4 Tips for Personalizing Member Engagement Opportunities

By: Karin Tracy

Simple member engagement strategies such as sending monthly email newsletters and promoting an annual conference still have their place in association management practices. However, to compete with peer organizations, brands, and other digital distractions, associations must take a personalized approach.

 

Personalizing the communications, engagement opportunities, and benefits your association offers its members can enhance engagement and retention. Members will feel understood, and their perceived value of your offerings will grow. 

 

Providing personalized experiences on a large scale can be challenging. We’ll explore four strategies for doing so, starting with using the right technology.

1. Use robust, specialized technology.

Effective personalization starts with good—or clean, accurate, and up-to-date—data. To achieve this at scale, your association needs technology to organize and analyze vast amounts of member data.

 

The following solutions and tools will help you better understand member data and roll out personalized engagement opportunities:

 

  • Association management software (AMS): Your AMS primarily oversees everyday operations, plans events, and deploys communications. Implement an AMS offering predictive analytics and AI-driven insights to identify patterns in member engagement data and execute engagement opportunities.
  • Constituent relationship management (CRM) system: CRMs store and organize data about your members, such as demographics, engagement history, and membership status. Use this data to segment members based on custom criteria and share targeted messaging that appeals to the members in that group. For instance, create a segment of members searching for jobs and share job board updates and invitations to networking events.
  • Automation: Your AMS or integrated marketing solutions may include automation features, which initiate tasks triggered by a certain action (e.g., a member renews their membership and receives a thank-you email). Use these features to automate repetitive tasks like sharing membership renewal reminders, processing payments, and managing event registrations. Automation ensures communications are consistent and timely, keeping members engaged in your programs.
  • Artificial intelligence (AI): AI has many use cases in association management, from personalizing communications to predicting behaviors to drafting content. For instance, associations might use AI to predict which upcoming events a member would be interested in based on historical engagement data. Additionally, AI-powered chatbots are on the rise, providing instant, personalized responses to member queries at any time. 

 

If your association chooses to use AI, keep ethical considerations in mind. AI solutions can generate inaccurate, biased, or misleading information, so vetting AI-generated content is crucial. 

 

Additionally, it’s best to establish human touchpoints and guardrails in automated processes involving AI. This can prevent misleading information or bias from slipping through the cracks and ensure communications with members don’t feel robotic or canned. In other words, you’ll maintain a human touch.

2. Work with experts.

Personalization proves difficult—especially for mid-sized and large associations with multiple chapters—from both technical and strategic perspectives. In this case, your association should work with specialized consultants who can help plan your long-term strategies. 

 

A consultant provides their experience and expertise to help associations grow. Typically, these experts conduct member research, develop innovative strategies backed by data insights, and help associations effectively communicate their value. They’ll also bring an outside perspective and knowledge of industry best practices that can help you enhance your operations.

 

Because technology plays such an integral role in personalizing communications and experiences, you may also need help from a technology consultant. These experts assist with implementation, updates, and routine maintenance. Depending on your needs, they can also provide ongoing support for your tech strategy, helping you customize your software to ensure your association gets the most out of the technology.

3. Consider members’ lifecycle stage

As Fonteva’s guide to member engagement explains, the typical association member lifecycle comprises five phases: awareness, recruitment, engagement, renewal, and reinstatement. Engagement opportunities should be tailored to the member’s place in this lifecycle, whether they are:

 

  • New members: These are first-time, newly recruited members. Promote engagement opportunities to welcome new members and educate them on association offerings, such as a welcome email series or onboarding webinar.
  • Tenured members: These are long-term members who have renewed at least once. Recommend ways to engage more deeply, such as participating in advanced continuing education courses, creating member-generated content, or serving in a leadership role.
  • Members at risk of lapsing: These members are approaching their renewal date and have shown signs that they may not renew their membership (e.g., not attending meetings or interacting with content for a prolonged period). Engage them by providing a customized value proposition that aligns with their goals and interests, offering additional tailored benefits, or offering discounts.

 

Your association should also track each member’s renewal date and launch engaging, relevant communications that remind them of the value your association provides, no matter where they fall in their lifecycle. 

 

For example, provide a calendar of upcoming events, educational courses, webinars, or other engagement opportunities they won’t want to miss. Clearly convey the added value they enjoy from being members and promote benefits that directly correspond with member needs and priorities. Clarify which offerings distinguish your association from its competitors and how this benefits members (e.g., you’re able to attract well-known figures in your industry to speak at conferences).

4. Frequently request feedback.

Regularly share forms to request feedback on the quality of the engagement opportunities, the recommendations you provide, whether opportunities meet members’ expectations, and how well they align with members’ current needs. Not only will this reveal gaps or areas for improvement, but you can also gain direct insight into members’ interests and priorities.

 

Pose questions like:

 

  • How relevant do you find the content and communications you receive from us?
  • How satisfied are you with the personalized recommendations or offers you’ve received from us?
  • Do you feel our communications and recommendations are tailored to your needs or preferences? Why or why not?
  • Which engagement opportunities have you participated in? How would you rate those experiences?
  • Do you feel the association provides enough personalized interaction to keep you interested and engaged?
  • What additional communications or initiatives would further enhance your experience?

 

Make sure to include questions related to accessibility. As Fíonta explains, digital accessibility must be an integral part of your association’s operations—in other words, you should consider accessibility from the first step of planning any new engagement opportunity. However, there may be unique opportunities to optimize for your members that they highlight via surveys.

 

Start by asking whether the experiences were accessible to each member, if they encountered barriers when accessing content or experiences, and if they were able to access content on various devices.

In an increasingly digital and hyper-personalized world, take advantage of what you know about members to provide the most enriching, valuable, and educational experiences possible. Personalized engagement opportunities keep members interested in the events, programs, and other offerings your association provides, helping them see the inherent value in their membership and boosting retention.

Chris Vaughan, Ph.D.

Chris Vaughan is the Chief Strategy Officer at Sequence Consulting, with over 24 years of experience helping associations grow. Specializing in membership and revenue strategies, Chris partners with organizations to deliver transformational growth and enduring change.

Case Studies

Client SUCCESS Stories