The key to better engagement is unveiled: treating association members as individuals with unique needs and emotions, just as you would in a face-to-face interaction. If you'd engage with a new member in person, why not carry that approach into your digital interactions? Explore how this "human" approach can work wonders across various engagement scenarios.

We all get dozens of emails daily, so how can you stand apart from them and send what truly draws members in? The 4 reasons members pay attention; wants, easy, fear, and trust. It's important to understand the people you're trying to engage and give them something they want, make it easy, give them a fearless choice, and be a reliable source. By asking questions at the individual level about these 4 things, you can treat exchanges to maximize engagement.

The next time you go to build a communication for members, whether it’s general engagement, for an event or some other purpose, try this approach and see what happens. Ask yourself, “What would be nice to know from members that they care about, and will help us understand them better?”

Have you heard of the Sunday Scaries? I’ve suffered from this phenomenon myself. If you’re not familiar with the term, it refers to the anxiety - perhaps, dread - that many people feel on Sunday, in anticipation of the work week ahead. Ironically, in the process of anticipating Monday, having the Sunday Scaries actually robs one of the enjoyment of half of their weekend.

Recently, an association leader who was on a call with our team re-stated the challenge of association member communications with a baseball analogy. His take: the majority of communications sent to members are “Home Run Emails,” or emails with calls to action that ask a lot of a member. when this communication style is the majority of how your members are interacting with the organization, they begin to tune out, no matter how great your copy is written and call to action is worded. It all looks and feels the same after a while, literally.

With the release of several industry reports, including MCI’s Association Engagement Index 2022, Higher Logic’s 2022 Association Member Experience Report and Amanda Kaiser’s New Member Engagement Study (NMES), there is a heightened buzz in the association community around how well members are being served, heard and valued. Across these reports, the consensus is that most associations are providing a C level experience. Associations are making some efforts, and members are recognizing them. For example, the Higher Logic report indicates that “64% of members said a personalized member experience is important to them, but only 46% said their association provides a personalized member experience.” There is hope, and still a lot of work to be done when it comes to fully serving members.