By Daniel Meyerov
Are you thinking about your association's web strategy? If so, then you'll be pleased to know that your association and websites have a great deal in common.
Both are built on two powerful concepts: trust and connectivity. An association is essentially a community-a set of individuals and organizations with the common purpose of joining forces for mutual benefit. These entities are mutually strengthened through their connection to one another, made possible through the association's leadership. The association serves as the core entity which all of the individual members trust to act in the best interests of all of them. Through their cooperation and connectivity, the individuals become a much more powerful force of one, leveraging the combined resources of the association.
This dynamic extends to the web world. Association leaders seeking to build an effective, results-oriented web strategy will see that these same two principles of trust and connectivity are the foundation of a robust web presence.
Building an effective web presence is about establishing a strong, credible, and professional online brand. Functionality and features serve to support this, not the other way around. The idea is that the association site creates a connection between all of the entities that are part of the association. For this reason, it is imperative that a site user implicitly trusts the entity that is represented by the website.
This sense of trust is established when first visiting, viewing, and interacting with the site, and it happens within the first seven to ten seconds of the site visit. In a series of research tests, it has been established that, on average, a user gives a downloaded homepage this span of time to establish its overall credibility. During this time, the site visitor will make the critical judgments, often unconsciously, based on the following questions:
- Do I think the association/not-for-profit represented in the website is a bonafide, professional organization? Do I recognize (or think/feel I recognize) the brand?
- Do I feel that the association/not-for-profit represented in the website provides the benefits, products, and/or services that I am looking for, and at the price-point and quality I am expecting?
- Am I confident that if I engage with the association/not-for-profit and there is a problem, I will have ample recourse and support in order to get the issue rectified?
- Most importantly, do I feel I can trust this association/not-for-profit with my personal and/or financial information, with confidence that they will not abuse it or act dishonestly with it in any way?
It is, therefore, critical that a not-for-profit or association present its web brand in a way that creates this type of confidence. This, together with the functionality and value that the site provides, will further establish and reinforce for site visitors that the organization is a trustworthy, credible community that speaks on behalf of its members and/or donors, and that clearly and effectively represents their joint values.
As an extension of this concept, it is highly useful for an association/not-for-profit to leverage the power and reach of its member base, in order to promote the value and benefit of association membership and interaction with the association itself. By utilizing its member-base as a linked network and ensuring that each member presents his or her membership and relationship to the association, the association establishes an immediate advertising and brand-building platform. Note: the bigger the association is with the greater the number of members, the more this reciprocal linking to multiple websites promotes search engine optimization results.
The following points are some practical tips on how to strengthen your association website:
- Make sure that you clearly present the purpose and benefit of the association to both members and to those people and companies wanting to engage with these members.
- Present the power and relevance of your association on your website. This may include displaying how many members you have (if this is not confidential information), what you have done for them, what the association achieves in the marketplace, etc.
- If a trade association, include links on your website which enable potential customers to contact the member's business. This will support their businesses and provide them with additional advertising and market promotion. This may represent an important benefit of membership for the various companies/entities that are members.
- An association website can possibly present tenders and RFQs for joint purchase requirements across all association members. This will drive attention and return visits by those companies wishing to engage with the association to potentially act as a supplier, and it will also present some additional benefit to potential association members for joining.
- It is important for an association site to include a private area that is dedicated solely for association members, to create and continue the sense of community among the group. This should include features such as the association charter, calendared items regarding the association meetings and activities, information, resources, references, as well as any opportunities that any association member may leverage and benefit from as part of his or her membership.
- The association site should serve as the base framework and platform for the association networking tools and environment for members. It should provide a shared area, where all association members feel supported, connected, and inspired by each other and the association itself.
The association website has the potential to be one of the most powerful and connective communication tools available for its members, if the association host simply remembers the shared goals of trust and connectivity.
Daniel Meyerov is CEO of OnlyBusiness.com, a business platform and community that provide small business with all of the tools and services they need to be successful on the web. He can be reached through his website at www.onlybusiness.com, or 6210 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 209, Los Angeles, CA, 90048; 310-285-8444.