Association Horn-Tootin' and Why Being Member Driven is Only Half the Battle

I had the pleasure last week of working with a great trade association on their strategic plan. I say great because these guys are doing a lot of things right: They undergo their strategic planning process every 3-5 years and take care well ahead of each strategy to do a careful survey of their members’ needs and priorities. 

Even more importantly, they are focused on making sure their planning is in-line with the member feedback they are getting.

Their member-focus is certainly paying off:  This is the second time we’ve gone through the member research and strategic planning process with this group and they have received some of the highest scores we have seen in the 50+ similar studies we have conducted.

Clearly this association is doing a lot of things right...But as always, there are areas to improve:  

As is often the case with the associations we have worked with, the lowest scores revolved around the issues of advocacy and the sense among members that they don't influence the direction and priorities of the association.  (If you want to see why these scores are typically lower than other areas of member satisfaction, you can find some insights in this post).

What was interesting is that the association is actually doing a lot in both of these areas:  This group isn’t just ‘talking the talk’ when it comes to being member-driven. In 2005 when they last carried out their strategic plan and again this time around, member needs and priorities was a top focus in the development of the association’s future priorities. I saw this firsthand throughout the planning workshop as board members continually revisited the survey findings to make sure their decisions were in-line with the feedback they were getting from their members.

On the advocacy side, government relations to influence policy and legislation is central to the ‘raison d'être’ of this group and they continue to make ongoing strides in this arena.

So where’s the disconnect?  Here they are, working their butts off and achieving great things for the association but their members have no clue about the hard work going on their behalf. 

This is not an uncommon issue. 

The lesson to be learned is that setting and implementing a member-driven strategy is one thing, but it’s only half the battle. The other and often overlooked other piece of the puzzle has to do with communication.

I'll be sharing my thoughts tomorrow on what I feel are some of the key elements of association horn tootin.' In the meantime, what is your association doing to make your members aware of the results you are achieving and the value you are providing in return for their membership dollars? Is it working?