August, 2014

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Software News August 2014: Using Wild Apricot’s API

Wild Apricot

'The August Software News is all about Wild Apricot''s API: what it is, how it can benefit our customers and examples of API applications for associations, clubs and non-profits.

Software 226
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How to Avoid PCSD: Post Conference Stress Disorder

YourMembership

I just returned from the 2014 ASAE conference in Nashville, TN and I was thinking about how rewarding going to conferences can be. So many interesting people to meet. So much valuable information to absorb. So many new trends, cutting edge strategies and best practices. Unfortunately, all too often we return to our offices full of excitement and optimism with a sense of changing the world for our co-workers and our members, and we are greeted with indifference.

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Five Tips for Success with Ad Hoc Volunteers

Spark Consulting

'Thanks to ASAE’s 2008 Decision to Volunteer study, we know that our members are eager to volunteer. But thanks to generational trends and research , we know that our volunteers are looking for different volunteer experiences, more of the ad hoc or micro-volunteering type. When you’re used to working mostly with standing committees, though, it can be tough to figure out how to create good ad hoc volunteer work.

Tips 292
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Do Good Leaders Know When to Step Aside?

Association Leaders

'We explore a lot about leadership in this blog. Most of the discussions revolve around `characteristics of great leaders’, or `values of great leaders’, even `behaviors’ of great leaders. We haven’t talked yet about when a great leader decides to step down from his leadership role. Frankly, I haven’t thought about it much.

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Ultimate Guide to Monetizing Association Member Education

Unlock More Profit and Smarter Packaging for Member Learning Every decision that goes into your learning monetization strategy matters for your association’s bottom line. Our research has shown a clear correlation between high program maturity (and ROI!) and choosing the right monetization strategy. This eBook contains clear, actionable ways to approach packaging and pricing models that will help your association grow revenue, improve profitability, and drive expansion into new markets.

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Does Your Organization Pass the Toothbrush Test?

Reid All About it

'Before Google makes an acquisition, the target company must first pass co-founder Larry Page’s toothbrush test: Is the company’s product or service used regularly to make people’s lives better? How does your organization live up to that test? Do your clients or members depend on something you provide to do their jobs? Does that product/service improve their professional or personal lives?

More Trending

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Ice Bucket Lightning, Happy Meetings and More

Wild Apricot

'Here''s a link round-up offering insight into the Ice Bucket Challenge; how to have happier meetings; letting your "givers grow"; learning lessons from failure; and hosting successful roundtables.

How To 221
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Music City, Our Thought Leadership Team, and a Memorable 2014

YourMembership

One of the great things about attending the ASAE Annual Conference is that for a few days you get the opportunity to be totally immersed in all things associations, and this year was no exception. From the trade show to the education tracks, to the networking opportunities (rain or shine!) it lived up to its billing as the “not to be missed” event of the year.

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What I’m Reading

Spark Consulting

'Quick list – there’s been lots of good stuff lately, but I’m sharing most of it via my Twitter feed these days. Great post from John Haydon about the human factors that influence email open rates (hint: it should be all about THEM, not all about YOU). I’m usually not a fan of “10 tips to be more productive” articles, mostly because those lists tend to be comprised of SERIOUSLY OBVIOUS stuff, but this one isn’t and it’s quite good.

Products 228
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Travel Tips for Leaders

Association Leaders

'Leaders tend to travel frequently – I know I do. If you are a road warrior, you probably have developed a routine of things you do to make your travel more convenient and as pleasurable as possible. Here’s an article I recently came across about the rituals of a road warrior. While I don’t think I’ll ever bring my own candles and light them in my hotel room, I do see a few good ideas: keeping an extra key in my briefcase, removing the bedspread and taking a key with yo

Tips 163
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2024 Association Survey Results Report

2024 Association Survey Results Report For the 10th year, association professionals across the U.S. and Canada provided a look at the inner workings of their organizations when they replied to GrowthZone’s annual survey. Read the 2024 survey results report to see how your association compares: Top Challenges Retention Rates Non-Renewal Reasons Automatic Renewals Reinstatement Strategies Member Engagement Changes & Strategies Why Members Join Non-Dues Revenue Sources Dues Increases, and more

