Discover proven strategies and expert insights that pave the path to lasting membership expansion with association management royalty Velma Knowles and our host Farhad Khan.
About This Episode
In this episode, we talk with association management royalty, Velma Knowles, about the four pillars of membership growth, discussed in her latest best-selling book about how to scale your membership. We start by busting some myths associations hold around membership and replacing them with data-driven pillars that are universal to all associations.
About Our Guest
Velma Knowles is a coach and consultant to associations and non-profit leaders around the what, when and how of growing membership, engaging boards, and delivering member relevance. Velma works with leaders to create sustainable membership growth by focusing on the 4-drivers of growth: Clarity in Numbers, Alignment in Resources, Relevance in Value, and Accountability in Planning. She is a speaker and best-selling author.
Full List of Questions We Asked Velma
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do?
What are the biggest misconceptions around membership growth?
Can you tell us more about how association employees can avoid working in silos and how to break down those silos?
You mentioned that there are 4 key ingredients to membership growth. Can you talk about those key drivers of growth?
Out of those 4 key drivers, where should associations start?
How can we be sure to listen to the voices of members?
When we are onboarding new members, what can we do to ensure a good member journey and start building the relationship right away?
For a large association that has many new members, it may not be realistic to reach out to each new member. How do we build relationships at scale?
What are the key metrics associations should track about their members?
Why do you see a membership website as important for associations?
What features should associations have in their member portal?
We hear often hear from clients that having a login area is a barrier for members. Do you think it is inherently a barrier?
Many associations have benefits that are not being used or only used by a few members. Is there value to keeping those benefits around or time to retire them?
What universal benefits should be in an association’s portal?
Audience Questions
Are membership drives out of fashion?
How do we engage members with limited resources?
How often should we add to our different membership tiers?
What are some valuable strategies to recover members that were lost during the pandemic?
How can we turn engagement into revenue opportunities?
Closing Remarks
What is your biggest takeaway for our audience?
Can you share a personal habit that has contributed the most to your success?