27 Tips for Membership Organisations using Digital Marketing

Membership organisations face unique challenges and hurdles in their quest for success and profitability. Many of the rules that apply to conventional businesses do not apply to membership organisations due to the unique structure of the business-customer relationship.

As such, many membership organisations fail to overcome hurdles such as fostering trust with potential new members or even retaining current members over time. This results in declining profitability, and can also affect your membership organisations reputation, hastening the defection of yet more members. In the end, failing to address these areas of concern could destroy the very foundation of your business.

There is good news here, though. A number of essential business practices can enable you to overcome those hurdles and successfully meet industry-specific challenges. Let’s take a closer look at some of the more important digital marketing practices and steps you should be following in order to meet organisational goals and build successful membership organisations.

1. Email Lapsed Members and Invite Them Back: One of the most significant challenges for membership organisations is recapturing lapsed members. Getting them back into the fold can be challenging, but a brief email campaign targeted at members who have been inactive for a specific period of time can yield good results. Reach out – you might be surprised at just how many of those members respond positively to a “we miss you” email. You might even want to think about incentivising the email. Offer them something of value to renew their membership, including a discount on the membership itself.
2. Turn Current Members into Brand Ambassadors: There is no more valuable asset in your marketing arsenal than your current members. Not only are they important for the revenue they contribute to your business, but for their ability to reach other people, particularly through social media. Give your current members a way to become brand ambassadors – branded profile picture frames and filters are a good example of this, but there are dozens of other options that can help your customer base show their loyalty and convert others.
3. Reach Out to Potential Members: Email marketing remains one of the single most effective marketing tools, and your database of potential members is an incredibly valuable asset. Put them together and you have a sure-fire, one-two punch that can help swell your member’s ranks. In most instances, you will need to offer something of value to potential members to get them to convert, of course. Think free membership trials or discounts on the price of membership.
4.  Explore PPC Ads: PPC, or pay-per-click, ads remain a powerful force in the world of digital marketing. They can and should be used to supplement organic traffic to your website. Of course, you need to strike the right balance with PPC ads – incite curiosity without blatantly selling memberships.
5. Offer Valuable Rewards to Sign Up for Email: Want to build your database of potential membership names and contact information? Offer a reward to entice people to sign up. That reward could be just about anything – a one-time coupon, for instance, or access to a product that will only be available for a limited time. It just needs to have value to your audience.
6. Find an Incentive That Matters: In the vein of the tip above, find an incentive that matters to your potential and current members to entice them to sign up, or make a purchase. Again, coupons are perennial good performers here, but you can do any number of other things. Free accessories, exclusive products, and “door-buster” deals are just some examples.
7. Hold a Giveaway Contest on Social Media: Want to build interest in your membership organization? Hold a giveaway contest on social media. Use your Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts to drive interest to the contest. What should you give away? The sky’s the limit. Offer something that won’t break the bank, though. Discounted products, free items, even free limited memberships, can all be good ideas.
8. Create an Online Referral Contest: Again, your members are invaluable assets, and it’s not just their business and membership fees that matter. Their connections to other people also offer value. Create an online referral contest to help drive new member signups, while rewarding your current members.
9. Use Facebook Events: Facebook offers a number of important tools that can drive interest in your offerings. One of those that you might not have thought much about is the platforms event feature. You can create events, write descriptions, and even invite people to attend. When your members click that they are interested or going, it shows to their friends and family members, expanding your reach exponentially.

Download 27 Tips for Membership Organisations using Digital Marketing

Are you a business owner who is struggling with the challenges facing membership organisations? Whether it’s a question of building trust with your audience, retaining current members, recruiting new members, enticing current members to re-up, or something else, we can help. We invite you to call us today on 01 808 1301 to learn how we can help you build successful, profitable membership organisations.