The Member Engagement Show

Our guest on this episode of The Member Engagement Show is Lucas McCann, President/CEO of Core Affinity. Lucas is also President and owner of the Big Red M and the host of the 6 Degrees of Associations podcast. He's worked with over 1000 associations to develop successful programs, optimize marketing, increase revenue, and cultivate industry partnerships.
Kelly chats with Lucas about association affinity programs, covering topics such as:
What does an affinity program for an association look like?
Common misperceptions about affinity programs.
The dangers of not properly resourcing affinity programs.
Common mistakes made in running affinity programs.
The near-magical powers of member feedback.
The near-magical powers of making experiences easy.
The steps to starting or reviving an affinity program.
The importance of data and reporting.
Trends and innovations in affinity programs.
Learn more about Core Affinity.
Listen to the 6 Degrees of Association podcast.
Check out Higher Logic's recent 2023 Association Member Experience Report.
Register for Super Forum 2024 by February 2, 2024 to save $200 on your registration!
 

In this episode, Higher Logic’s Kelly Whelan talks with Teri Carden, creator of Non Dues-A-Palooza, an organization that brings together industry thought leaders and curious association professionals to explore new and innovative ways to generate and implement non-dues revenue for associations. Give the episode a listen and you’ll learn:
Why NDR so important and impactful for associations.
Today’s typical dues/NDR split for association revenue.
Examples of non-dues revenue streams.
Key takeaways from this year’s Non Dues-A-Palooza event and what to expect from Non Dues-A-Palooza popups coming to a city near you.
Three things your sponsors are looking for.
Links mentioned in the episode:
Learn more about Non-Dues-a-Palooza: https://www.nonduesapalooza.com/
Contact Teri Carden: teri@nonduesapalooza.com
Higher Logic's upcoming webinar, with CEO Rob Wenger, The Future Is Now:AI and Automation in Association Software (choose the time that works for you)
November 16: http://www.higherlogic.com/w/november-2023-rob-product-ai-webinar-rsvp/
November 20: http://www.higherlogic.com/w/november-2023-apac-rob-product-ai-webinar-rsvp/
Register for Super Forum 2024, where Teri and others will share tips and ideas for helping your association thrive: https://superforum.higherlogic.com/

Today we discuss Higher Logic’s 2023 Association Community Benchmark Report with Senior Customer Advisor Kristen Parody. Kristen and Kelly cover topics like:
Why associations should review benchmarks and how they can use them.
Using benchmarks to inform discussions with your leadership team.
The trends in engagement pre-, during, and post-pandemic.
Using benchmarks for reasonable goal setting.
The percentage of users that actually engage.
Why email digest open rate is important.
Tips for collecting and analyzing your own community data.
Strategies for improving engagement with your community.
Adopting a personal voice in your community.
There are several resources mentioned in this episode that are useful as you review community benchmarks and work on increasing your association’s member engagement.
Download the 2023 Association Community Benchmark Report.
Read Kristen’s checklist of things community managers can do to ensure online community health.
Higher Logic customers can log into the Higher Logic User Group (HUG) and join us for monthly Hug Connects to learn from their peers.
We're also currently soliciting speaker proposals for Super Forum 2024 - share your insights, your successes, and even your failures through a workshop, panel, or speaker session. The deadline for submissions is October 13, 2023.

On this episode of the Member Engagement Show, Kelly talks with Sarah Spinosa, Product Marketing Manager at Higher Logic and a member of the ASAE Marketing Advisory Council. Sarah has 15 years of marketing experience and served on the 2023 ASAE MMCC Program Advisory Council and as an ASAE Gold Circle Award judge.  The conversation revolves around member-generated content and touches on:*What member-generated content is*Why it's important for associations*Ideas for leveraging your members’ expertise*Ways to gather member-generated content*Making it easy for members to submit content*Tapping into sponsors and partners for content*Encouraging content from newer, younger members who are earlier in their careers*Promoting and highlighting member-generated content
Sarah will be presenting a deeper dive on this subject at the ASAE Annual Meeting & Exposition August 5-8, 2023 in Atlanta, GA.  

In this episode Higher Logic's Sr. Marketing Automation Manager and email marketing expert Stefani Read touches on some of the learning from Higher Logic’s annual Email Benchmark Report and gives tips on how to operationalize the revealed insights.
Topics include:
The effect of Apple’s Mail Privacy Protection on getting accurate open rate metrics and other recipient data and how to cope with it
Why desktop opens shot up after MPP, but mobile email opens went down.
Why you should look at actual number of clicks and not click through percentage
Why it’s no longer smart to build strategy around open rates you can’t be 100% confident in
Trends in email volumes, open rates, and click rates
Tactics that impact email metrics
A/B testing tips
Tips for what metrics and email data you collect
Download Higher Logic’s 2022 Email Benchmark Report. 
Read more about how to adapt to Mail Privacy Protection in our blog post, The Impact of Email Privacy Rules and Tips for Adapting.

