How to identify key ambassadors
Editor’s note: This is the second in a four-part series looking at member engagement at associations and the importance of implementing a social networking platform equipped with the right tools to ensure early adoption and consistent engagement.
Last week, we looked at private online association communities and how to make members feel exclusive. This week, we focus on how your association identifies key ambassadors who unify all the moving parts to help drive a successful social networking platform launch.
Ambassadors are your go-to aids within your member community. Your organization counts on them for new member onboarding and welcoming new ideas and perspectives to the platform. They understand the community culture and how new members adapt to that ethos as your industry or the demographics of your target member base change.
In an age when relevant content and opportunities are important to establishing value for your members, your organization’s ambassadors and their knowledge are an invaluable asset.
Who are your ambassadors?
Some of your organizations may already have member ambassadors defined or identified. Community leaders typically gravitate to their roles and organically adopt them. As such, you easily pinpoint the individuals who continually contribute to discussions or share new and exciting ideas through your social tools.
For those of you that may not have active online communities or otherwise have not yet found ambassadors within your organization, keep it simple.
Ask yourself:
- Who is most active at my events or meetings (hint: who uses your event data the most)?
- Who are your chapter and committee leaders?
- Which members consistently show interest volunteering their time for opportunities?
If no one comes to mind, your own staff team members are some of your most knowledgeable advocates for your association. Make it a point to leverage their experience to become ambassadors for your members.
Put them into action
While discovering your ambassadors takes some initial thought and planning, putting them into action within your online community is easy with the new Ambassador Tool in YourMembership’s SocialLink.
Through an easy-to-use interface, just begin typing the name of a member and then quickly select that individual to add them to your list of ambassadors. These individuals are automatically appended as connections to your members. They ensure that new members and initial log ins are engaged with meaningful content and discussion upon making use of SocialLink for the first time.
Guarantee results
Once you have named your ambassadors, how do you ensure that they’re living up to their promise? With SocialLink’s Ambassador Tool, you stay aware of where each ambassador ranks in overall engagement and when their last contribution took place.
In addition, SocialLink’s new administrator dashboard provides a clear view of your member community’s top contributors. It recognizes which members are consistently creating trending material or continuing to encourage dialogue and new involvement, as well as how these individuals and trends change over time. The dashboard is also a useful tool to compare your identified ambassadors and those members who may be contributing often enough to rise up as your newest community advocates.
Next week, we explore ways to effectively give earned recognition and praise to association members who actively participate in your organization’s private online community using SocialLink. Until then, click here to learn more about how to connect your members to ideal discussions, education, social networking and career opportunities. Or call us at +1 727-827-0046.
