The weekly list of free educational events and resources for the association community…
It’s time for Marketing General Incorporated’s (MGI) 11th annual Membership Marketing Benchmarking Survey. The resulting report from this survey provides benchmarking data and insight into how more than 1,000 associations recruit, engage and retain members and certificants. I always look forward to reading this report so, if you haven’t already received an email from Tony Rossell at MGI, I encourage your association to participate by following this link.
Because it’s been a while since I’ve worked in an association, I find different ways to keep up on the interests and needs of association professionals. All the “most popular posts of 2018” posts that come out this time of year, like this one from MemberSuite, provide good intel. The #1 post doesn’t surprise me, but I do like seeing the interest in topic #2—bodes well for bottom lines. Yes, I’m a tease, you’ll have to click through to see what everyone was reading last year.
I also like perusing posts on 2019 trends. WBT Systems shares five trends and opportunities they see for association e-learning in 2019. Even though WBT is a learning management system (LMS) provider, not one of the trends and opportunities they highlight is about technology.
Ernie Smith at Associations Now talks about three technology trends that associations should keep their eye on. He has a good record with this kind of thing so give his post a look. I’ve been thinking a lot about #2 given all the disgust with social media platforms and privacy concerns, plus associations have a natural advantage there.
Here’s a surprise, for me, at least: Google Analytics isn’t as authoritative as you might believe. Edward Kay says, in two Association Success posts (part 1 and part 2), you should reconsider relying solely on Google Analytics data because it doesn’t include website visitors using ad blockers and other tools.
Some quick hits before we get to next week’s free webinars:
- Who would’ve thought this would be a thing? A subscription service that delivers a lovingly curated niche trade journal to your door every quarter. (Trade Journal Cooperative)
- Three ways content marketers can provide value to the sales team. (Pam Didner, Content Marketing Institute)
- Three kinds of jobs that will thrive as automation advances. (John Hagel, Harvard Business Review)
- Branded fruit is the new conference swag. Really. (Elizabeth Segran, Fast Company)
Here are the educational events scheduled for next week. If you have any free webinars or events coming up, please send me the link. I’ll be happy to feature it as long as it’s not product-centric.
Mon 1/14 at 2 p.m. – So You Signed Up for Office 365, Now What?
Learn what features come with the different Office 365 licenses, steps to set up Office 365 and create user accounts, how to start accessing your email through Office 365, what training your staff will need on using Office 365 features, and how to get help with migrating to Office 365 from your old system’s services. More info/register.
Host: TechSoup
*All times are Eastern Daylight Time unless otherwise noted.
Tue 1/15 at 2 p.m. – Create the Career You Want (Association Chat)
What does it take to create the career you want? How do you get noticed when it counts the most in your career? What if you want a career change—how do you go about inventing yourself? Join bestselling author Dorie Clark and Association Chat host KiKi L’Italien for a discussion about creating the career you desire. More info/register.
Host: KiKi L’Italien, founder, Amplified Growth
Presenter: Dorie Clark, adjunct professor at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business
Tue 1/15 at 2 p.m. – TechSoup Tour: How to Access Donations, Discounts, and Resources
Learn how your organization can make the most of the donation and discount programs for hardware, software, cloud applications, and services available to eligible organizations. More info/register.
Host: TechSoup
Presenter: LaCheka Phillips, Associate Program Manager, NGOsource
Wed 1/16 at 12 p.m. – New Year, New Ideas: Start a New Conversation About Chapters
Learn how to tackle some common challenges unique to component-based associations with examples from the CRP community. We’ll focus on themes like the role of components in the association ecosystem, harnessing innovation from your chapters, and addressing the volunteer issue. Plus, we’ll give you tips on speaking the language of your C-suite in order to bring impactful change to your association. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: Billhighway
Presenter: Peggy Hoffman, co-founder, Mariner Management
Wed 1/16 at 1 p.m. – Dynamic Video Interactions for Increased Engagement
Learn how a combination of animated video production, digital storytelling, and eLearning interactions can help you create dynamic, engaging training that your learners will want to take. Understand how to leverage the key elements of stories and non-linear assessments to captivate your learners. Learn how to design training that lets you accurately track and identify where your learners are having the most success and where there are opportunities to provide additional support. More info/register.
