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Montana Farm Bureau

Federation

JohnBrewerConsulting@Bresnan.net 406-690-0004

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Competition

• 1,373,070 trade and professional associations; charitable and philanthropic organizations in 2010

• 61,640 new applications in 2010

Session Objectives

• Share some of the top line findings ASAE’s “Decision To Join” study

• Are you asking “The Ultimate Question”

• Tools to evaluate your relevance

Presentation Information

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The Decision to Join

• The Decision to Join (DTJ) is based on a survey of 16,944 individuals who are, were, or could be but never chose to become members of an association

• 18 diverse organizations participated by submitting member and nonmember names to a database that was analyzed as one common pool of professionals

• Have belonged to 5,200 associations

Thank You to the Decision to Join Co-sponsors!

• American Chemical Society

• American College of Healthcare Executives

• American Geophysical Union

• American Health Information Management Association

• American Society for Quality

• American Society of Civil Engineers

• American Society of Mechanical Engineers

• The College of American Pathologists

• Credit Union Executives Society

• Emergency Nurses Association

• IEEE

• Institute of Food Technologists

• National Association of Secondary School Principals

• National Athletic Trainers’ Association

• National Court Reporters Association

• National Society of Accountants

• Project Management Institute

• School Nutrition Association

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Primary Areas of Inquiry

• Attitudes toward associations in general– Challenges the respondents face– Functions that associations perform– Means of accessing professional information

• Attitudes toward the sponsor association– Personal Benefits from membership – Benefits to the Field (Good of the order)

– Overall attitude toward membership

Primary Segments Analyzed

• Level of association involvement

• Age/Generation/Career Stage

• Gender

• Employer/practice type

• National v. International

Level of Involvement

IS CRITICAL!!

Respondents perception of value from their association increases with their

level of involvement.

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Involvement Segments

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Level of Involvement

How likely is it that you would recommend membership in the association to a friend or colleague?

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The Ultimate QuestionHow likely is it that you would recommend membership in

the association to a friend or colleague?

Ntnl Avg

9-10=

Promoter

43%

7-8=

Passive

31.2%

1-6=

Detractor

25.8%

NPS 17.2

Answers based on a 10 point scale 9-10 Promoter7-8 Passive6 or less Detractor

Colleague or co-worker 35.9%

Professor or instructor 29.0%

University or college program 12.8%

Do not recall 6.7%

A workshop, conference or meeting 4.3%

Some other way 3.3%

Advertisement in a journal or magazine 3.1%

Direct contact from the association by direct mail 2.0%

Browsing on the Internet 1.4%

Direct contact from the association in person 0.6%

Direct contact from the association electronically 0.5%

Booth at a trade show 0.2%

Telephone or email inquiry 0.2%

News story 0.1%

How did you first learn about membership in the association?

77.7%PersonalProfessionalContact

Why “Promoter” status is important

How likely is it that you would recommend membership in the association to a friend or colleague?

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Governance Committee Ad hoc None

Promoter 65.8% 60.7% 46.8% 39.6%

Passive 21.7% 27.2% 33.6% 31.8%

Detractor 12.5% 21.1% 19.6% 28.6%

100% 100% 100% 100%

How likely is it that you would recommend membership in the association to a friend or colleague?

Sens

e of

Com

mun

ity

Valu

e of

Mem

bers

hip

Valu

e to

Ass

ocia

tion

Rete

ntion

Levels of Engagement

How do we get

these folks more

engaged?

Members Want to be Part of the Members Want to be Part of the Common GoodCommon Good

“A person’s decision to join an

individual membership

organization is NOT a cost-

benefit analysis.”

How important were the following How important were the following benefits in your decision to join?benefits in your decision to join?

1 2 3 4 5

Direct Benefit

How important were the following How important were the following benefits in your decision to join?benefits in your decision to join?

1 2 3 4 5

Direct Benefit

Greater GoodBenefit

Access to the most up to date information available 4.22

Professional development or educational program offerings 3.91

Opportunities for you to network with other professionals 3.72

Access to career information and employment opportunities 3.39

Access to products, services and suppliers 3.21

Opportunities to gain leadership experience 3.05

A reference directory of members/practitioners 2.93

Member discounts or group purchasing activities 2.85

Personal Benefits

Providing standards or guidelines that support quality 3.85

Gathering, analyzing and publishing data on trends in the field 3.77

Maintaining a code of ethics for practice 3.74

Promoting greater appreciation of value to other practitioners 3.70

Conducting research on significant issues affecting the field 3.70

Promoting greater public awareness of contributions in the field 3.67

Influencing legislation and regulations that affect the field 3.64

Supporting student education and entry into the field 3.58

Attracting competent people into the field 3.53

Certifying those who meet critical competency standards 3.52

The association's role in defining critical competencies 3.44

Providing awards or recognition for excellence in the field 3.07

Benefits to the Field

The importance attributed to program activities varies with level of involvement. In some cases, elected leaders are not in sync with rank-and-file members

Leaders v. Members

Personal Benefits

Rank order of importance by InvolvementG

overn

No

ne

Opportunities for you to network with other professionals the field 1 3

Access to the most up to date information available in your field 2 1

Professional development or educational program offerings 3 2

Opportunities to gain leadership experience 4 7

Access to career information and employment opportunities 5 4

Access to products, services and suppliers (e.g. insurance, publications, etc.)

