Outside of shaping policy decisions and growing its influence, driving member renewals is one of the core areas of attention for any trade association. This is ultimately one of the most important ways any industry group can remain functional and operational; however, in the current financial climate, when more industry bodies are appearing on a regular basis, securing these sign-ups is not necessarily an easy task, particularly when they often have limited channels with which to engage their audiences. With these challenges in mind, how can trade associations utilise their member newsletters to drive renewals?
Growing competition
Not only is everyone facing challenges driven by the economic outlook, but all consumers are being bombarded by a huge number of emails and messages every day, each seeking to cut through the noise and resonate with readers, meaning that standing out from the crowd is an increasingly challenging task.
When developed correctly, a newsletter acts as the steady, recurring conversation that the organisation has with its members, and can directly contribute to renewal behaviour by demonstrating value, prompting engagement and reminding audiences of the benefits they would miss by not renewing. It therefore must be considered as a strategic touchpoint in a broader membership journey, not simply as a vehicle for broadcasting news.
Member-centric newsletter messaging to drive renewals
Naturally, the nature of any member communications will vary depending on the type of organisation and the sector in which it operates, but broadly, all newsletters will follow a relatively similar format. Before producing the content, trade associations should consider which metrics matter to them, as this will naturally dictate decisions around content, tone and format. To most, open rates and click-throughs are useful diagnostics, but in reality, the most important figures for member retention or acquisition are more nuanced and tend to be those that correlate with renewal behaviour. This includes less ‘obvious’ metrics such as event attendance, content downloads and peer-to-peer interactions, so aligning analytics to these outcomes and tracking patterns over time can be an effective approach.
All members will only join – and stay with – a trade association if it is adding something valuable or interesting to them. As a result, all newsletter content should be member-centric and designed in a way that makes readers renew for fear of missing out on something useful. Ideally, all content should contain at least one item that a member can use in the next seven days, for example, a short policy summary that affects their operating environment, an invitation to a boutique seminar with limited places or a downloadable template that eases a work task. The recurring production of immediately useful content will, over time, build a cumulative sense of value which builds up to become a powerful driver of renewals.
A tailored approach
For most associations over a certain size, a one-size-fits-all approach to member communication will not be effective, and segmentation and personalisation make a huge difference. However, style should not be favoured over substance, and the emphasis should remain on being relevant, rather than sophisticated for its own sake. Segmentation doesn’t need to be difficult, and can be as simple as tailoring subject lines and content by member type, sector or region so that the right people see the right items. More complex personalisation should be reserved for moments that matter, such as renewal windows.
For renewals specifically, planning a communications journey or programme that begins with value reminders three months before the date in question, then intensifies with deeper member stories and case studies one month before, and finishes with personalised reminders and support options in the final fortnight can be highly effective. And, when this cadence is combined with content that clearly demonstrates the benefits they have already received from the organisation, it converts passive subscribers into renewing members.
Adapt approach to drive member renewals
Naturally, in the frenetic modern world, it’s naïve to assume all members will consume all of your newsletters in full, and many will skim-read, which should be factored into design strategies. Equally, 81% of all emails are now read on mobile, rather than laptops or desktops, but some research suggests a large number of people ‘dual-screen’ and will initially scan an email on their phone before reviewing it in full on another, larger device. This should be taken into account when designing member communications, and often including a stand-out or attention-grabbing opener will lead to higher numbers engaging with the content in full. Content should also be concise and to the point. We all recognise that attention spans are decreasing, and a measurable improvement in renewal is often driven more by clarity than by volume of content, so ensure that all primary renewal-related messages are obvious within ten seconds of opening the email.
Finally, before launching member newsletters that are designed to drive renewals, test, iterate and adapt. Associations that measure the link between newsletter engagement and renewal behaviour can identify which types of content matter most and then invest accordingly. There is encouraging evidence from association benchmarking studies that improved, regular communication has helped membership levels recover post-pandemic. Therefore, applying a measurement framework to content will allow marketing leads to make the same case internally and to continuously improve the timelines and formats that most reliably support retention.
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