The fabulous Shelly Alcorn, CAE is "
SICK
AND TIRED of the questions about ‘what is the value of membership.’" I
loved her post, most of all her observation that
you
can find the roots of modern associations in the associating that happened in the
symposiums of Ancient Greece, guilds in Medieval Europe, and salons of the
Renaissance. Shelly points out that
associating is rooted in the universal human need for connection. I’d add that associating also reflects a
human need for individuals to come together to accomplish things they cannot do
easily for themselves.
“Associating” bodies whether a social club,
fraternal organization, neighborhood, workers union, sports team, trade
association, professional society, Facebook,
credit union, LinkedIn, or Kickstarter – whether formal, enduring
structures or short-term collaborations – all have a cost of
participation. It may be giving of your
time; your attention; your talents; a commitment to your fellow members or
certain ideals; or giving up the freedom of choosing the color to paint your
house, conceding to be advertised to; and yes, in many cases, money – whether
called membership dues, participation fees, donations, or “financially backing
a project.” Whether the cost of participation
is worthwhile depends on the perceived value of the return on that
investment. That is, does participation
provide a result that is 1) desired and 2) worth the effort when compared to
the alternative of achieving a similar outcome another way.
What is frustrating about many
conversations about the “value of membership” is that they often devolve into
“Is our price point still relevant for the programs, products and services we
offer?” What is most challenging in my
mind is that these conversations tend to focus on the cost and avenues of
participation, and fail to recognize what may be a bigger challenge: if associations are designed to help
individuals accomplish things they cannot do easily for themselves, we need to
think long and hard about the fact that it
is not as hard to do many things for yourself as it used to be.
Two quick examples:
AAA: Growing
up, we used to take a fair number of family vacations by car. And critical to that was a membership in the American Automobile Association. Not only did AAA give us assurance that we
could get a tow if we needed one, it also got us the best available rates on
hotels, and made custom highlighted TripTiks®,
customized step-by-step maps to navigate our trip. In the 1970’s, all three of these were
extreme value adds. In fact, to this
day, I remain a member of AAA because they still have the best hotel rates, and
they will take care of tracking down an available tow truck, making a
potentially stressful time a little less
stressful. But there may very well come
a time when I decide that paying $70 or more per year for these savings of
convenience and hotel rooms is simply not worth it. And it’s not because of AAA … it’s because
smartphones and the Internet have made it easy for me to find a good price on a hotel, roadside
assistance, and customized travel
directions.
Guilds: Guilds
dominated the career pathway, standards of practice, and access to markets in
much of Medieval Europe. To become a
practicing craftsman, individuals typically had to endure years of
apprenticeship and demonstrate proficiency in techniques determined by the
appropriate guild. In short, the guilds single-handedly
controlled the pathway to being a successful craftsman, which was difficult (if
not impossible) without participation in the appropriate guild. Despite what seems like the ultimate “golden handcuff”
benefit, the guild model failed … not because of the change in its value
proposition of helping interested novices become skilled craftspersons, but
because the external world changed ─ the rise of standardized manufacturing
techniques undermined their proposition and shifts in social attitudes about free
market economics changed the social acceptance of guilds.
In my next two posts, I’ll build
on this idea to look at external trends impacting associations and provide a
few thoughts on what you and your association should do to ensure your
continued viability. And I would love to hear your feedback and add your
examples of how the changing world has impacted specific associations.