Association Magazine
Membership

Tuesday Buzz: How Your Magazine Reinforces Membership

An association magazine gives you the ability to highlight and double down on your business goals—particularly membership issues. Also: The thought process behind your next blog post.

Your association’s publications represent a lot of things—especially a way to constantly engage your member base and keep them informed about what your association is doing.

How can you maximize that capability? There are a few factors at play, according to Naylor Association Solutions’ Heather Williams, including topics and time frame. But it’s also important to consider the benefit of the publication as a business tool.

“If you don’t align business objectives with your association magazine’s content strategy, you risk leaving potential influence and membership value on the table, and most associations can’t afford to take this route,” Williams says in an article on Association Adviser. “By creating content that is goal-focused, you’re helping your organization get to where it needs to be by utilizing current tools and resources. Bottom line: a strong member magazine is all about alignment.”

Williams notes that the content, the coverage areas, and the ads work together in a single piece, and when done correctly, they can help drive the business goals of both the association and the membership. But, in the end, your content has to be a worthwhile read that encourages people to dig in. And that requires strong strategic planning.

“The more you pour into it and the more strategic you are, the more your magazine will give back to you and, most importantly, to your members,” she adds.

Strategy of the Day

Speaking of content strategies, when you’re throwing up a blog post about a given topic, it’s important to keep in mind the approach that might help boost your engagement down the road. SocialFish contributor Megan Hicks has some good tips to consider as part of your decision-making process when deciding what to post next.

Part of the strategy might involve looking at your stats.

“If you’ve had a blog for some time, your blog stats can give you valuable insight,” Hicks writes. “Pay attention to them. If your listicle from six months ago got more views than any other posts, think about publishing another one. But, don’t take that at face value; take a look at where the views came from.”

Other Links of Note

Want to upgrade your laptop? Make sure you time the purchase well so you balance price with cutting-edge technology. This guide from Laptop magazine should help you in your decision-making process.

Trello user? If so, you might enjoy the app CardForm, which allows you to turn a Trello board into a full-fledged website. Clever, huh?

Need to boost your outreach game? This e-book from HeadReach could be just the thing to improve your marketing in a tangible way.

(m0851/StockSnap)

Ernie Smith

By Ernie Smith

Ernie Smith is a former senior editor for Associations Now. MORE

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