I started my blog in June of this year, and I have really enjoyed sharing my thoughts and ideas with my readers. How many of you are out there, I don't really know, but I appreciate you spending a few minutes reading my thoughts when I post.
As I was sitting here staring directly into the beginning of 2009, I was thinking about why I blog. Normal? Maybe not... Necessary? Absolutely... My reasons for blogging are probably similar to a lot of others who are already doing it, but hopefully this will shed a little light for some who are thinking about starting a blog of their own:
1. Community-building -- A major part of why I blog is because blogging builds community. The association blogosphere is a place where ideas and knowledge are shared, friendships are fostered, and engagement is enabled. I have read so many insightful posts by others that have really helped me in my work, and know that others who are blogging feel the same way. We all want to be a part of a community, and I am no different. The association blogosphere is a community of which I am proud to be a smal part!
2. Providing My Perspective - My perspective is valuable (if I do say so myself...), and my blog is a place where I can provide it easily. It might not be accepted by everyone, and some people may not think I am right, but there are things that my perspective brings to the conversation that others' don't. In addition, the perspective of an aspiring association executive is an important one for those who are in the leadership roles to hear.
3. Getting Out of the Routine - In my day job, I focus on one specific organization, in one industry, with its very specific goals and culture. I find a great deal of enjoyment in being able to blog about issues that are more macro in nature, and that are in some instances things that I am not doing regularly in my day job. That gets me excited, and allows me as an aspiring association leader to really gather my thoughts and opinions on areas of association management that I will need as I move forward.
4. It's FUN - The fact that blogging is fun is a HUGE plus for me. For anyone who likes to write, the opportunity to write what you want, when you want to, is really something that doesn't happen often!
So that's why I blog. Why do you? What do you love about the blogosphere?
December 30, 2008
December 22, 2008
An Ode to the Twelve Days of Christmas
A fun little post to ring in the holidays... Hope you get a kick out of it!
The Twelve Days of Membership (for Association members)
Sung to the tune of The Twelve Days of Christmas
On the first day of Membership, my association gave to me, a certificate that was very lovely…
On the second day of membership, my association gave to me, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the third day of membership, my association gave to me, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the fourth day of membership, my association gave to me, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the fifth day of membership, my association gave to me, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the sixth day of membership, my association gave to me, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the seventh day of membership, my association gave to me, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the eighth day of membership, my association gave to me, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the ninth day of membership, my association gave to me, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the tenth day of membership, my association gave to me, ten social media applications, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the eleventh day of membership, my association gave to me, eleven volunteer committees, ten social media applications, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the twelfth day of membership, my association gave to me, twelve monthly e-newsletters, eleven volunteer committees, ten social media applications, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
The Twelve Days of Membership (for Association members)
Sung to the tune of The Twelve Days of Christmas
On the first day of Membership, my association gave to me, a certificate that was very lovely…
On the second day of membership, my association gave to me, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the third day of membership, my association gave to me, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the fourth day of membership, my association gave to me, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the fifth day of membership, my association gave to me, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the sixth day of membership, my association gave to me, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the seventh day of membership, my association gave to me, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the eighth day of membership, my association gave to me, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the ninth day of membership, my association gave to me, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the tenth day of membership, my association gave to me, ten social media applications, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the eleventh day of membership, my association gave to me, eleven volunteer committees, ten social media applications, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
On the twelfth day of membership, my association gave to me, twelve monthly e-newsletters, eleven volunteer committees, ten social media applications, nine monthly luncheons, eight fundraising solicitations, seven job bank referrals, six professional mentors, five CEUs, four quarterly magazines, three educational webinars, two member discounts, and a certificate that was very lovely…
Giving Members What They Expect...
When you dial 411, what do you expect? I expect to receive information that I have called to ask them about, because that's their purpose, and the reason they exist...
In the past two days, I have called 411 twice (once was Vonage's "Enhanced 411" oooh aaah...), without any luck in getting the information I needed. How do you think this has made me feel? I have been extremely frustrated, especially when I have been able to go online immediately after calling and have found the information both times by searching Google...
I think this experience is instructive of how our members sometimes feel when they call our associations, and don't get the information they need when they are looking for it. They feel frustrated and annoyed, which could hurt our chances at retaining them as members when the time comes for them to renew - hurting the association's bottom line.
1. How many times have you heard about members calling and not getting a response in a timely manner?
2. Or, how many times have members been frustrated about the fact that they couldn't get the information they were looking for when they were looking for it?
How associations handle these types of situations is extremely important, and in this right this second culture, members expect to have their questions answered quickly. If they aren't getting what the expect, they may go elsewhere.
What has been your response as an executive to situations like #s 1 and 2 above? How have you helped your staff to understand the importance of member service and member relations? What are you doing to ensure that your staff is meeting the needs of your association's members and giving them what they expect?
The bottom line to me is that the effectiveness of an association is directly correlated to the satisfaction of members, and the satisfaction of members is directly correlated to the effectiveness of the association's staff in giving members what they expect when they expect it.
Am I wrong?
And oh by the way, I have learned my lesson with calling 411 - it won't be happening again. Have your members come to the same conclusion about calling/rejoining your association?
In the past two days, I have called 411 twice (once was Vonage's "Enhanced 411" oooh aaah...), without any luck in getting the information I needed. How do you think this has made me feel? I have been extremely frustrated, especially when I have been able to go online immediately after calling and have found the information both times by searching Google...
