SCD Group
NOVEMBER 15, 2015
“To dream big or dream small takes the same amount of energy. So, why not stretch a little bit?” – Carlos Brito, CEO of Anheuser-Busch InBev A potential client called asking if I could facilitate a “deep dive session” on how to grow the association. As we talked, I shared with him the “strategic intent process” I use with organizations seeking to envision their future and create steps to help them get there.
Associations Now
NOVEMBER 16, 2015
A startup mentality can help an association generate new ideas. But success has less to do with “failing fast” than knowing how your organizational structure stands in your way. Silicon Valley is the last place you’d look for hard-core fans of challenging Irish playwrights, but in recent years a few lines by Samuel Beckett have become a cliché in the startup culture there : “Try again.
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Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 20, 2015
In Part II of our Payment Processing Podcast Series, we speak with Tom Epplett, founder of iATS Payments, about the future of online payment systems: everything from Google Wallet, to KickStarter, to Bitcoin!
Higher Logic
NOVEMBER 17, 2015
Our guest blogger Rachel Happe co-founded The Community Roundtable to support business leaders developing their community and social business strategies. Rachel has spent the last 20 years helping organizations implement emerging technologies to advance their business strategies. We've all been there. You go to an event. A conference. A workshop. You leave inspired - with takeaways, idea lists, a stack of business cards and contacts.
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Struggling to get members to open or engage with your emails? You're not alone. Our free Best Practices for Email Marketing guide offers practical tips to strengthen your email strategy and improve engagement. Inside, you'll learn how to: Write subject lines that increase open rates Build scannable, mobile-friendly designs Choose send times that fit your audience Personalize content with Smart Newsletter Use Message Report data to refine strategy This guide helps associations and chambers create
Spark Consulting
NOVEMBER 3, 2015
Guillermo Ortiz de Zarate and I recently had the chance to sit down with Rick Rutherford of Yourmembership.com to talk in a little more detail about some of the ideas raised in our new whitepaper, Innovate the Lean Way. Our conversation touched on issues like: What failure really is – and isn’t – and why it shouldn’t scare us so much.
Association Universe brings together the best content for association members and organizers from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Socious
NOVEMBER 5, 2015
Have you ever noticed the large number of corporate brands that market on some variation of having it your way ? There’s Burger King, Subway, Kmart, Walt Disney World, and many others. While Burger King started marketing that way 40 years ago, with the advent of social media and online retailers, personalized shopping experiences like you find with Amazon—offering people what they want on their terms—are becoming more of an expectation than a luxury.
YourMembership
NOVEMBER 9, 2015
Quinn Brady, Vice President, Customer Success at YourMembership. Hello! Please allow me to introduce myself as the new Vice President of Customer Success at Yourmembership. It is my pleasure to make your virtual acquaintance. As this is a new role for me, our marketing team requested that I write a blog for you, which you will find below. Please enjoy.
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 10, 2015
Board Meeting Expert, Dr. Richard Lent shows how you can revitalize your board meetings to be perfectly productive, super structured, and extremely engaging.
Higher Logic
NOVEMBER 6, 2015
David Spinks, founder of CMX, has been building communities since he was 13 years old. He attributes shifts like organizing for the gaming industry, joining Twitter and following thought leaders like Seth Godin and Lisa Gansky to his community success. The common thread is using technology to bring people together. The original definition for a company was a group of people coming together to exchange goods.
Speaker: Sean Yoder
Nonprofits are under more pressure than ever to demonstrate financial accountability while continuing to expand their impact. Traditional budgeting models often fall short, reinforcing silos, limiting flexibility, and stalling growth. Enter collaborative budgeting: a dynamic, team-driven process that enables smarter resource allocation and builds financial resilience at scale.
Mariner
NOVEMBER 3, 2015
Running a successful chapter can be a daunting task and nothing makes it more so than the operational side of things. To help with this, we’ve compiled a list of available tools and resources that chapters can use to address many of these tasks.
Aaron Wolowiec
NOVEMBER 30, 2015
Aaron Wolowiec, founder and president, Event Garde. Q & A with Aaron Wolowiec, founder and president of Event Garde. Editor’s Note: In celebration of Event Garde’s four-year anniversary, this month’s Event Garde-ian of the Month is Aaron Wolowiec. Please take a few minutes to share your thoughts with us. As we go into 2016, we’d like to know what you think…how are we doing?
Socious
NOVEMBER 19, 2015
Over the past decade technology has changed at lightning speed. Systems are more intuitive and user friendly than ever before, as sites like Slack and Twitter continue to garner mass use with simplicity. Innovative association professionals understand the importance of keeping an eye on technology because ultimately it is a cost-effective way to streamline daily operations and keep members engaged.
YourMembership
NOVEMBER 3, 2015
Checking our social media feeds has become a part of our everyday life, and it’s especially true for millennials. It is as habitual as brushing their teeth or buying a pumpkin spice latte. Yet in an age of ever-growing computing power, readers have more difficulty concentrating on content now than ever before. It’s unavoidable; we’re surrounded by technology!
Speaker: Tim Sarrantonio, Director of Community Engagement
There’s more than one way to end the year with impact—and we’re letting you decide the direction. In this "choose your own adventure" community-led webinar, attendees will vote in real time to pick one of three year-end event strategies to explore in depth: Volunteer Appreciation Events 🧡 Peer-to-Peer Fundraising Campaigns 🌈 Mission/Program Celebrations 🎉 Once the path is chosen, we’ll dive into a step-by-step engagement workflow plan tailored to that format, showing how
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 3, 2015
Is your membership growth as stagnant as a pond? Wouldn't you love a proven recipe for successful? In an interactive case study, we reveal the strategies of how one organization grew over 300%.
