Professional Associations: Re-positioning to meet Members Needs
Just as companies are struggling to grow their customer base, professional Associations are trying to grow theirs (by attracting and retaining members).
The battle for membership is becoming increasingly fierce for Associations and their associated offerings as companies are tightening budgets and demanding increased ROI from all aspects of marketing spending. As such, many Associations are re-positioning their offering to more directly impact their members’ bottom line (through re-branding the Association profession with the end goal of increasing demand for members’ services).
In a recent survey, the four main draws for members of Association membership were identified as: (1) Professional Development, (2) Access to Information/Knowledge, (3) Networking, and (4) Advocacy. But Associations are asking themselves, are these more traditional benefits/offerings sufficient to grow membership? Members must feel that their immediate needs are being met (advocacy, networking, industry news, etc.); however, they must also believe that their Association has the capacity to help their bottom line in the long-term. As a result, we have found that Associations are expanding their offering to include building their Associations’ profession brand. Associations are assuming a support role, ensuring that their members have the resources (information/knowledge, marketing materials, and training) to deliver the new profession brand.
For example, the Appraisal Institute of Canada recently re-branded the ‘appraiser profession’ with the goal of enhancing public perception – thus giving members the opportunity to expand their service offering should the opportunity arise in the long-term. They re-branded the profession from ‘the foremost authority at estimating market value of Canadian real estate’ to ‘accredited members who are qualified to deliver analytical advice and professional opinions across a wide spectrum of services’. Another example is the demand-generating initiative recently launched for the Certified General Accountants profession brand.
Does anyone have another recent example of a really good professional Association branding initiative?