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Meet You in Nashville: Where to Eat During #ASAE14, Part 3

Reid All About it

'It’s time for#ASAE14! A bunch of my friends are already there but Im not arriving until late Saturday afternoon. Heres the last in my series of post about Nashville dining. I covered downtown restaurants in Part 1 and restaurants in Germantown, Midtown and Music Row as well as Nashvilles hot chicken restaurants in Part 2. If you decide to play hooky on Sunday morning and go out for brunch, the Nashville Guru and Visit Music City each have a list of their picks..

Nashville 174
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5 quick member recruitment wins

Optimist Consulting

'As we approach September, midway through the financial year for lots of membership organisations, I am sure your thoughts are turning to reviewing income targets. So here are five quick membership recruitment wins: 1. Chase up lapsed memberships. An obvious point, but lapsed memberships can simply be because members have forgotten to renew. In my experience just contacting these people and highlighting that they are no longer a member can be enough to prompt some to re-join.

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Everything You Need to Know To Recruit Younger Members

Wild Apricot

'Are you having trouble recruiting and engaging Gen Y or Millennials? Here''s a look at our compendium of 10 resources – our Ultimate Guide to Connecting With & Recruiting Younger Members.

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Actually, It Is Personal: Engaging Your Members With an Old School Approach

YourMembership

Whenever I hear that phrase, I feel my blood pressure start to rise! Of course it’s personal – it always has been. The whole notion that business isn’t personal simply provides justification for treating people poorly in the workplace and within organizations. It works to diminish human interaction and the results are almost always counter-productive.

Revenue 150
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The Retention Ripple Effect: Nonprofit Staff and Donor Dynamics

Speaker: Andrew Olsen, CFRE - EVP, Fundraising Solutions at DickersonBakker | Kat Landa, CFRE, CSD - SVP, Talent Solutions at DickersonBakker

Across the nonprofit sector, organizations invest heavily in donor retention efforts, yet the struggle of cultivating lasting relationships remains. While attracting new donors is crucial, the lack of repeat donors poses significant financial risks. Through a comprehensive analysis of industry data, experts argue that there is a direct correlation between donor burnout, donor retention, and the talent retention crisis.

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Membership Marketing on a Shoestring Budget, NAHB-Style

Spark Consulting

'I had the opportunity to present Membership Marketing on a Shoestring Budget for the National Association of Home Builders’ Association Leadership Institute earlier this week. As usual, when I deliver this session, I solicit great inexpensive marketing ideas from the participants as well. Here’s what the chapter leader smarties at NAHB came up with: Barter!

Marketing 262
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Thank You

Association Leaders

'I believe that a team reflects its leader. By that I mean if a leader is compassionate, his team will be compassionate. If a leader is grateful, his team will be grateful. If a leader is a hard worker, his team will work hard. Identifying and practicing the traits you want your team to possess is an important practice for successful leaders. I read an interesting article today that addresses this.

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Meet You in Nashville: Recharge with Art at #ASAE14

Reid All About it

'When I went to Nashville in May for the digitalNow conference, I expected to be wowed by Nashville’s music scene, but I was blown away by the art that surrounded me everywhere I went. I wasn’t expecting that. I can think of no better way to recharge your brain than to spend some time enjoying art. Any kind of art will do but all you have to do to feast your eyes on some visual art is to stroll through the halls of the Music City Center or cross the street and wander through the Omni.

Nashville 166
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Guest blog: 5 essentials for a great telephone renewals campaign

Optimist Consulting

'I am delighted to include this blog by Chord UK Ltd; a specialist telemarketing agency that has helped a number of membership organisations engage with their members over the phone. Why use the telephone? As the popularity of content-based digital and inbound membership marketing explodes, is there still a place for the humble telephone for member renewals?

