Compared with a decade ago, nearly-all associations are dealing with a
membership which travels less, is online more and sees a tougher
competitive marketplace for the products and services it provides. In
many cases the results of such trends have included declining
membership, less attendance at association events and smaller budgets.
Today's trends raise several
important questions: How can associations better serve members at a time when
income is static if not declining? How can associations build on traditional
services? What steps can associations take to preserve and grow communities?
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Because of his extensive background in journalism and with the Web, Peter G. Miller has a unique understanding of communication, communities and how they interact. He has provided an array of services for our association and other Washington organizations, always with an eye on what's best, what's most effective and what makes the most sense within a given budget.
Maynard Benjamin
President
Envelope Manufacturers Association
Peter G. Miller has been a consultant to PostCom for more than a decade, a period marking our greatest growth and success. He understands how to explain complex issues in plain language, how to reach members and how to build communities. We would recommend his services for any organization which seeks growth in the Internet era.
Gene Del Polito
President
Association For Postal Commerce
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Many organizations now see Internet
development as the answer to their problems. But while the Web may be
part of the answer, it does not provide a complete solution. Instead,
the core issue is that organizations must reflect changing membership
needs. A fancy Web site without better programs and finances will not
resolve the concerns faced by any organization or its membership.
What Is To Be Done?
A Web site is, or should be, more than a
collection of pages. Properly designed, a Web site is a form of media,
a transaction platform and a community hub. In brief terms, let's look
at how Web sites can be effectively used as an association asset.
Overview
The key to membership retention and
growth is service: What is it that members want and what is it that the
Association provides? How can members access such information? Tight
budgets and reduced expense accounts have largely ended the days when
everyone travels to annual meetings or subscribes to expensive
publications.
The alternative is to build value
online, to create a virtual community where members can obtain
services, get information, interact, participate, and contribute.
Done correctly, an online site is not
only the association hub, it is the device which provides
day-to-day management -- it's where you attract new members, keep
current ones, collect dues and fees, build a database for a directory
and e-mail distributions, comply with IRS regulations, assist visitors
online, maintain an archive. Most importantly, a solid Web site is
where you build a community.
In effect, with a user-driven Web site
association management moves online, costs are reduced, services
expanded, and a platform for the future is created.
Site Design
It's not at all uncommon for online
sites to have complex scripts, features that move and blink and huge
pictures. Such sites are great for Web designers -- but they're not so
good for visitors. Why? Such sites can be slow to upload and complex
scripts may not work on certain browsers.
From a technology perspective
organizations it's useful to take a look at one of the Internet's most
successful sites, Google.
Does anything move? See any large pictures? Is your experience disturbed by
pop-up ads? Google succeeds because it employs sound design concepts,
concepts which put the visitor first.
What associations need are sites with a flat
architecture that allows users to go from any page on the site to
any other page with speed and ease -- and also get back. The coding
must be arranged so that virtually all browsers can access the site.
Pages will load quickly if they do not have huge graphics, large
scripts, or complex programming. "Meta" tags with keywords and a site
description should be written into page coding, important features for
search engine robots and a key to increased traffic.
The design used for this page reflects a
number of important communication values: It's easy to read, with inside pages a "menu"
of site features appears on the left, there are no complex scripts or
pop-ups, the search engine is always available and so is the ability to send e-mail.
Dues and Fees
With an Internet hub an association can
attract and sign-up members in public online areas plus it can collect
dues, renewals and other fees on the site. The results: Greater member
convenience, reduced association costs and up-to-date member
information collected electronically that can be used to produce online
directories and better manage the association.
Communication
There was a time when every small
association had a newsletter, perhaps a quarterly publication produced
and distributed at great cost. But today even the smallest associations
can have a weekly newsletter, a publication produced and distributed
online, a publication with information, links, and currency.
News, jobs wanted and jobs sought, new
members, board announcements, meeting information, member addresses as
well as other items would naturally flow into an online newsletter. The
letter would be published weekly (except, usually, the last week in
August and during the year-end holiday period), posted online, and then
archived in a searchable collection.
Different associations have different
approaches to newsletter production. The general options look like
this:
- The association has a newsletter
editor who produces content. The content is then provided to the
Webmaster for coding, distribution, posting and archiving. Note that
separate coding is usually required for e-mail and online publication.
- The newsletter is produced by
volunteers. In this case, it often happens that a different association
officer, board member or committee chair produces the newsletter. A
schedule is created and posted online so that no individual has an
excessive workload and weekly editors can plan ahead. A typical letter
might include a few hundreds words of news or commentary from the
editor as well as standardized items taken from the website -- jobs,
announcements, changes, meetings, etc.
- The Webmaster writes and produces the
newsletter.
Member Directory
It is easy to set-up an HTML membership
directory, however associations should look at other database systems.
The logic is that if an association has an HTML directory it's easy for
someone to "scrape" the entire directory and then make it into a
mailing list, re-sell it, etc. Associations should look into database
systems which can embed material within a web page, making it both
readable and difficult to copy.