Host: eLearning Guild
Presenter: Charles Sigmund, Sr. Program Manager, Amazon
Wed 1/16 at 2 p.m. – 10 Incredible Ways You Can Be Hacked Through Email & How to Stop the Bad Guys
A whopping 92% of malware infects your network via email, but email hacking is much more than only phishing or launching malware. Learn ten ways hackers use social engineering to trick your users into revealing sensitive data or enabling malicious code to run; how silent malware launches, remote password hash capture, and how rogue rules work; why rogue documents, establishing fake relationships and getting you to compromise your ethics are so effective; details behind clickjacking and web beacons; and actionable steps on how to defend against them all. More info/register.
Host: KnowBe4
Presenter: Roger A. Grimes, KnowBe4’s Data-Driven Defense Evangelist
Wed 1/16 at 2 p.m. – Webinar Marketing Predictions for 2019
Take a look into the future of webinar marketing and how you can supercharge your webinar programs in the new year. Learn new ways to deliver content, better ways to tell customer stories, turn one webinar into many, and build webinar channels. More info/register.
Host: ON24
Presenter: Mark Bornstein, VP of Content Marketing, ON24
Wed 1/16 at 3 p.m. – Technology Trends Round Table 2019
Hear our executive team discuss the technology trends that grew over 2018 and what they expect in nonprofit technology in 2019. We will touch on IT security at nonprofits, which continues to be an essential part of any tech strategy, up and coming technologies to watch, innovations to embrace, and continuing technology basics that nonprofits can upgrade in 2019. More info/register.
Host: Community IT
Presenters: Community IT President and CEO Johan Hammerstrom, CTO Matt Eshleman, Vice President for Operations Johanny Torrico, and Director of IT Consulting Steve Longenecker
Thu 1/17 at 11:30 a.m. – A+ Strategies for C-Suite Communications (Alexandria VA Brown Bag)
Learn how to craft a cohesive communications strategy, implement a sustained professional development program, enhance your media relations capabilities, sharpen your C-suite’s public speaking skills, develop an advocacy strategy that delivers public policy results, and more. 1 CAE credit. Location: Alexandria VA. More info/register.
Organizer: Talisa Thomas-Hall, ACS ALB, THE ASSOCIATION WHISPERER
Presenter: Ed Barks, Communications Strategy Consultant and Author
Thu 1/17 at 12 p.m. – Create a Telework Program That Works for Your Organization
Learn what to pay attention to when implementing or expanding your organization’s telework policy and procedures, including management buy-in, training, communication, and work schedules; what factors to consider when selecting employees for telecommuting eligibility to ensure they will be successful as remote workers; and how to gauge success using metrics for employee performance and achievement of goals, increased capacity, retention, and other program benefits. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: ASAE
Presenter: Mary Ellen Brennan, MBA, PHR, SPHR
Thu 1/17 at 1 p.m. – Tips and Tricks for Navigating the NCCA Online Portal
Are you new to the accreditation process? Has it been a few years since you last submitted an NCCA accreditation application? Get a walk through the NCCA online application process. Learn how to complete the various steps in the application process. Review the most common technical mistakes when completing an application. Walk away with tips and tricks for navigating the online platform. More info/register.
Host: Institute for Credentialing Excellence
Presenter: Tara Mohammed, Senior Operations and Accreditation Coordinator at the Institute for Credentialing Excellence
Tue 1/22 at 2 p.m. – Eruption Not Disruption: How to Bulletproof Your Association and Attract More Members & Employees (Association Chat)
Special guest Brian Carter will review the trends that have changed industries, why so many organizations have lost traction, and how top performers are growing and winning today. More info/register.
