Gain More NDR the Easy Way
Earning more non-dues revenue can feel like an uphill battle. To do so, your association needs to identify the best mix of opportunities. Take your programming to the next level by introducing new ways to earn non-dues revenue.
It is easy to get wrapped up in the same methods that are used year after year. Traditional revenue generators are not always what they used to be. However, don’t get caught in the line of thinking that it will take a long time or that it’s too hard to get additional revenue streams flowing — you don’t have to completely reinvent the wheel.
First, there are a few very important questions that you’ll need to consider when looking for more non-dues revenue:
- What current member engagement and non-dues revenue programs does your association currently have?
- How do these programs align with your overall strategic plan?
- What are the skill sets that can help you grow your non-dues revenue?
By taking a step back, you are able to look at your association as a full picture and identify what pieces are missing. Here are four areas to explore for additional revenue streams:
Find More Money for Your Association in Your Career Center
Enhance your career center by leveraging innovative technology solutions that provide the best user experience and drive deeper non-dues revenue. Whether it’s employers posting jobs, sponsorships, integrations or job boards, there are plenty of opportunities to connect recruiting advertisers to high quality talent. The employment market can intersect with all of the offerings that associations offer.
Retargeting visitors to your career center can also have an impact on non-dues revenue growth because it follows your job-seekers wherever they go on the internet. Building a strategic plan to specifically grow traffic to your career center can lend a hand in selling your job postings and advertising inventory since you can use traffic data as proof that you have a very dialed-in, qualified audience.
And, although not a “new” idea in the world of non-dues revenue, it is worthwhile to consider hiring a very specific team or set of partners to help sell your job postings to maximize your non-dues revenue generation. Specialists in this area can help capitalize the benefit by introducing job posting packages, offering discounts for larger buys, and help create multi-component buys across your career center such as job posting packages and advertising on the site.
Find More Money for Your Association by Leveraging Technology
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming ubiquitous in marketing because it’s a fast and easy way to gather data on your members, website visitors, social media fans and more. You can leverage AI to not only gather this data but to also segment it so that you can effectively target your audience through eNewsletters. AI enhances your click-through rates, and open rates to your website and career center because it gives you better insight into these people and thereby helps you tailor your messaging so it resonates and is more appealing. Higher performance for your newsletter will help increase interest in your newsletter advertising, helping to generate more non-dues revenue. Having tangible data to share with your advertisers will prove the value of placing their advertisement in your AI eNewsletter. Position your association as the ultimate authority in each space with highly targeted news content that follows a customized plan.
Find More Money for Your Association in Print and Digital from Sponsors
There are great non-dues revenue opportunities in both your print and digital ecosystem just waiting to be picked! Sponsored content is a fantastic way to draw revenue in. The key is to make sure that the company that is advertising in your publication creates content that is informative or helpful to your readership. The right type of content plays a huge role in driving member engagement, which, in turn, generates ad revenue. Be sure to personalize content to your audience and you’ll add value to the recipients and to the sponsor of the content.
Additionally, you can add sponsors to your email blasts, website and other areas of your online presence. eNewsletters offer the unique opportunity to share specific insights and details to your sponsors and advertisers. The ability to share metrics like opens, reach, and clicks, brings additional value to your sponsors to understand the return on their investment in your association.
Find More Money for Your Association at Events
Events are often the main source of non-dues revenue for an association. Sponsorships, exhibitors, and registration fees are the most common avenues when it comes to events. However, we encourage you to look outside of the show floor for opportunities to add additional revenue. Leverage the show dailies, social media takeovers, and event app push notifications to boost the presence of your advertisers and sponsors. Remember, the more trackable metrics you can offer, the more value your financial supporters will see.
An important consideration when it comes to developing a non-dues revenue strategy is scale. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution because no two associations are the same. That means introspection is key. Think about what your association is good at and who would want to tap into your audience. Then, think outside the box.