Higher Logic
NOVEMBER 4, 2015
A winning community site – we all want it and we all can have it. It starts with strong design and a careful execution of the brand. I’ve put together eight tips that you can use right now to create a community site that is a winner in the eyes of your users, staff and prospective users. 1. Start with your logo. Your community site logo is the most essential element to the design of your community site.
Jamie Notter
NOVEMBER 4, 2015
Okay, I apologize for being one week late with Culture Chat --Maddie and I were with a client last Thursday so we couldn't pull it off. But we think this topic is worth waiting for, Culture and Technology: Technology doesn’t just impact productivity and efficiency--it can shape your culture. How you use intranets, internal online communities, and even basic information sharing tools will end up pushing your culture in one direction or another, so you’d better make it intentional.
Aaron Wolowiec
NOVEMBER 30, 2015
Last month, I had the opportunity to present a session on meeting management (e.g., a staff meeting, a committee meeting or a board meeting) to a group of volunteer leaders. We started by viewing the following (hilarious!) YouTube video depicting every meeting ever. After debriefing the video, which included a discussion of many of the personalities/bad habits represented (e.g., The Time Nazi, Get Here When You Can Guy and The Negator), we launched into my four steps for facilitating the most pr
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Is your current AMS is creating more problems than it solves? You can lead the change. This eBook shares a customizable letter designed to help you clearly communicate your organization’s challenges, highlight the benefits of a modern system, and make a strong case for exploring a new AMS. Whether it’s outdated reporting, clunky workflows, or member frustration, this resource will help you start the conversation with clarity and position yourself as the advocate your organization needs.
Socious
NOVEMBER 17, 2015
In an ideal world, every online community would have a perfectly suited team of community managers working full-time to make the community awesome. Unfortunately, the reality of business needs and priorities often means that communities have to prove their value before upper management will commit to a full-time employee for them. This common situation, in turn, makes it difficult to really focus the time and effort that’s needed to get value out of a community.
Potomac Core
NOVEMBER 3, 2015
Anemic economic performance is unfortunately becoming a mainstay in the U.S. economy. The release of the 3 rd quarter GDP numbers where only 1.5% growth was reported is another reminder of how much the ground is shifting for associations. Companies will likely view membership through an even narrower prism of operating margins if economic conditions weaken further.
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 24, 2015
Join us for a Free Expert Webinar, featuring Gail Perry on How to Get Your Board Members Engaged and Active in Fundraising.
Higher Logic
NOVEMBER 9, 2015
This guest post is by Jill Andreu, Naylor’s vice president of content strategy and development. Jill is responsible for the overall strategy, direction, leadership and management of Naylor’s editorial department. A colleague recently told me a story about how his 15-year-old daughter carries out her content strategy on Instagram. She doesn’t call it content strategy.
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Unlock the Power of Historical Data A Data Revolution: Why Your AMS/CRM Needs a Native Data Warehouse Today’s association leaders need more than real-time snapshots—they need the full story. MemberSuite: A Data Revolution reveals how a native data warehouse transforms your AMS into a strategic decision-making engine. In this free eBook, you’ll discover: The difference between a database and a data warehouse—and why it matters How to gain historical visibility into membership, engagement, events,
Mariner
NOVEMBER 24, 2015
Let us spread the word: thank-you. For when we do, we show appreciation, caring, empathy, love and kindness. And so Peter, Carol and I say. Thank-you!
Aaron Wolowiec
NOVEMBER 24, 2015
Like most businesses, associations have a lot of bulk. Maybe that’s because it’s hard to trim the fat. That said, eliminating wasted efforts and minimizing defects can lead to new products and innovations, according to a new whitepaper by Elizabeth Engel , CEO and chief strategist for Spark Consulting , and Guillermo Ortiz de Zarate , director of information systems for National Council of Architectural Registration Boards.
Eric Lanke
NOVEMBER 16, 2015
Got into a friendly argument with a colleague about last week's post , where I revisited an idea that I've discussed before : that program committees should report to an association's Chief Staff Executive, or CEO, and not its Board of Directors. His take? Absolutely not. Never. Committees must always been created by and report directly to the Board.
Speaker: Gareth Webb & Phil Selley, Founding Partners at Intouch Business
For many nonprofit organizations and NGOs, managing grants and monitoring projects with spreadsheets and manual processes feels familiar—but is it holding your organization back? As funding requirements become more complex and stakeholder expectations for transparency grow, relying on outdated methods can lead to inefficiencies, missed opportunities, and compliance risks.
Wild Apricot
NOVEMBER 10, 2015
Board Meeting Expert, Dr. Richard Lent shows how you can revitalize your board meetings to be perfectly productive, super structured, and extremely engaging.
Higher Logic
NOVEMBER 19, 2015
The importance of the community builder within an organization has grown tremendously. Community builders are expected to be the shepherds, content creators, marketers and social media experts, help people advance their thinking, answer any tech questions and think up new features – sometimes all in the same day. Studies show that these “knowledge workers” have a burn out rate that’s 40 times higher than most other white collar professionals.
Jamie Notter
NOVEMBER 9, 2015
One reason so many conflicts become "stuck" is that we think the conflict is only about the ideas involved. We forget that it's really about two (or more) human beings in a relationship. So as we get into it, we dive straight into the ideas. You make your point; I make my counterpoint. We go back and forth and usually end the conversation frustrated and without any significant agreements.
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