Your Complete Guide to Modern Member Engagement

Quality engagement among professional association members continues to be an ongoing challenge. With so much digital real estate already vying for a member’s attention, organizations struggle to stay relevant and attract new members. More importantly, they are struggling with member retention. 

However, using digital tools to build high-quality online engagement can be a game-changer for associations. By 2029, the smartphone user base is expected to grow to  6.2 billion globally. With more professionals spending time online than ever before, associations must capitalize on this trend.

Adopting a digital publishing platform such as KITABOO enables associations to create high-quality interactive content – from eBooks to videos and audio representations- efficiently and in multiple languages.  

This blog outlines how associations can conceptualize and execute online member engagement strategies using innovative digital tools and engagement analytics.  

Table of Contents:

I. Current Engagement Challenges

1. Low Engagement Rate
2. Lack of Online Growth & Development Programmes 
3. Lack of Online Networking Opportunities
4. Poor Online Community Experience 

II. Digital Solutions and Tools

III. Content Strategies that Work

1. A Superior On-Boarding Experience
2. Online Learning Opportunities 
3. A Strong Mentorship Culture
4. Build a Strong Community Infrastructure 

IV. Measuring Engagement Effectively

V. Implementation Roadmap

1. Understand Member Needs 
2. Embrace Digital Publishing Technology 
3. Build Relevant Content & Engagement
4. Nurture a Data-Centric Culture

VI. The Conclusion

Today, a growing number of legacy professional associations are struggling to retain members and attract new members into the fold. Younger professionals are especially unlikely to join associations unless they experience high-impact value from growth and career perspectives:  

Organizations are experiencing overall low digital member engagement rates due to a lack of structured opportunities and avenues for online engagement. Engagement tends to be more of a one-way street way for professional organizations to send out communication every now and then.

Today’s professionals seek opportunities to upgrade their skills and grow their knowledge. Yet, many associations continue to host offline workshops and programs due to a lack of interactive eLearning solutions. 

Networking continues to be an important tool for professionals for knowledge sharing, opportunity exchanges, and mentorship. Professional organizations lack the online infrastructure to facilitate meaningful networking. 

Peer-to-peer professional conversations are an important aspect of the community experience for professionals in a similar field. Traditional associations are unable to curate a constructive community experience for members.

Associations looking to reinvent themselves and stay relevant must consider building a strong online presence. This approach helps build sustainable engagement, leverage superior member engagement strategies, transcend geographic barriers, deliver higher value via relevant content, and strengthen the community’s connection.

One of the most effective ways to achieve these goals is to use an automated, feature-rich digital publishing tool such as KITABOO. Such a tool combines the power of multiple technologies, such as AI, Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, Cloud Computing, and robotic automation. Associations can leverage the benefits of such a solution to build a high-quality, engaging user experience for their members.

Here are some examples of key content strategies that can help associations build high-impact online engagement: 

This is one of the most important member engagement strategies. Engagement starts right from the time a member is onboarded into the community. Associations must have a seamless and inviting onboarding workflow. For instance, new members can be connected with a mentor and receive relevant on-demand learning resources and an interactive brand kit about the association. 

Members are always looking to hone their skills and knowledge and further their career prospects. Associations can introduce relevant certifications, create access to a digital library of on-demand learning resources, offer personalized learning paths, and build a lifelong learning ecosystem to support members.

Mentorship has emerged as one of the most valuable takeaways from any professional association. Designing a structured mentorship approach can help mentors and mentees derive more value from the relationship. 

Associations must create a pathway for members to share user-generated content. This pillar drives engagement while making it relevant to peers, mentors, and mentees. Such a  resource-sharing community helps build a rich content pool and collaborative relationships between members. 

Associations must take a data-centric approach to optimize their engagement-building efforts. A digital publishing platform such as KITABOO, for instance, comes with an inbuilt engagement analytics engine. Associations have in-depth access to engagement data, based on which they can better understand member behaviors, engagement patterns, and interests. 

They can make data-driven decisions about new content and community initiatives and derive the following benefits:

• Deliver highly personalized experience to users
• Bring more accuracy to decision-making
• Execute real-time decision-making more efficiently 
• Leverage the power of predictive data analytics to forecast trends 

Here’s a look at the way forward to enhance member engagement strategies:

Building quality online engagement for members demands a deeper understanding of members’ needs, preferences, and challenges. Associations need to go back to the drawing board and reimagine their strategies to capture the attention of members. 

Associations must adopt a single, unified publishing interface that enables them to create, publish, and distribute content seamlessly, efficiently, and cost-effectively. It is advisable to partner with a digital publishing technology expert such as KITABOO to derive the best solutions based on an association’s unique needs. 

One of the best membership growth tactics is to build relevant content and engagement that helps members grow and further their career ambitions. Delivering updated online learning resources, certification programs, workshops, structured mentorship programs, and coaching opportunities can help attract new members while retaining existing ones. 

Encourage members to actively participate in generating user-generated content and automate the process of offering recognition for their efforts via techniques such as gamification. 

Digital tools enable associations to access a wealth of real-time user data. Associations can understand their members’ needs and leverage insights to offer a high-quality, useful, and constructive user experience. 

Professional associations play an important role in supporting members of diverse professions. They can stay competitive by investing early in high-impact interactive online engagement, which connects members meaningfully. By partnering with a technology expert, they can identify the best solutions and stay relevant in a digitally transformed world.    

If your association is grappling with member engagement challenges, consider using technology to transform engagement and deliver higher value to members. Digital textbook publishing platform KITABOO offers innovative, cost-effective solutions to serve diverse needs. 

Connect with us now to start a conversation. 

Also check:

Digital Textbook Platform for K12 Publishers

Digital Textbook Platform for Associations & Societies

Digital Textbook Platform for Trade Publishers

Digital Textbook Platform for Training Companies

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