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Your online community can be a powerful member communications tool for your association. Here are five ideas to help you use your virtual community to take your member communications to the next level.
Your association has a lot to offer members. You provide everything from industry news and networking events to professional development opportunities.
As you build your communications plan for getting the word out to members about the great benefits available to them, be sure to include your association’s online community.
Why use your online community for member communications?
Your online community is not just a valuable member benefit (for community building and social networking among your association’s members and prospective members). It can also be a powerful tool for member communications because it’s the place where members find, share, and discuss information that’s important to them. As a go-to place for members, it’s an ideal member communications channel for your association.
What if your association doesn’t have an online member community?
If your association hasn’t gotten started yet with an online community, no problem. Read The Small Association’s Guide to Getting Started with an Online Community for ideas and tips to help you get an online community off the ground. And when you need a technology platform to set up your online member community, keep in mind that YourMembership AMS includes easy-to-use online community functionality.
How to use your association’s online community for member communications
Let’s look at five effective ideas for using your online community as an effective member communications channel:
1. Post important content.
In the 2024 Association Trends Study, members in the study place information about the latest news and issues impacting the association’s industry among the most important member benefits. So, take the opportunity to house important content in your online member community, such as:
- Breaking industry news
- The latest reports on industry best practices
- New insights from industry thought leaders
Also, post other content important to members, including:
- Membership publications
- Content written by your association, volunteers, and sponsors
- Your association’s code of ethics (code of ethics is the second most important member benefit according to members in the 2024 Association Trends Study)
Posting important content turns your online community into the go-to place for information. It also provides an environment in which to create dialog around your content, get member feedback, and keep members coming back for more – an effective approach for member engagement and retention.
2. Highlight useful information.
Use your online community to draw attention to important information, such as new educational activities and breaking industry news. That way, members won’t miss out on timely content.
3. Encourage professional development.
In the 2024 Association Trends Study, members ranked training in the top five most important benefits. So, be sure to promote your association’s educational activities, such as continuing education credit opportunities, in your online community.
Also, integrate your learning management system (LMS) with your online community to make it easy for members to navigate from the community to your e-learning catalog, and allow members to track their earned education credits through the online community.
4. Promote job opportunities.
Members in the 2024 Association Trends Study included job opportunities and help with career advancement among the top important member benefits. Help your members find their next job by highlighting job opportunities from your association’s career center in your online community. This approach helps to remind members of another valuable benefit your association provides.
5. Get feedback (and put it to use).
Use your online community to better understand what members want. Pay attention to what members are talking about in your online community. Join in conversations to encourage more discussion and feedback. Set up online surveys and polls, and promote them in your online community to gather member feedback. Then, use this information to improve your member communications strategy.
