Guest Post: Lisa Boylan, Associations Now
Associations responded remarkably well to an onslaught of challenges in 2020. A membership expert offers suggestions for navigating the start of a new year with your members in mind.
I don’t know about you, but in times of uncertainty I like to talk to experts, so I reached out to Scott Oser, president of Scott Oser Associates, to find out his thoughts about membership for the upcoming year. Nothing like the hot seat.
“The number one thing associations need to do is understand the state of their membership and their industry,” Oser said.
As gratifying as it was to wave goodbye to 2020, changing the date on a calendar unfortunately does not automatically erase all the difficulties of the past year. People are still being affected by the pandemic, racial injustice, and political and financial instability, to name a few of the ongoing challenges we face.
Understanding the state of the industry and where members are can mean many different things, Oser said. Some members might be strapped for money, while others might need their association now more than ever for career resources. Or you might need to communicate with members differently because they are bombarded with information.
Tweaking and customizing messages is just as important now as it was at the beginning of the pandemic, when every association was putting COVID-19 resources at the forefront, he said. Staying on top of what your industry wants and needs will help you fine-tune messaging and offerings to better communicate with and serve members.
“We can’t go back to doing business as usual because we are definitely not in business as usual,” he said.
