Published by Melissa Madigan, Marketing Coordinator, ACGI
A recent Associations Now article by Joe Rominiecki, “Save People, Not Associations,” sent me flashing back to October 2009, when I was a student journalist covering the Online News Association Annual Conference (ONA09) in San Francisco. But first, a little about the article…
Rominiecki gave a recap of his experience attending ONA13, and specifically highlighted an “unconference” session titled, “Save People, Not Journalism.” The session took a look at news consumption habits of your every-day person and solutions for people who don’t have time to read the news. This got Rominiecki thinking about associations and membership.
“We should first aim to discover how our associations can solve the problems of the people in our respective industries, rather than trying to figure out how to get those people to join, renew, or engage.”-Joe Rominiecki, senior editor, Associations Now
After reading the article, I did some digging to see what I’d reported on at ONA09, and discovered a short Soundslides presentation I’d created with another student journalist on – guess what – news consumption habits!
Here is the gist of how local San Franciscans were getting their news four years ago:
Take-away from my reflections: Consumer habits have generally stayed the same, but with an increase in where you can get your news (social media, private online communities, events, mobile apps, etc.). Likewise, members of your association are exploring various platforms to get content that is current, relevant and offers them solutions.
What approach and platforms are working (or not working) for your association? Are you focused on web-based platforms (online communities, e-communications, social networks), print-based (newsletters, press releases, magazines), in-person approaches (small-scale, specialized meetings and events)? Or maybe a combination of all three? Leave us a comment below with your response!
If you haven’t checked out our past webinars and blog, we’ve presented a few options that provide insightful tips and best practices for helping your association communicate and engage with your members. Here are a few:
Compelling Content Marketing of Associations: Grow Membership and More, webinar with Chip Griffin, Franeo Managing Partner and CEO
What’s Your Association’s Community Platform of Choice?, shared on our blog.
Seeking Social ROI –Making Investments in Social Technologies Pay for Your Association, webinar with Chip Griffin, Franeo Managing Partner and CEO.
7 Tips: What the Supermoon Tells Me About Social Marketing, shared on our blog
Photo Sources: Brian Talbot/flickr, Pete Ashton/flickr