Host: KiKi L’Italien, founder, Amplified Growth
Tue 1/22 at 3 p.m. – Embracing Data and Technology to Increase Member Engagement (online and Washington DC)
Let’s look at association data and tech investments through an entrepreneurial lens and chat about how to realize their full potential, mobilize our data allies, overcome internal resistance to change, and remain agile. Let’s explore how best we can leverage new and inexpensive technologies to boost the human interaction that ultimately defines our success. Arianna Rehak, who organizes virtual conferences and curates content for Association Success, will explain how she uses data to harness and share collective knowledge while continuously focusing on the human element behind the numbers. Emilio Arocho will share how a data-driven approach is changing the culture and shaping product development at the Food and Drug Law Institute. Dave Will, founder of PropFuel, will talk about how entrepreneurs use technology to seize opportunities, take informed risks, get meaningful customer feedback, and drive change for improvement. Location: online and Washington DC. More info/register.
Host: Associations Catalyzing Entrepreneurship
Wed 1/23 at 1 p.m. – Ultimate Member Engagement: The Power of Data-Driven Decision Making
Data is useless unless it tells a story and enhances your ability to drive desired results. Learn how to leverage visualizations and analytics to better understand your data, mine the right data to improve your member’s experience, and determine a successful ROI on your collection and analysis of member data. More info/register.
Host: Impexium
Wed 1/23 at 2 p.m. – Accountability and Difficult Conversations (Washington DC)
It can be challenging to figure out how to approach a difficult conversation and so we avoid having them. Avoiding difficult conversations only makes them worse. Executive coach Carol Vernon will share her framework for having difficult conversations with colleagues or employees. All women in the association technology community are welcome. As always, the meetup will be followed by happy hour. Location: Washington DC. More info/register.
Host: Association Women in Technology Champions
Presenter: Carol Vernon, executive coach, founder, Communication Matters
Wed 1/23 at 6 p.m. – ASAE YP: Drinks & Discover: Virtual Happy Hour
The ASAE Fellows program bestows an honorary recognition on less than 1 percent of the ASAE membership. Join a group of invited ASAE Fellows as they answer questions specific to Young Professionals, including career advancement issues, developing leadership skills and much more. More info/register.
Host: ASAE Young Professionals
Presenters:
- Hannes Combest, FASAE, CAE, Chief Executive Officer, National Auctioneers Association
- Matthew D’Uva, FASAE, CAE, Chief Executive Officer, International Association for the Study of Pain
- Tonya Muse, FASAE, CAE, Executive Director of the Council of Manufacturing Associations at the National Association of Manufacturers
- Antoinette Samuel, FASAE, CAE, Deputy Executive Director, National League of Cities
Thu 1/24 at 1 p.m. – Unlocking the Member Voice: An All New Member Benefit and Revenue Generator
We are not strangers to reviews. We depend on them for nearly every purchase in our personal lives. But what about in our member’s business lives? You can help your members make smarter buying decisions, give them a place to voice opinions on products and services they use at work all while creating a new unexpected source of non-dues revenue for your organization. Learn what you need to do to get started. More info/register.
Host: The Matrix Group
Presenters: Matrix Group CEO Joanna Pineda and 100Reviews Co-Founder Teri Carden
Thu 1/24 at 1 p.m. – LMS Selection: Mastering the Process, Avoiding the Pitfalls
Hear about a time-tested process for selecting a learning management system and the pitfalls to avoid. Gain a clear understanding of how to lead your organization in choosing the right learning technology. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Hosts: Tagoras and Web Courseworks
Presenters: Celisa Steele and Jeff Cobb, co-founders of Tagoras
That’s it for now. If you can’t attend a live webinar, go ahead and register if the topic interests you. Most webinar hosts send registrants a link to the recording.
Association Brain Food Weekly is published Friday mornings. If your organization offers free professional development for the association community, please send me the link via email or Twitter.
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