Mass marketing is so 1990's! Spend spend/waste waste. This blog will take you in a different direction. It focuses on association recruitment and retention of members by using targeted methods and communications, and there will be an occasional sojourn into related topics of interest. Rather than discuss the broad, the general, and the "same old," the goal of this blog is to provide useful tools, fact sheets that answer specific questions, and inspiration to those looking to make their jobs more interesting and fun.Thank you for visiting and I welcome your feedback and ideas.
March 6, 2010 08:46:51
Posted By Leah Baker
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We are often asked, “What are the YTheyJoin profiles of various associations?” YTheyJoin™ identifies nine types of members based on their professional needs and motivations. Each association has a unique mix and an organization dominated by Relevant Participants and Shapers is very different from one dominated by Altruistics and Boosters. After doing the research, we give each association a pie chart to show their mix and here are the top three categories for three national associations.
An association of land developers:
Relevant Participants
Shapers
Altruistics
An association of doctors:
Cognoscenti
Altruistics
Relevant Participants
An association of nurses:
Altruistics
Boosters
Mailboxers
Some associations also like to break out a profile of full members and associate members, or national members and local chapters, and the differences can help you provide more effective services and spend money more efficiently.
Our program shows how to do target marketing based on the nine member types. For example, the first paragraph of renewal letters should change for each member type: a letter to Relevant Participants should emphasize meetings and speakers; while a letter to Cognoscenti should emphasize publications and opportunities to write.
Learn more at www.YTheyJoin.com or call us at 703-772-5362.
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November 6, 2009 03:04:03
Posted By Leah Baker
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The Virginia Society of Association Executives has invited Dr. Dale Paulson, President of Allegiance Research Group, to their Annual Conference in May 2010 to give a presentation on member segmentation and target marketing. This is in Northern Virginia and is a good chance for those of you in the Washington, DC Metro Area to attend an association conference without incurring the cost of traveling a long distance. No need to go to the West Coast or to Canada! Great information is right here in the Metro Area.
For those interested in consumer psychology, take a look at the recently-published book “Brick & Mortar: Shopping in the 21st Century” that includes a chapter by Dr. Paulson describing his pictographic research. He describes cartoon sequence research and addresses the mystery of consumer decision-making and rationale. This book is edited by Tina Lowrey, Ph.D., Professor at the University of Texas in San Antonio, and has its foundations in the 25th Annual Advertising and Consumer Psychology Conference of the American Psychological Association and the Association for Consumer Research.
Free Fact Sheets! Just give us a call or send an e-mail and we will be glad to send some to you. There are over a dozen and a list of all of them is at our Web site at www.AllegianceResearch.com The most popular are:
YTheyJoin™ - nine member types and target marketing
Determining Confidence Level From Sample Size Using Your Calculator
Developing Effective Survey Questions
Prioritizing Objectives of Board Members by Using Fixed-Sum Preference Scales
If you would like more info about research call us at 703-772-5263 or e-mail AllegianceResearch@gmail.com
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September 9, 2009 09:46:05
Posted By Leah Baker
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If you are in charge of membership or marketing you may have problems. First, you probably have several bosses. In a sense all of your members are bosses, plus there are the volunteers some of whom head membership or marketing committees. Of course, they all have the direct phone number to your main boss, the Executive Director.
Also, most associations want more: more members; more sales; more people attending seminars; and more people at the convention. Guess what, this is your responsibility and did I mention that we are in the middle of a recession? Unfortunately, you don’t have a lot of tools to work with especially if you depend on mass marketing which is cold and impersonal and treats everyone the same.
This is where member-segmentation and target marketing can help. Let’s say your Executive Director wants a ten-percent increase in attendance at the next annual convention. Where is the growth going to come from? Try the following strategy.
Send everyone a notice about the convention (and be sure to mention the most exciting speakers and topics). Then target the people most likely to attend, and for those of you who use the YTheyJoin™ program this would be the Shapers and Relevant Participants. If you do not use the program, this could be those who attended in the past, possibly new members, and people living within 200 miles of the convention city. Send repeated announcements and any expensive color brochures to these people; just send postcards to the others. This type of targeted marketing will save you money and should also result in increased attendance. We know this because our clients have used this strategy with excellent results.
A good strategy for increasing membership is your member application. Take a good look at it. Is it cold and impersonal? Intimidating? Like a laundry list? You can change this by simply allowing a little white space where you ask the person to write about their professional needs and expectations. Better yet, include the YTheyJoin tagging form where they get 100 points to spend on your products and services, etc. to explain what is most important to them. We often get comments like “Thanks for asking!” And a check follows.
Do you have ways to get more members, more sales, etc? If you do not have ideas and good methods, your job may be at risk and a raise or promotion may not materialize. Member segmentation and target marketing can make you look like a star! For more info, call 703-772-5263.
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September 1, 2009 11:06:10
Posted By Leah Baker
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Our anniversary is here and to date we have worked with over 100 national associations! This includes membership, readership, and compensation surveys as well as the YTheyJoin™ member segmentation and target marketing program (formerly called Allegiance and developed by Dr. Dale Paulson in 1991). We would like to thank the assn community and here is a partial list of our clients. For a more detailed list please visit our Web site at www.AllegianceResearch.com
American Assn for the Adv of Science
American Chamber of Commerce Execs
American Coll of Healthcare Execs
American Diabetes Assn
American Industrial Hygiene Assn
American Inst of Architects
American Soc for Trng and Dvlpmt
American Soc of Appraisers
American Soc of Assn Execs
American Watchmakers-Clockmakers Inst
Assn of Otolaryngology Admins
Assn of the U.S. Army
Family, Career and Community Leaders of America
Infusion Nurses Soc
Int'l Assn of Amusement Parks/Attractions
Museum Store Assn
Nat Assn of Housing and Redev Officials
Nat School Boards Assn
Nat Soc of Prof Engineers
Population Refer Bureau
Soc for Human Resource Mgmt
Urban Land Inst
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July 15, 2009 10:39:33
Posted By Leah Baker
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After you id the nine types of YTheyJoin™ members (each type was described in previous blog articles as well as the methodology to id each member), you can design targeted services and communications. For example, instead of writing the same renewal letter to everyone, design different letters for the nine types and use resonant statements for each group. Here are examples of Resonant Statements:
(Mailboxers) We know that your time is extremely valuable and that your primary involvement with our assn is through the mail or Web. You want info that is concise, relevant, and up-to-date.
(Relevant Participants) We know that when possible you like to attend our assn meetings to obtain relevant information or meet others in the field, or to buy/sell at the Expo.
(Shapers) We know that you do, or want to, actively participate in our assn by helping to shape policy, serve on a committee, or lead a chapter.
(Cognoscenti) We know that you look to our assn for info that is not available elsewhere or for opportunities to write or speak.
(Boosters) We know that you look to our assn to be a leader in the field or to help you advance in the profession by providing certification.
(Altruistics) We know that you believe in the values and mission of our assn. to ensure the safety of the public and provide a voice in Washington.
Look for a sample renewal letter in the next blog article. To learn more please visit www.YTheyJoin.com or call 703-772-5263 or e-mail AllegianceResearch@gmail.com
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