6 5

A reference directory of members/practitioners 7 6

Member discounts or group purchasing activities 8 8

Benefits to the FieldRank order of importance by involvement

Go

vern

No

ne

Promoting a greater appreciation of the role and value of the field among practitioners

1 4

Providing standards or guidelines that support quality 2 1

Maintaining a code of ethics for practice 3 2

Influencing legislation and regulations that affect the field 4 7

Promoting greater public awareness of contributions in the field 5 6

Supporting student education and entry into the field 6 8

Certifying those who meet critical competency standards 7 9

Gathering, analyzing and publishing data on trends in the field 8 3

Attracting competent people into the field 9 11

Conducting research on significant issues affecting the field 10 5

The association's role in defining critical competencies 11 10

Providing awards or recognition for excellence in the field 12 12

Reasons Why Leaders are Out of Sync

• Access to information and analyses that give them a vantage point members don’t have;

• Responsibility to take action that members don’t have;

• Ignorance; unaware of the needs certain segments might have;

Age/Generation/Career StageIssues

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Generational StereotypesGenerational Stereotypes

Silent Generation (1925-1945)What you put into it is what you get out of it.

Boomers (1946-1964)Relationship oriented benefits (networking)

Generation X (1965-1976)Support Association but don’t want to come to meetings

Generation Y/Millennials (1977-2000)What's in it for me?

High tech, low involvement, demand quick response

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Will “Generation X” join their professional associations as their predecessors did, or are they different in ways that make this questionable?

Association Membership of Baby Boomers and Generation X, by Age

Source: General Social Survey data, various years

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What is your overall attitude toward associations?

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0%

Under 30

30-42

43-59

Over 60

% choosing “very favorable”

Are associations capable of addressing the practical needs of the members?

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0%

Under 30

30-42

43-59

Over 60

% choosing “very favorable”

Will there be a greater or lesser need for associations five years from now?

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0%

Under 30

30-42

43-59

Over 60

% choosing “greater”

What do you think are the most important functions of an association?

41.0%

37.7%

35.3%

31.1%

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0%

Millenials (under 30)

Gen X (30-42)

Boomers (43-59)

Pre-War (60 or over)

Networking with Peers

What do you think are the most important functions of an association?

Training/Professional Development

50.0%

44.7%

46.6%

45.3%

42.0% 43.0% 44.0% 45.0% 46.0% 47.0% 48.0% 49.0% 50.0% 51.0%

Millenials (under 30)

Gen X (30-42)

Boomers (43-59)

Pre-War (60 or over)

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Generation and Career Level

Finding:Values differ by career level (generation)

• Networking and connecting

• Professional training

• Representing the field to the government

• Opportunity for leadership experience

Strategic Opportunities

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• Ask the Ultimate Question and develop more promoters

• Create awareness with Next Gen before their late 20s

• Engage members (ad hoc, segmentation)

• Organizational evaluation: (time for radical reinvention or just tweaking)– brand promise; relevancy

“When you’re done changing, you’re done!”

--Benjamin Franklin

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MeasurementThe Ultimate Question

“How likely is it that you would recommend membership in the Chamber/CVB to a friend or colleague?” (1-10 scale with 10 as very likely)

2011 2010 2009 2007 Ntnl Avg

9-10=

Promoter

40% 42% 51% 41% 43%

7-8=

Passive

40% 32% 29% 40% 31.2%

1-6=

Detractor

20% 26% 20% 19% 25.8%

NPS 20 16 31 22 17.2

What will What will make your make your

organization organization Remarkable?Remarkable?

RemarkableRemarkableRemarkableRemarkable

1. A Customer Service Culture

2. Alignment of Products and Services With

Mission

6. Organizational Adaptability

7. Alliance Building

3. Data-Driven Strategies

4. Dialogue and Engagement

5. CEO as a Broker of Ideas

Commitment to Action

Commitment to Purpose

Commitment to Analysis

and Feedback

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Montana Farm Bureau

Federation

JohnBrewerConsulting@Bresnan.net 406-690-0004