Member retention should be one of the key areas you and your association are focused on right now. Whether your members renew at the end of the year (i.e. now) or on an anniversary date, you must have a solid strategy—and it should be more deliberate and intentional than ever before.
Why?
Consistently, as I’ve asked CEOs throughout this year if they are more worried about this year or next from a financial standpoint, the majority have told me 2021. They may have gotten their meeting in before the pandemic began. They may have dipped into reserves. They may have even gained new members as practitioners looked to the association for COVID guidance. This helped the 2020 financial position.
But 2021 is uncertain. We’re not sure when vaccines will arrive. We’re not sure if we’ll be able to return to in-person events—and when we do, if members will be comfortable traveling. Hybrid meetings will require financial investments we may not be prepared to make. In the short term, Zoom fatigue will challenge meeting participation and attendance. Lower retention rates, if they happen, will further challenge association finances.
We know it takes more effort to recruit new members than it does to retain a current one—or re-engage a lapsed one. And we know that strong retention rates provide needed financial resources. That’s why you need a detailed strategy for member renewal. And it’s not just the membership department’s job right now—it should be everyone’s. Do whatever it takes. Carefully monitor non-renewals and ask staff to help by sending personal emails and/or handwritten notes. Or, do as one of the associations I belong to did: send an email before my membership lapsed offering to hop on a Zoom call with me to make sure I’m getting the most from my membership. (Thanks, Kyle and the National Speakers Association for reaching out!)
Membership retention is always important. It’s even more so in the midst of a worldwide pandemic that currently has no end in sight. Membership is one of your strongest assets. Protect it at all costs. Without it, your sustainability is at risk.
Remember, we will prevail. But prevailing takes work. Now is not the time to rest on your laurels; it’s time to get all hands on deck for member retention!