How to Get Association Members to Renew in 2024 and 2025
What makes members renew? We read the 2024 Membership Marketing Benchmark Report from MGI and pulled out some tips.
Member retention. It’s crucial for associations that want to keep growth going and execute on their mission. We need to accept that members, member expectations, and the dynamics of membership renewal have changed. And associations’ digital capabilities have also changed.
What hasn’t changed is that members need to feel like they’re getting high value from their membership.
We’ve explored the 2024 Marketing General Incorporated Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report alongside Higher Logic’s own Association Community Benchmark Report, Member Experience Report, and Email Benchmark Report, and we have a couple suggestions for strategies to getting members retain members.
1. Make it Worth It: Provide and Communicate Membership Value
According to the 2024 Marketing General Incorporated Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report, 58% of associations think their value proposition is compelling or very compelling. That’s up from 51% in 2023. Associations reporting strong growth and renewals also view their value proposition more favorably.
Providing value to your members is important – but effectively communicating that value equally important to member retention.
So how do you enhance and communicate the value of your association membership?
- Emphasize how your association directly benefits members’ professional development.
- Offer exclusive resources, specialized content, or networking opportunities members can’t get anywhere else.
- Be consistent. The world is noisier and more distracting than ever. Members won’t open every email (in fact, our Association Member Experience Report suggests they engage about once a month). Make sure you’re reminding members of their benefits on a regular cadence.
2. Are You Talking to Me? Personalize Your Member Experience and Communications
The days of generic outreach are already over.
Personalizing your member experience is the key to making your members feel valued and supported. The data in our Association Email Benchmark Report, Community Benchmark Report, and Member Experience Report shows that member segmentation and personalization effectively boost engagement, and engagement boosts renewal rates.
Collecting and leveraging member data is the fuel that powers that personalization, including tailored messages about upcoming events, relevant resources, and specific benefits. When you talk directly to members about what they’re interested in, they stay involved.
3. You Only Love Me When I’m Leaving: Engage Members Early and Often
Members need to be reminded, and reminded often, that it’s time for them to renew. But effective member retention efforts should start way before your member’s expiration date.
Associations with increased engagement throughout the year, such as frequent participation in conferences and professional development opportunities, more frequently report membership growth and higher renewal rates.
Every interaction you have with members should be proving your value, reminding them what they gain from being a member. From onboarding, to events, and more.
Consistently foster member interaction through webinars, discussion forums, and online community spaces. Engaging members throughout the year shows a sincerity and authenticity that makes renewals a near-automatic sell when the time comes.
Higher Logic makes this easier with community software that drives member-to-member conversations and connections, and features that help you save time by automating and personalizing reminders to members to engage. We also share numerous resources, based on almost two decades of experience working with associations, to help you implement proven strategies and best practices
4. Don't Just Use AI as a Buzzword: Lean Into Digital Innovation
Associations are increasingly leveraging technology to connect with members. It all starts with a member engagement platform that allows you to automate, personalize, and engage at scale.
Then there’s the AI revolution. Associations using AI to personalize communication and streamline operations were found to be more likely to report membership growth. Leveraging AI can also help analyze member engagement patterns so your association can better anticipate member needs and craft timely, personalized offers.
It’s not about using AI just to say you did. When you adopt new technology, make sure you evaluate how it’s enhancing your member experience and value. With AI, maybe you’re better able to suggest relevant courses or events based on a member’s past behavior, offer more intelligent job board recommendations, achieve more effective mentor matching, or automatically nurture top community contributors.
5. Everyone is Unique: Give Members Freedom and Choices
Flexibility is becoming increasingly important for associations. Rapid change in economics, technology, and the way people work have forced your members to be more agile in their professional lives than ever. They want membership that is equally agile to keep up with their needs.
Offering different types of memberships—such as monthly subscriptions, installment payments, or different levels of access—will appeal to a wider range of prospects. Membership options remove barriers to both initial signup and renewals.
Member benefits should be flexible too. Members should have a variety of ways to engage with your association, whether that’s in-person events, online community access, email digests, virtual education of varying lengths and to suit experience levels. When members have options, they can choose to engage in the ways that make the most sense to them.
6. Win Them Back: Re-engage Lapsed Members
According to MGI’s report, associations that focused efforts on re-engaging former members—such as providing special offers or additional support—experienced better overall renewal rates.
To maximize reinstatements, reach out to lapsed members with relevant, personalized offers. Find out why they lapsed and address their concerns. Remind them of the value available and provide incentives such as discounts or a special welcome-back package.
7. Who Doesn't Like to Be Celebrated? Recognize Members
Be diligent about calling out and celebrating member milestones such as membership anniversaries, certifications, new jobs, promotions, and other professional achievements. Having your name and achievements celebrated by a group of your peers (and potential future employers) can be of tremendous value to members.
Recognition programs also help foster a strong sense of belonging. Even something as simple as a community badge contributes to creating emotional ties to the association and higher renewal rates. A report by Wild Apricot emphasized members are more likely to stay when they feel valued and recognized.
Member Retention is an Always-On Endeavor
In 2024, member retention is about more than just making a compelling last-ditch argument at renewal time—it’s about demonstrating value consistently, personalizing experiences, and using data-driven strategies to keep members engaged, appreciative, and loyal. Retention cannot be a passing thought or sporadic priority. These retention strategies must be deployed by associations consistently throughout the year so that members come back year after year with little to no debate.