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SME Relationships: Proven Solutions for Seamless Collaboration and Success

Speaker: Tim Buteyn, President of ThinkingKap Learning Solutions

💢 Do you find yourself stuck in never-ending review cycles? Are you wondering if your Subject Matter Expert actually got that last review request? Are you having trouble trying to decipher impractical or conflicting feedback? 💢 If any of these scenarios sounds familiar, you may benefit from a crash course on managing SME relationships!

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Associations Working Together, Board Steering and Rowing & More

Wild Apricot

'This week''s Link Love Friday round-up offers insight and ideas on: micro content; associations working together; boards steering and rowing work; event secret shoppers and more.

Content 218
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New Member Engagement – Looking For Value Beyond the Welcome Kit

YourMembership

I came across an article recently that was making the case for the undeniable value of the age old new member packet for today’s association. It mentioned how new members are most always engaged members, and that the trusty packet can help those members stay engaged beyond the first exciting months of membership. Interesting thought, but I don’t think a new member packet on its own comes close to getting the job done.

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Virtual Lunch -- Think like the Experts: Experienced Tips for a Hassle Free AMS Selection

KiKi L'Italien's Acronym Soup

'Does the thought of selecting a new Association Management System (AMS) give you an instant headache? If you answered yes, attend the ASAE Membership Section Council’s webinar "Think like the Experts: Experienced Tips for a Hassle Free AMS Selection” on Thursday, September 18 th from 12:00 – 1:00pm ET. [link] During this webinar, you will gain insights on navigating the AMS selection process and hear from three experienced association professionals on making this process as painless as possible

Tips 100
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Don't Post Plaques on the Wall Declaring the Values

Eric Lanke

'image source This post is part of a series in which I''m analyzing the efforts of my organization to define and embrace core values through the six rules for doing so defined by Francois Nader, CEO of NPS Pharmaceuticals. For the series introduction, go here. For my comments on the first rule, go here. + + + Here''s Nader second rule, along with what he says about it in his HBR blog post : Don’t post plaques on the wall declaring the values.

Examples 133
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5 Habits of Growth-Oriented Associations

We’ve identified the five defining characteristics of future-focused associations. Adopting these traits allows your organization to chart a course for long-term growth and success. Find out: Why some organizations are more adept at navigating and overcoming challenges facing all associations. The success formula for thriving associations, including a behind-the-scenes peek at some flourishing organizations.

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Meet You in Nashville: Celebrating Craft Beer at #ASAE14

Reid All About it

'I always have high hopes of getting to a lot of breweries when I’m at a conference, but it rarely happens. If you have more free time than I do, I hope you can hoist one for me. Or just grab me and make me come with you! Downtown breweries. Czanns (no website, Facebook , Twitter ). Pronounced “Zahnz”, they specialize in “easy to drink beers that don’t try to blow your head off with hops.

Nashville 185
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Fundraising using your members

Optimist Consulting

'I recently ran a campaign for a membership organisation client of mine that encouraged members to sign up to its charitable fund. A number of new donors have come forward, which my client is very pleased about. I have often thought that there is scope for membership organisations to raise funds from its own members. Doing good. The topic of philanthropy was covered at MemCom earlier in the year.

Project 126
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15 Ideas for Non-dues Revenue Streams

Wild Apricot

'Is your organization looking for non-dues revenue streams? Here are some highlights from our Small Membership Survey Report that might offer some ideas.

Revenue 250
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Take advantage of the benefits gap

Aaron Wolowiec

'A friend of mine was lamenting the other day that soon she’ll have fewer health care benefits. Looking to cut costs, her employer switched health care plans and decided to eliminate some “frills.” But the kicker: She’ll be paying more. Unfortunately, as businesses continue to recover from the recent economic downturn, and now with the introduction of the Affordable Care Act, this scenario will probably become more common.

Discount 142
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How to Design a Seamless & Personalized Digital Donor Journey

Speaker: Tim Sarrantonio

The average nonprofit uses five or more different software platforms to create their donor’s journey, making the experience clunky and disjointed. If you want to design a magical online giving experience for donors, making their journey as seamless as possible is key. In this webinar with expert Tim Sarrantonio, you’ll learn the fundamental steps to create an immersive and personalized online giving experience for your donors.