Onboarding of new members to your association is exciting and may feel like the ultimate success, but do not let it get to your head yet. Member retention is just as difficult as getting them to join, and you want to do everything in your power to make the member experience exceptional. Remember, first impressions are more than likely to stick forever.
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Besides being a challenging process, onboarding new members is an inexorable process that every association partakes. However, with the right tips, this process may not be as complicated as it seems. Below is a stepwise onboarding strategy to help you in developing fruitful onboarding programs.
Social Media and Email
Social media is an integral tool for broadcasting your intentions. If you look to reach a large number of users and possible future members, then this is the right onboarding strategy you ought to take. When you already run a website and have grown your subscriber list, you might consider sending targeted emails to people trying to sign up to help them through the process.
Once a member subscribes to your onboarding campaign, send a members-only welcome email to usher them to the team, appreciating them for their decision to join your community. A member welcome email also creates an excellent first impression of your organisation to the members joining: an essential tool in building a good relationship.
Using association member onboarding videos
Videos are easy to navigate and come in handy when onboarding new members.
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The videos can be used for membership marketing, showing new members where to find exclusive offers or discounts, among others. Incorporating association member onboarding videos is an excellent way to interact with the members and keep them engaged in the association’s business.
You can also use the videos to take new members through the signup process. The already joined members can also talk about their year of membership, experience, and knowledge they have gained in your association through these association member onboarding videos.
Outline the membership benefits of your association
Ensure that the new member understands that their decision to join the team was wise. inject enthusiasm by revealing the great benefits they are about to get from joining your association. It is, in most cases, included in the welcome email, where the new member gets to understand not only the benefits but also the binding terms and conditions.
Engage new members
Lack of engagement will likely put off your new members as they might feel unwanted or out of place. Member engagement is, therefore, vital in this process. Make sure you introduce them to your social media platforms and tag them whenever necessary. This makes the new members feel needed and have a sense of belonging in the association. Also, help the new members acclimate with the essential tools such as web pages that are likely to be resourceful to them.
Create a Community
Marketing after Covid-19? Yes, marketing will persist. But all things post-COVID will be very different. Smart association marketers are already getting their strategy ready for the ’next normal‘ and there are several strong predictions for that ‘next normal’. It’s that online communities will become more and more important to brand survival. Making use of your own community platform is going to be a major strategy in the future.
Avail yourself
New members may have a difficult time adapting, and you ought to be there for them in case of anything. Members joining is not the end, and if you want them to stick around, disappearing might not be a good idea. Everyone wants to feel important and valued for what they are paying, and being there is the right choice to make if you wish to retain the members even when it is time for membership renewal.
Ask for feedback
The member experience is crucial, and you ought to ensure your clients are getting the best member experience they were hoping to receive when signing up. You can put up online surveys to obtain feedback from your existing members and use the data to refine your onboarding process to help in the acquisition of more members in the future.
Asking for feedback is another way of incorporating member engagement in decision-making, and asking them for tips and ideas on how to improve member onboarding programs will motivate them to stay.
Getting members to stay is the ultimate goal, and you ought to find methods that work and give you the best results.
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Congrex Switzerland is an internationally operating agency delivering customised solutions. This encompasses the overall organisation of conferences and meetings, including the management of hotel rooms and the strategic consultancy. Annually Congrex Switzerland organises approximately 45 events with over 73’000 delegates. Amongst our clients are international associations, governmental organisations and corporations.
