August 14 – 17, 2004 Minneapolis, MN

Get Them, Keep Them and Thank Them: Increase Recruitment and Retention through Loyalty Marketing

2:15 pm – 3:45 pm

Sunday, August 15, 2004

Sheri Jacobs Director of Membership and Career Services

Association Forum of Chicagoland

Get Them, Keep Them, and Thank Them: Increase Recruitment and Retention through Incentive Marketing

ASAE Annual Meeting Sunday, August 15, 2004

2:15 PM – 3:45 PM

Presenter

Sheri Jacobs, CAE Director of Membership and Marketing

Association Forum of Chicagoland

Session Outline I. Introduction & Overview

• What it is and what it isn’t • Why it works

II. Background and Rationale

• Underlying principles • Objectives

III. 7 Steps to Building the Program

• Identify program goals and objectives • Identify and define needs of target audience • Develop program structure • Understanding the key metrics of a budget (P&L) • Cross-selling & up-selling • Integration with other activities • Prizes

IV. Forum Rewards Case Study

• Launching the program • Keeping members interested

V. Solution & Results

VI. Acknowledge Cautions VI. Key Learnings

• Keep it simple • Earning points • Communication • Meaningful rewards

VII. Q & A

ASAE Annual Meeting Sunday, August 15, 2004

Major Takeaways

Key learnings from the presentation:

ASAE Annual Meeting

Sunday, August 15, 2004

About the Presenter

Sheri is Director of Membership and Marketing at the Association Forum of Chicagoland. In this role, Sheri develops, manages and oversees the planning of membership recruitment and retention programs including the Forum Rewards and the Buzz Ambassadors programs. Prior to joining the Forum, Sheri was the Director of Membership and Marketing for the Law Practice Management Section of the American Bar Association and the Director of Membership and Communications at the American Academy of Implant Dentistry. She is currently serving on the Membership Section Council of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) and is a speaker for ASAE and the Association Forum. Sheri has earned the Certified Association Executive (CAE) designation from ASAE Sheri Jacobs, CAE Director of Membership & Marketing Association Forum of Chicagoland 20 N. Wacker Drive, Suite 3000 Chicago, IL 60606 Phone: (312)-236-2288 Jacobs@associationforum.org

1

Get Them, Keep Them and Thank ThemGet Them, Keep Them and Thank Them

Increase Recruitment and Retention Increase Recruitment and Retention

through Loyalty Marketingthrough Loyalty Marketing

ASAE Annual MeetingSunday, August 15, 20042:15 PM – 3:45 PM

Presented by Sheri Jacobs, CAE, Director of Membership and Marketing, Association Forum of Chicagoland

Session OutlineSession Outline

• Introduction and overview

• Background and rationale

• Seven steps to building the program

• Forum Rewards Case Study

• Solution & Results

• Acknowledge Cautions

• Key Learnings

• Q & A

2

The Power of wordThe Power of word--ofof--mouth mouth marketingmarketing

• Palm Pilot

• Travel, including flights, hotels, rental cars and locations

• Cars

• Movies

• Doctors and medication

• Hotmail

What is a loyalty What is a loyalty program?program?

• It helps establish long-term relationships with your members.

• It encourages recruitment & acts as a retention devise

• It utilizes one-to-one marketing principles

• It’s both economic and emotional.

• It reinforces everything the brand represents

• It is data driven and uses two-way communication

• It’s the difference between marketing “at” your prospects and marketing “with” your prospects.

3

What it’s not…What it’s not…

• It’s not the answer to all of your recruitment and retention problems

• It’s not ad hoc promotions or special offers.

• It’s not direct mail campaigns, a one-time special offer, or a contest.

• It’s not preferred pricing or a special gift at Christmas to your best members.

Why it worksWhy it works

• Offers an excellent return on your investment.

• Eliminates data silos & creates a centralized database.

• Offers new and more personalized communication channels.

• It is designed from the members’ perspective.

4

Background and rationale Background and rationale

• It’s difficult to cut through the daily assault from traditional advertisements

• Word-of-mouth messages stand out in a person’s mind simply because we find them more believable and compelling.

• Meaningful recognition and rewards will increase members’ contributions and loyalty

Seven Steps to Building a Seven Steps to Building a ProgramProgram

1. Identify program goals & objectives

2. Identify & define needs of the target audience

3. Develop the program structure

4. Understand the key metrics of a budget (P&L)

5. Cross-selling & up-selling opportunities

6. Integration with other activities

7. Prizes

5

Forum Rewards Case StudyForum Rewards Case Study

Background

• 3,000 current members

• Mostly local and regional members

• First and oldest society of association professionals - 87 years old.

• Individual membership organization

Situation

• Declining retention rates

• Flat membership growth over a ten-year period

• Weak economy

• Declining attendance at programs and events

Members received starting balance of 10 points for every year they had been a member - Reinforced loyalty

Used all communication vehicles available: web site, email newsletter, magazine articles and advertisements, program brochures, direct mail, new member kits.

Used the Forum’s existing web site for point redemption and information.

Initially used the Forum’s existing database to manage program.

New Association Forum members – Automatically enrolled – Double points for 1st new referral

SolutionSolution

6

ResultsResults

Member get a Member recruitment increased 60% vsprior year

Reached 149% of targeted goal

Renewal rate increased by 5% in year one

Overall increase in member participation - over 1000 members participated in shared interest group meetings

Acknowledge CautionsAcknowledge Cautions

• Can be expensive.

• Can be hard to back away from.

• After a while, will people behave without the incentive?

• Will people begin to want double and triple points?

• Could it take on a life of its own? Loyalty programs are everywhere, you need to have a real value proposition to get participation.

7

Key LearningsKey Learnings

Points need to be earnedEasilyQuicklyWith little effort

Need to communicate often and in many mediums

Build a coalition, an alliance of people, departments and organizations both internally and externally.Offer real value. If you only offer discounts or items with your organization’s logo, you may be doomed to failure.

Money will buy a pretty good dog but it won't buy the wag of his tail. ~ Unknown

One Final Thought...One Final Thought...