Links
Library:
Membership
Development
Memberships:
How to Build Your Organization's Donor Base and Political Clout
at the Same Time
"Selling memberships is the only form of fundraising that
gives your organization an incentive to grow," says Joan
Flanagan. And growth is important since many donors, friends,
enemies, and elected officials measure an organization's effectiveness
by the answer to the question, "How many members do you
have?" Besides looking at five advantages to selling
memberships, Flanagan also offers tips on annual membership drives.
Work
of Art: Phoenix Art Museum Exhibits Big-City Success
Since 1998, blockbusters have increased the museum's membership
from 6,000 to more than 21,000, while community awareness of
the institution has increased from 14 percent to 48 percent.
An article by Stephanie Balzer for the Phoenix Business Journal.
How an Introductory
Membership Pays Off
Through membership pricing tests conducted in various nonprofit
organizations over a period of more than ten years, Bill Dodd
of Dodd Smith Dann Layher found that price plays a significant
role in successful membership development. To expand your membership,
he says, "offer introductory rates and upgrade them through
special appeals and renewal requests."
The Silent Income
Killer: The Fifteen-Month Membership Year:
What it costs you, what causes it and four ways you can avoid
it, by William M. Dodd.
Direct-Mail
Fundraising: Testing the Trends
"Before your board of directors makes a sweeping directive
to increase the price of membership, make sure you test."
That's just one of the pieces of direct-mail fundraising advice
Fran Jacobowitz and Kay P. Lautman offer in this excerpt from
Direct
Response Fundraising: Mastering New Trends for Results
Choosing
a Membership Database That Works For You
One of the most challenging technology problems that any nonprofit
faces is how to manage its membership database. This article
from onenw.org provides an overview of four types of options
for developing an effective membership database system.
The
Many Facets of Data Mining
"Most development officers don't realize the value of the
information in their databases," says Peter B. Wylie in
this article for CASE Currents. "Fund-raising databases
are filled with gems if you know how to dig."
Using
the Internet to Promote Membership: An Online Status Report
Membership Consultants, Inc. performed surveys of zoos and art
museums to see where they are with respect to using the Internet
to promote membership. The results indicate that a lot of giving
opportunities are going untapped.
Monthly Donor
Programs
Surveys show that between five and 10 percent of typical donors
whose current average annual support is between $40 and $50 would
give $90 to $180 if they were offered the option of monthly giving,
according to this article by Christopher Dann of Dodd Smith Dann
Layher. Monthly, sustained membership also boosts retention rates
and reduces the troublesome pattern of chronically lapsing and
reinstating members.
Sample
Membership Plan Outline
While there's is no single right way to write a membership plan,
this article from Gincomm.com outlines the key elements that
should be included.
12 Mistakes Not
to Make With Your Membership Survey
Surveys are possibly the best way to assess your members' attitudes
and needs, but avoid these 12 common mistakes that invalidate
results and decrease response rates. An article downloadable
in PDF format from KDV.com.
For more links, see the Fundraising
and Direct Mail sections
