Boosting revenue is an on-going challenge for every association and non-profit organization. A March NYSAE workshop on non-dues revenue helped attendees think about old ideas in new ways and generate new ones. Facilitated by Steve Wolfe, membership and marketing consultant, the session provided many “aha” moments and valuable takeaways.
Wolfe challenged attendees to think of as many non-dues revenue opportunities as possible. These might include:
- Developing a new product or service, either in response to a change in the association’s industry or a strategic choice;
- Enhancing a particular product or service the association already offers;
- Creating a revenue-generating model around what you already do well; or
- Selling access to membership.
Among the questions associations need to ask before launching a non-dues revenue program are:
Presenters at NYSAE’s March Breakfast Roundtable Workshop on Non-Dues Revenue were (left to right): Jill Levy, director, member and chapter service, Risk & Insurance Management Society; Bill Gessert, champion of association value growth, Affinity Center International; Steve Wolfe, membership and marketing consultant; Raphael Badagliacca, president, SpaceMaster; and Amy Hart, director of public health production, New York Academy of Medicine.
- Is it consistent with what members want?
- Do you have a business plan for the new venture?
- What kinds of resources will be invested to make the program work?
- Is the non-dues revenue program consistent with the association’s mission?
- How will the product or service be segmented for the market?
- What is the cost/benefit analysis?
- What is the impact on staff time?
- Is the non-dues revenue program based on sound data?
- Can you test market the venture before a full launch?
- What is the financial commitment of association?
- What are the intangible benefits?
- What are the potential risks?
- What is the ease or difficulty of implementation?
Jill Levy, director, member & chapter servicefor the Risk & Insurance Management Society, spoke about Building Revenue Through Effective Outsourcing. Levy discussed the positives and negatives of outsourcing. Among the downsides were reduce control; lack of customization; the need to share confidential association information; revenue sharing versus out-of-pocket expenses.
She noted that the upsides to working with an outside vendor included:
- Someone else has done the development;
- Someone else has the expertise;
- Someone else shares the marketing;
- It allows the association to focus its limited resources on its core competencies;
- It reduces the risk of failure.
Bill Gessert, champion of association value, Growth Affinity Center International, addressed the Latest Trends in Affinity Marketing Leverage In-House Expertise to Boost Revenues. “Good affinity programs will reach members where they might not normally connect with the association,” said Gessert. Among the programs associations might consider are: credit card programs, group purchasing programs; financial services; insurance; information or education programs; and marketing and advertising ventures. “Ultimately,” Gessert said, “any program must bring value to the membership.”
Amy Hart, director of public health production for the New York Academy of Medicine, spoke about Leveraging In-House Expertise to Boost Revenues. “Leveraging out staff expertise to make money for the association is another way to earn non-dues revenue,” said Hart. In addition to making films for the New York Academy of Medicine, Hart’s services are purchased by others. She advised associations that might offer similar services to model themselves after for-profit media success stories:
- Own and acquire great content;
- Express it in multiple integrated media;
- Generate advertising revenue, but don’t depend on it exclusively.
Wrapping up the workshop was Raphael Badagliacca, president, Spacemaster, who spoke on How to Capitalize on the Association Advantage in the Advertising Game. He addressed how to associations can take advantage of their unique audiences to bring in advertising revenue. Niche markets are what sells these days, said Badagliacca, and that’s what associations specialize in.
Louis Colletti (left), president and CEO, Building Trades Employers Association, and NYSAE chair of the Board, and Joel A. Dolci (right), CAE, NYSAE president and CEO, welcome March luncheon speaker Jerry Teplitz, who demonstrated how the power of positive thinking can be effectively used to work with and manage others as we lead our associations.
Following the Non-Dues Revenue program, luncheon speaker Jerry Teplitz demonstrated how the power of positive thinking is more than an idea; it is has physical effects on how we work and interact with others. “Everyone and everything in our external and internal environment measurably affects us,” said Teplitz. To better help association executives understand and utilize their internal powers, he advocated using behavioral kinesiology or “body talk” to manage the bumps in the road. In an interactive presentation, he explored the energetics behind your being a leader and how you can tap into this power for going forward in your leader role.
Teplitz, who heads up Jerry Teplitz Enterprises, is a graduate of Hunter College and Northwestern University School of Law and practiced as an attorney for the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.