How to Compete Against New Membership Communities for Gen Z’s Attention & Loyalty
The evidence is in: Gen Z are joiners. They may not join associations, but they do join membership communities created by their peers. GenZer Meagan Loyst wrote about the amazing success of these paid membership communities for Gen Z audiences.
Loyst should know. She’s the founder of GenZ VCs, a global community of 24,000 Gen Z venture capitalists (VCs), founders, angel investors, operators, and aspiring VCs.She says, “When we see a lack of community in our chosen field/profession, building community from scratch is a native instinct.”
Wait a minute. Lack of community? Don’t associations host professional communities for every field and profession? It doesn’t matter. Over the next few years Loyst expects:
“Gen Zers to tackle this in a big way… Every profession and function will have a verticalized private member community, with curated on-demand educational resources, online community forums, access to speakers in their field, and unique peer networking opportunities.”
Community, education, networking – that’s what associations offer. But Gen Zers are having trouble seeing it and relating to the association offering as it’s currently being presented.
What Do Gen Z Membership Communities Offer?
With the affordable technology on the market, it’s easy to launch a paid membership community. The common denominator for all these communities is the connections they promise.
Loyst mentioned two expensive membership communities aimed at executives and entrepreneurs, Chief and Hampton. The secret to Chief’s success? “They don’t start with selling you on the amenities… they sell you on the people you’ll have access to and how the membership will help you level up.”
Hampton also promotes connections. “Joining Hampton gives you immediate access to a tribe of founders and entrepreneurs… finding your people is tough. But when you do find them, it’s life changing.”
Everyone, especially Gen Zers, wants to find their people, their tribe, their personal board of advisors who will accompany them on a journey of transformation. That’s priceless.
What else does Gen Z want? Coaches.
Nearly every one of these membership communities offers peer groups with coaching. Members are assigned to a small group that meets online monthly with a facilitator or coach. All these communities also offer live and on-demand education – that’s a given.
Exclusivity is an allure for the high-priced founder and executive communities, but most of them were created for ‘regular’ Gen Z and Millennial professionals.
- Tech Ladies: read the founder’s story about her success
- Bravado for B2B sales
- Demand Curve for marketers
- Academy to Innovate HR
- Taro for software engineers
Even in the association management profession, we’ve seen paid and free membership communities arise, like Professionals for Association Revenue, Product Community, Fridays@4, and Association Chat.
How Can Associations Compete With These New Communities?
Loyst didn’t mention associations in her article except for a comment about the age of the Society for Human Resource Management. I get the impression the Gen Z generation thinks of associations as irrelevant has-beens made for another time. Is that true?
The only way to find out is by talking with non-member Gen Z professionals in your industry. Find out where they’re finding connections, community, and education. What can you do to become their community of choice?
Modernize Your Culture
Perceived culture is everything. No matter what the mission statement says, your reputation matters most. Do you walk your talk? LinkedIn grumblings about Chief’s lack of diversity became headlines this spring.
Many of these new organizations emphasize values. Here’s how the Operations Guild describes itself: “like-minded professionals focused on cooperation and learning, resulting in mutually beneficial relationships devoid of judgement or ego.”
A glance at your website should reveal an obviously innovative and agile organization. Your online experience must be as sophisticated as anyone else’s.
Gen Z is seeking a professional home where they can gather with their community, have their voices heard share their perspectives, and make a difference. You need them. They’re the future.
Satisfy Their Desire to Learn and Grow Together
Just about every workplace research report I’ve skimmed says professional development is huge for younger generations. They know the most important skill is the ability to learn new skills.
Cohort programs are all the rage in the online education world. In these programs, small groups come together for a few months to learn and grow together, holding each other accountable, usually with the guidance of an instructor or coach.
Provide a Community Where They Can Make Friends
Loyst says, “5 out of the 6 [Chief benefits] are all about connections and being part of an exclusive network of like-minded people… not physical products or spaces.”
Gen Z wants to make friends with people who share their professional interests and drive. They’ve dealt with isolation of the pandemic. Many now work remotely. They’re intentionally seeking a community of like-minded acquaintances and friends.
In-person events are important to those who can afford them. Many of these new membership organizations offer smaller retreats instead of big conferences. The focus is on the entire experience – work and play.
Help Them Get Jobs
Private communities host job boards and offer career resources. Some of them have relationships with recruiters and headhunters too.
Bring Them Savings No One Else Can
Traditional affiliate partnerships lost their shine because they usually featured products and services members could get elsewhere. But what if you offer deals on products that young people need to run their businesses or advance their careers?
Loyst talked with 71 founders about what they wanted in a startup stack. She secured “the BEST discounts” on a curated selection of technology from 50+ partners. She described this as “democratizing access to the startup stack for the next generation of founders.”
If Gen Z isn’t interested in joining your association, don’t give up on them. Consider partnering with communities they are joining so you stay in their orbit and get to know them. Accept them as customers, attendees, and learners now – membership might have to wait.
With the right technology in place, you can better engage with younger members and customers. Join us for a demo and see how you can leverage MemberSuite to tailor programs to Gen Z’s needs and preferences.