I think this experience is instructive of how our members sometimes feel when they call our associations, and don't get the information they need when they are looking for it. They feel frustrated and annoyed, which could hurt our chances at retaining them as members when the time comes for them to renew - hurting the association's bottom line.
1. How many times have you heard about members calling and not getting a response in a timely manner?
2. Or, how many times have members been frustrated about the fact that they couldn't get the information they were looking for when they were looking for it?
How associations handle these types of situations is extremely important, and in this right this second culture, members expect to have their questions answered quickly. If they aren't getting what the expect, they may go elsewhere.
What has been your response as an executive to situations like #s 1 and 2 above? How have you helped your staff to understand the importance of member service and member relations? What are you doing to ensure that your staff is meeting the needs of your association's members and giving them what they expect?
The bottom line to me is that the effectiveness of an association is directly correlated to the satisfaction of members, and the satisfaction of members is directly correlated to the effectiveness of the association's staff in giving members what they expect when they expect it.
Am I wrong?
And oh by the way, I have learned my lesson with calling 411 - it won't be happening again. Have your members come to the same conclusion about calling/rejoining your association?
December 16, 2008
Associations in a Down Economy: Talking the Talk or Walking the Walk?
So lately, it seems as though the doom and gloom has been everywhere! Ebeneezer Scrooge has multiplied by about a million, and they all seem to have a radio or television show...
However, in what should be no surprise to association professionals and executives, I am here to tell you that I (as well as many of you Association bloggers) believe associations are MORE IMPORTANT in a down economy than people/members may think. The problem as I see it is that we need to be letting our members know it and we need to be backing up this claim!
I posted a few months back now about things we should be doing to prepare for the down economy, and that there are many opportunities at which we should be looking.
As I re-read that post, I thought to myself "is cutting programs and outdated communication vehicles really an opportunity?" The answer is yes in terms of keeping the association viable, but not really in terms of providing tangible benefit to members in difficult times.
So in this post, I guess I wanted to try to come up with a few ways that associations can become MORE IMPORTANT to your members in these difficult times:
1. Make Networking Easy -- Networking is a HUGE benefit of membership in most associations, so how can your group provide ways for your members to find its value in this down economy? Are components offering local get-togethers? If so, promote them! Can you use social media tools like a group on LinkedIn to enhance networking? If you don't have one, start one!
2. Supplement Professional Education Offerings with Personal Development Programming - While your association might be more professional in nature and offer CEUs and other ed opportunities in a professional sense, there is always value in providing personal development programming for your members. Just think - your association offers a personal development program on "resume writing" for people who haven't updated resumes in years. They see the value, and have more loyalty because of it, which talks directly to a recent post by Ben Martin about being ready for when the economy turns around. You have kept a member by helping them when they needed it.
3. Communicate Regularly About What You're Doing to Assist - Members won't know what you can offer unless you are telling them about it. Promote the things you're doing on your web site and through your other regular communication vehicles.
What other ways are your associations stepping up and providing value to your members in this down economy? What am I missing?
What do you think about my not so bold claim above that associations are more beneficial during economic downturns? Are we talking the talk or walking the walk in helping our members through this?
Are there any associations out there doing cool programming that you can share with others?
As Mike Myers used to say on Saturday Night Live, "I'll give you a topic... Associations: talking the talk or walking the walk... Discuss..."
However, in what should be no surprise to association professionals and executives, I am here to tell you that I (as well as many of you Association bloggers) believe associations are MORE IMPORTANT in a down economy than people/members may think. The problem as I see it is that we need to be letting our members know it and we need to be backing up this claim!
I posted a few months back now about things we should be doing to prepare for the down economy, and that there are many opportunities at which we should be looking.
As I re-read that post, I thought to myself "is cutting programs and outdated communication vehicles really an opportunity?" The answer is yes in terms of keeping the association viable, but not really in terms of providing tangible benefit to members in difficult times.
So in this post, I guess I wanted to try to come up with a few ways that associations can become MORE IMPORTANT to your members in these difficult times:
1. Make Networking Easy -- Networking is a HUGE benefit of membership in most associations, so how can your group provide ways for your members to find its value in this down economy? Are components offering local get-togethers? If so, promote them! Can you use social media tools like a group on LinkedIn to enhance networking? If you don't have one, start one!
2. Supplement Professional Education Offerings with Personal Development Programming - While your association might be more professional in nature and offer CEUs and other ed opportunities in a professional sense, there is always value in providing personal development programming for your members. Just think - your association offers a personal development program on "resume writing" for people who haven't updated resumes in years. They see the value, and have more loyalty because of it, which talks directly to a recent post by Ben Martin about being ready for when the economy turns around. You have kept a member by helping them when they needed it.
3. Communicate Regularly About What You're Doing to Assist - Members won't know what you can offer unless you are telling them about it. Promote the things you're doing on your web site and through your other regular communication vehicles.
What other ways are your associations stepping up and providing value to your members in this down economy? What am I missing?
What do you think about my not so bold claim above that associations are more beneficial during economic downturns? Are we talking the talk or walking the walk in helping our members through this?
Are there any associations out there doing cool programming that you can share with others?
As Mike Myers used to say on Saturday Night Live, "I'll give you a topic... Associations: talking the talk or walking the walk... Discuss..."
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