Webinar Details
Date: Tuesday 17 November
Time: 11am
Venue: Online
This current period of economic uncertainty is something that we could never have predicted a year ago, with membership organisations shifting their focus on retaining their members. The severity of the COVID-19 pandemic has led to virtually all business sectors being affected in one way or another, with many organisations cutting their workforce due to reduced market demand. This has had a significant impact in the UK, with current statistics showing that:
- 5 million people are currently unemployed
- 5% of the population were unemployed between June and August
- 156,000 fewer 16-24-year olds are employed compared to three months ago
(source: bbc.co.uk)
How can membership organisations help?
With the UK officially in recession for the first time in 11 years, the longevity of the COVID-19 pandemic will be the primary deciding factor on whether the situation worsens and how long it takes to recover. While this is out of our hands, there are steps that professional membership organisations can take today to insulate themselves from the worst effects of this economic situation.
The new How We Live report by Aviva provides insight into the change in people’s attitudes and behaviours over the course of the past year. It goes on to examine the long-term impact for people living and working in the UK.
A key section outlines how workers in 2020 are planning to make changes to their careers as a result of the COVID outbreak. And there are some interesting conclusions:
- 53% of workers plan to make changes to their career in the next 12 months as a result of COVID-19
- 1 million UK workers aspire to retrain or learn new skills, with 15% of these people aged within the 25-34 segment
- 7 million workers hope to gain more academic qualifications within the next 12 months
- 7 million people plan to move companies but hope to stay in the same industry
Are you providing tangible value to retain members?
These statistics show a huge opportunity for membership organisations to help people recover from the economic crisis. But what steps need to be taken to make the maximum impact?
The first is to step back and analyse the core value that you provide. Keep in mind that simple “club membership” is not going to be enough to retain members.
It was helpful in the past but today, the internet has revolutionised our ability to feel connected for free. A standalone membership scheme will not be enough to drive members to join or renew their membership. Providing value through timely benefits that help members to drive their career will be the key to success. The ability to offer an intuitive, recognised and comprehensive professional development path will become the competitive differentiator that drives people to engage
Free webinar session
As part of the Membership OnTrack webinar series, Protech will be hosting a free webinar to provide membership organisations with actionable strategies that can improve member engagement through professional development. During this webinar, we’ll be addressing four key questions that are central to the success of your organisation’s professional development strategy:
- Do you know what your members value? You may think so but when did you last ask them? In our experience, well-written member surveys and interviews often turn up a very different set of results that don’t always support the current membership strategies.
- Is professional development at the heart of your member value proposition? The key driver for member acquisition and retention is your ability to help them achieve their personal goals. Do you have clear professional development paths that accomplish this?
- Do your processes fully integrate CPD with your products and services? Each qualification, event or resource you offer should clearly provide a positive and tangible outcome for the member. It should move them nearer to their personal goal.
- Have you eliminated all the process and technology barriers that have blocked you in the past? Holding data in separate silos makes it impossible to efficiently integrate CPD. It makes qualification-tracking slow and cumbersome for your staff and makes CPD completion an arduous task for members.
Our free webinar ‘Repositioning member engagement to drive professional development’ is part of the Memberwise OnTrack programme. It is scheduled for Tuesday 17th November at 11am, where we will provide answers to these questions and guide your organisation to support your members though these difficult times.