Message Boards
One of the best features about the
Internet is that it offers the potential for inter-activity. If you see
a newspaper article you like or don't like, it's possible to write a
letter-to-the-editor or an op-ed article -- but not so likely that
either will be published.
Interchange is different online. With a
message board members can exchange ideas, debate issues, provide
information, arrange regional meetings and see announcements from
officers, the board of directors and committees. In addition, the
message board system we use allows the association to informally poll
members.
An example of our system can be found by
pressing here.
- The demo is set up to include one
"category" entitled "The Community Forum." There can be as many
categories as we want to post.
- Within each category are "topics"
such as "Welcome" and "Site Suggestions." An unlimited number of topics
can be created within each category.
- An unlimited number of messages can
be posted within each topic.
- Topics can be set up so that anyone
can post, only registered users can post, or only moderators can post.
- While board messages should be
readable to all members, only those who register should be allowed to
post. To register, members must first agree to appropriate terms and
conditions (rules which can help protect the association) and provide
an e-mail address to confirm registration (to prevent "spoofing" and
other forms of fraud). For purposes of illustration, I have set up the
demo so that it's possible to post on some topic boards without
registering -- the "Welcome" and "Contests & Awards" boards, as
examples, can be used without registering.
- Each topic can have one or more
moderators. In some cases, the topic can be set up so that only the
moderator can post. If only moderators can post then, in effect, the
association has a "read only" topic.
- We can allow users to post messages
in plain ASCII text or in HTML. The use of HTML means messages can
include live links as well as different type colors, fonts and sizes.
- Users posting messages can have a
notice of any responses sent to them automatically by e-mail. This is a
great feature because it offers such values as participation,
responsiveness,
- Topics can be password protected so
that only selected users have access. Thus, for example, there could be
private message boards for individual committees or the board of
directors.
As a way to
test the system, why not post a welcome message? If you register, the
system will confirm your password. Then, when you post a message, you
can direct the system to notify you by e-mail when responses are
posted.
Finances
When it comes to association finances
there is an obvious and overt fiduciary obligation to handle member
funds with care. Part of that obligation is the requirement that
non-profit organizations with annual revenues of $25,000 or more must
file a Form 990 with the IRS. This form, in turn, must be made
available to the public -- including non-members -- on demand. Failure
to provide Form 990 within a given period can result in substantial
fines against individuals within the association.
However, worries about disclosures and
related deadlines and fines can be avoided by posting the form online
in a public area. For details, see:
http://www.irs.gov/charities/article/0,,id=96430,00.html
Job Bank
Many organizations maintain a job bank,
something which can readily be done online. It is possible to have both
"jobs wanted" and "jobs sought" listings, and with an independent
Webmaster such listings can be kept confidential.
Lists & Links
One of the great advantages of the
Internet is the ability to create link "collections" that allow users
to quickly find information. For instance, suppose you want a basic
list of general government links at the federal and state level. It's
possible to quickly create a series of web pages with such links, links
which allow direct access to various government sites as well as
general government search engines. As an example, please press here.
Search Engines
One of the great advantages of the
Internet is that it represents the world's largest filing cabinet. The
largest body of knowledge and information ever assembled can be found
online -- but much of it is not easily accessible. For this reason,
it's important not only to have a search engine which can review data
on your site, but also a collection of search engines visitors can use
to find other sites and information online. For an example of such a
collection, please press here
Budgeting
When looking at the costs of online
services it's important to understand that they likely represent both a
net reduction in association costs and an expansion of member services.
Many associations can reduce or eliminate current Internet costs,
printing expenses, postal bills, management fees and other costs. The
money can then be spent on a new site, additional features, a secure
server (for processing payments), community building and association
management. No less important, in some cases it may be possible to sell
advertising and generate revenues from a weekly newsletter and various
site features.
In addition, a new and better Web site
with improved content and features will lead to more traffic, more
usage and potentially more members -- an advantage not to be
underestimated. (If you would like to see current traffic statistics
for your site, go to Alexa.com.
You can also check search engine saturation at MarketLeap.com.)
What about things offline? Given our
background in communication we can readily handle brochures, booklets,
directories and other publications. As to meetings, our meeting
specialist handles a number of events each year and has a six-figure
budget. Voting? We can act as an impartial election resource to assure
fairness and accuracy.
A basic package of services includes such features as your site design, site maintenance, weekly newsletter distribution,
an archive, links, a search feature, message boards, online billing, private area, online directory,
and other benefits. There are no up-front
costs, no additional charges to use our software, templates or coding,
and no extra fees to have a secure server.
To Manage Or Not To Manage
Associations around the country have different approaches to management. Some seek full-service management while others prefer back-office support to operate the organization, maintain the Web site and independently handle elections. Whatever your needs BoardroomArts can provide the services which best meet your requirements.
Tell Us More
We'll be happy to answer your questions,
provide additional information, respond to an RFP or just exchange
ideas. Please send e-mail to peter@BoardroomArts.com.
© 2003 BoardroomArts.com. All
Rights Reserved
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