Associations need to be able to draw in each new generation (both as members and staff) to continue grow and thrive. As Gen Z enters the workforce, how should associations adapt in order to demonstrate their relevance?
Our guest this episode is Hanna Holman, a 2021 graduate with a BA in strategic communication journalism. She was a project manager with Mountain Tennessee Outreach Project, a group working to alleviate substandard housing in rural Appalachia, and is now the membership assistant at Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research, a non-profit dedicated to advancing ethical research. There, she handles member recruitment and retention, produces member content, and serves as a primary point of contact for PRIM&R’s members.
The episode covers:
Ideas for associations looking to engage the next generation of members and staff, and to adapt to a changing world.
Gen Z’s key considerations when looking for professional roles and employment?
Why Gen Z might be less likely to make work their passion and focus of their life than previous generations.
Accounting for changes in work and learning expectations.
Thinking beyond email and appearing in Gen Z’s lives more creatively.
Reducing the barriers to information and engagement.
Avoiding the damage outdated systems can do when you’re trying to appeal to Gen Z.
Listening to younger staff members for a strategic advantage.
Are younger generations even interested in joining associations? Do they even know about them?
Leveraging FOMO.
The power of candid, casual conversations (and not being afraid of them)
Keep exploring this topic during Higher Logic's free webinar on March 21, Attracting and Retaining the Next Generation of Association Members and Staff. During the webinar, a panel of association professionals will discuss:
Considerations for your technological infrastructure
Ideas for cultivating a flexible work and learning environment 
Strategies for supporting members’ and staff’s professional growth 
And more!

This episodes guests, Alexey Gutin and Josh Slyman of Web Scribble, walk us through the enormous value that job boards and communities that incorporate career development bring to associations, employers, and members.
Alexey is Co-founder and CEO at Web Scribble while Higher Logic alumni Josh is the company’s Director of Product Strategy.
In this episode, we cover:
Higher Logic's newest association solution, Higher Logic Thrive Jobs
A review of the labor markets for last year and 2023
What kind of talent is currently in demand
The value of career centers and job boards for associations in this environment
How boards can help introduce members to careers they never before considered
How vital it is for associations to stay aware of career development needs
Job boards as a driver of content that engages and retains
Job boards as a source of NDR
Job boards attracting employers as eventual partners and sponsors
Job boards as a source of informative data for the association and partners
The Community + Job Board + Marketing + LMS ecosystem
Why “if you found a member a job, you found a member for life”
Josh Slyman will also lead a session at Super Forum 2023 about how strategically connecting careers and community to protect your member’s careers drives membership, revenue, engagement, and forwards your mission. Register to gain more tips and tactics - April 10-12 in Washington, DC!

This episode, we talk with speaker and thought leader Reggie Henry, Chief Information and Performance Excellence officer at ASAE about what associations should be thinking about in 2023. We cover ground such as:
Are we planning too much based on last year’s data and technology?
Why you can't go back to how things were pre-pandemic.
The importance of continuing to support the new and diverse people brought into the fold via virtual meetings.
Preparing to attract and retain the next generation of members and staff.
The importance of having listening posts in communities.
How communities become critical in both pandemics and recessions. 
The new contract needed with members to get to personalization.
Being mindful of the RONI, Return on NOT Investing.
The importance of technology infrastructure and a smooth user experience.
Best of Need vs. Best of Breed.
The dangers of chasing the wrong metrics.
Meeting people based on their interests, not on what we have to sell.
Learn more about ASAE and their upcoming events at ASAEcenter.org
Registration is now open for the 13th annual Super Forum, April 10-12 in Washington DC! You won’t want to miss this comprehensive conference for association professionals. There will be a whole host of sessions dedicated to helping you enhance your member experience, and you’ll have the opportunity to share ideas, strategies, and challenges with your peers in the field.  
In a challenging economy, it’s more important than ever to stay on top of trends and tactics to keep your members renewing and to help your association thrive - and that's easier to do with a community of colleagues beside you. We hope to see you there! 

In this episode, host Kelly Whelan talks with Higher Logic Product Marketing Manager Sarah Spinosa about the recently released Association Member Experience Report. There's nothing like going right to source when you want to find out what members want, like, and wish they were getting from their association memberships, and that's exactly what this report outlines. This is an episode not to be missed! 
Topics covered include:
Who Higher Logic surveyed and why
How members prefer to get information (it may surprise you)
What benefits members value most
How often members tend to interact with their associations
Are associations giving the level of personalization members want
What the survey revealed about events, both in-person and virtual
Top reasons members consider leaving their associations
How associations can use this valuable information
Download Higher Logic's 2022 Association Member Experience Report to learn more!

The Guest: Suzanne F Stevens. Suzanne is a professional speaker who has served on many boards, including as past president of the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers. As the founder of YouMeWe Social Impact Group, she works with organizations to grow Conscious leaders, their influence, and Social Impact – sustainably. Suzanne merges her social initiative expertise in the nonprofit and for-profit worlds to create an enriched experience that will attract, engage, and retain a diverse membership. 
The Topics:
The importance of associations incorporating social initiatives
How associations can choose initiatives and issues that align with their values
Making social initiatives part of the strategy vs. an add-on or afterthought
The concrete steps leadership can take to “bake in” social initiatives
How connecting to the social issues members care about leads to retention
Social issues as another way of connecting members to each other, including at events
What makes a social initiative sustainable
Why associations are in an especially strong position to improve the world
Handy Links:You Me We Organization
Higher Logic's 2022 Association Member Experience Report