the member is crucial for efficiently managing and accurately reporting on the relationship.
Trade Associations are often challenged to figure out what’s going on with their members’ consumption of benefits, because most association management systems (AMSs) are designed for managing relationships between an individual member (or customer) and the association.
Organizations that do not have an efficient, effective mechanism for capturing and analyzing all of the interactions associated with an institutional member’s account face a number of operational disadvantages which can negatively impact retention, revenues and overall member satisfaction.
Some trade associations are taking a proactive approach to this challenge. They’re creating member “report cards” that provide members with detailed insights into their (all related parties’) consumption of benefits. These cover a range of activities from participation in events, training and certification programs to board elections.
What’s it all mean?
The report or score card approach serves two related purposes.On one hand it supports the association’s internal retention and development efforts. For example, by identifying member organizations under-utilizing association benefits, the score card can help the association membership pros prioritize retention efforts. And, for those members that are maximizing benefits, the score card provides an indicator of members that may be poised for renewing at a higher level of membership.
Score cards can also be used internally for making decisions about program development. Because they provide strong indicators of member participation, score card data can be analyzed in conjunction with cost and revenue data to assess the merits of various programs.
Of course, score cards are also valuable for member-facing reporting. In addition to helping the member justify spending on association dues, the score card provides insight into those employees and other individuals who are, or should be, taking advantage of the association’s benefits. In this way, the score card helps reinforce the actual and untapped potential value of the association, which encourages ongoing membership and strengthens retention efforts.
To shed more light on how trade associations can overcome the challenge of aggregating and reporting on member data, ACGI will host a webinar titled, “What Every Trade Association Needs to Know About Proving Member Value,” at 10AM and 2PM on August 13.
» Click here to register or get more information »
Photo Credit: Zimbio.com
