For any member-based organisation or association, a well-defined membership management strategy is the foundation of growth, engagement, and long-term sustainability. It’s more than just tracking who’s in and who’s out; it’s about creating a seamless, valuable experience that fosters loyalty and drives your mission forward. So, how do you go about formulating such a critical strategy?
What are important considerations for building a membership management strategy?
1. Define Your Member Value Proposition
Before you even think about systems or processes, clearly articulate why someone should join your organisation. What unique benefits do you offer? Is it professional development, networking opportunities, exclusive content, advocacy, or a sense of community? A strong, clear value proposition is the magnet that attracts new members and keeps existing ones engaged. Regularly revisit and refine this proposition to ensure it remains relevant and compelling to your target audience.
2. Map the Member Journey
Think about every touchpoint a member has with your organisation or association, from initial interest to long-term engagement and even lapsing. This “member journey” typically includes:
- Acquisition & Onboarding
How do prospects discover you? How easy is it to apply and join? What’s their first impression as a new member? - Engagement & Management
How do you communicate with members? What opportunities do you provide for participation (events, committees, resources)? How do you support their needs and ensure they can easily access their any entitlements and exclusive content? - Renewal & Retention
What’s your strategy for encouraging renewals? How do you re-engage members who might be considering leaving? - Lapse & Re-engagement
What happens when a member doesn’t renew? Is there a process to win them back or understand why they left?
Mapping this journey helps identify pain points, opportunities for improvement, and crucial moments where you can enhance the member experience. Check out our free to download membership managent strategy PowerPoint template to help you with this part of the process.
3. Embrace Centralised Data and Automation
One of the most significant advancements in modern membership management is the power of centralised data. Moving away from scattered spreadsheets and multiple platforms, to a single unified membership management solution in the Microsoft Cloud, like our Klevr Members solution, offers immense benefits:
- Single Source of Truth: All member contact information, engagement, interactions, and preferences are in one place, providing a holistic view of each member.
- Automation Opportunities: Automate repetitive tasks like welcome emails, feedback surveys, newsletters, automated renewals, invoice generation, and event registrations. This frees up staff time for more strategic, high-value activities. Better leverage streamlined event and marketing tools within a centralised system to manage outreach and engagement more effectively.
- Enhanced Reporting & Analytics: With centralised data, you can easily generate insightful reports on membership growth, membership demographics and trends, retention rates, engagement levels, and financial performance, enabling data-driven decision-making.
4. Prioritise Security, Compliance, and Risk Management Protecting member data is paramount.
Your membership management strategy should address:
- Data Security: How is member data protected from unauthorised access or breaches? Leveraging secure cloud platforms built on robust security models (like Microsoft Cloud’s Dataverse) is crucial.
- Privacy Compliance: Ensure your processes align with relevant data privacy regulations (e.g., Australian Privacy Principles, New Zealand Privacy Act). This includes clear consent management, data retention policies, and transparent communication about data usage.
- Risk Mitigation: Identify potential risks in your membership processes (e.g., manual errors, data inconsistencies) and implement safeguards, often through automation, approvals rules and strong access controls.
5. Invest in the right technology to manage your membership
The technology you choose to manage your membership is not just a tool; it’s an enabler of your strategy. While a standard Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system might seem like a straightforward choice, it often falls short for the multifaceted needs of member-based organisations. General CRMs are typically designed for sales pipelines and customer service, lacking the specialised functionalities essential for managing a member’s entire lifecycle. They may struggle with tiered membership entitlements, complex renewal rules, event management beyond basic registrations, and the nuanced communication required for member engagement and retention.
Therefore, look for a comprehensive Membership Management System (MMS) or Association Management System (AMS) that can support your entire member journey and handle these specific requirements. A member management solution built on a platform like Microsoft Dynamics 365, such as Klevr Members, offers scalability, robust features, and seamless integration with familiar Office 365 apps like Outlook, Word, and Excel, alongside other vital business tools like SharePoint and Power BI. This integration allows your team to work within an ecosystem they already know, reducing the learning curve and improving overall efficiency.
Crucially, such dedicated solutions provide critical functionalities including the ability to manage tiered membership levels and their associated entitlements, alongside features like a self-service member portal with PCI-compliant payments, empowering your members while ensuring secure transactions. This portal can also be fully branded to suit your association or organisation, making it instantly recognisable and familiar to your members, enhancing their overall experience and fostering a stronger sense of community.
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Start your journey in streamlining your membership management
Free membership management PowerPoint template
We’ve created a free PowerPoint template that visually breaks down a modern membership management workflow, highlighting key stages and opportunities for automation. It’s a fantastic starting point for presenting your Membership Management strategy to your key stakeholders! Fill out the form below to access your free template.