The Association Success Toolkit

7 Strategies to Get More Done and Grow Your Association!

Why Is It So Difficult toGet Anything Done?

• Too Much to Do

• Not Enough Time

• Inadequate Resources

• Distractions & Interruptions

• Lack of Focus

Association Success Strategy #1:

Get Out of Your Own Way!

Success Is a Moving Target

Success Is a Moving Target

The Power of Association

“You are the average of the

five people you spend the

most time with.”

- Jim Rohn

Problem People

• Nay-Sayers

• Captain Bringdown

• “It Won't Work Because...”

• “Yes-Men”

• We’ve Always Done It This Way…

Surround Yourself With

• Role Models in Your Profession

• Successful People

• Positive People

• People Willing to Try New Things

Mastermind Communities

• In-Person Groups

• Virtual Groups

• Membership Sites

• Personal Board of Directors

Exercise

What will you do to make sureyou create the best possible

mindset for success?

Association Success Strategy #2:

Claim Your “Place in the Cosmos”

Why Are You in Business?

• I Like What I Do

• It’s What I Went to School For

• Everyone in My Family Does This

• I Want to “Create an Industry”

The Only Good Reason…

There exists an unmet need fora product or service that canbe developed and delivered

affordably, effectively, and profitably

Three USP Questions

1. What is different about what you provide or how you provide it that sets you apart from your competition?

2. If you closed up shop tomorrow what impact would it have on your members’ lives?

3. Why should prospective members join and become active in your association versus all the other options they have?

Unique Selling Proposition

1. Price

2. Location

3. Convenience

4. Market Segment

5. Specialist

6. Generalist

7. Process

8. member Need

9. Service

10. Support

11. Free Shipping

12. Guarantee

13. Supply and Demand

Your USP Must Be...

1. Sustainable

2. Defensible

3. Believable

4. Desirable

Business Reinvention

• Businesses Are Dynamic

• What Is Your Core Business?

• Reinvent But Don’t Lose Perspective

Reinvention Traps

• Beware of Bright Shiny Objects

• Just Because You Can Do Something…

• Monkey See, Monkey Do

• Consider the Source

Reinvention Traps

“You get into real trouble

when you start believing

your own propaganda.”

- Bob Wohlford

Exercise

How will you position yourselfto be truly unique, connect

with your audience, and standout from the competition?

Association Success Strategy #3:

Create an Empowered Environment

If It’s Not a Core Competency…

• Eliminate

• Automate

• Outsource

Why We Can’t Get It All Done

• Not Valuing Time Properly

• Tolerating Interruptions

• Being Too Accessible

• Not Focusing on Core Competencies

• Too Much Mental & Physical Clutter

• Focusing on “Soft” Goals

Train People on How to Interact

• No Such Thing As a Minute

• Taxi Meter

• E-Mail Once or Twice a Day...or Never!

• “Quiet Time”

• No Unscheduled Incoming Calls

Schedule Calls with vCita

2 Keys to Success

1. “Good Enough” is Good Enough

2. “Done” is Better Than “Perfect”

Give Yourself a Break!

• Within the Day– 90 On, 15 Off

• Throughout the Year– Big Vacations

– Mini Vacations

• In Your Life– Teachers’ Sabbaticals

Exercise

What can you do to create an empowering, productive, and energized work environment?

Association Success Strategy #4:

Embrace the Current Reality

Patterns

Barometer

Knee Injury

SAT Scores

Predictive Causal Unexplainable

Studying

Floods

Allergies

Woodpeckers

Pineapples

Patterns

1. Recognize Existing Patterns

2. Break Patterns That Are Unproductive

3. Be Unpredictable and Open to New Ideas

4. Anticipate Patterns That Might Affect You

5. Understand How Patterns Affect Behavior

Cycles

Seasons

Life and Death

Natural Manufactured Imposed

Diets

Fashion

Management

Traffic Lights

Elections

Taxes

Cycles

1. Recognize Natural Cycles

2. Create Manufactured Cycles

3. Implement Cycles That Improve Productivity

4. Recognize Cycles Outside the Organization

5. Understand How Cycles Affect Your Position

Audio Technology

• Wax Cylinders

• 78 RPM Records

• 45 RPM Records

• LP Records

• 8-Track Tapes

• Cassette Tapes

• CDs

• MP3 / iPod

Video Technology

• VHS

• DVD

• Blu-Ray

• HVD

Video Distribution

• Blockbuster

• NetFlix

• Big Red Box

• Hulu

Communications

• Letters

• Phone Calls

• Fax

• E-Mail

• Texting

Advertising

• Newspapers & Magazines

• Banner Ads

• SEO & PPC

Advertising

• TV Commercials

• DVR/Tivo

• Product Placement

• Ads on Replay Sites

Exercise

What patterns and cycles are affecting your business and how can you utilize

this knowledgeto get tangible results?

Association Success Strategy #5:

Shout It From the Mountaintop!

The Four Ms of Marketing

1. Message

2. Market

3. Media

4. Moment

Marketing Strategy #1:

Focus on Benefits Instead of Features

Marketing Strategy #2:

Look for Examples OutsideYour Own Industry

Marketing Strategy #3:

Walk to the Edge of the Abyss

Our Association Offers…

• Conferences & Educational Events

• Networking Opportunities

• Monthly Magazine

• Legislative Advocacy

The “Feature Puke”

Conferences & Educational Events

…to give them proven cutting-edge strategies guaranteed to make them more money

What They Really Want

Networking Opportunities

…to find solutions to the problems that are that are keeping them awake nights while their competition moves in on their customers

What They Really Want

Monthly Magazine

…packed with innovative and easy-to-implement strategies to send their bottom line through the roof

What They Really Want

Legislative Advocacy

…to keep the government from reaching into their bank account and stealing their hard-earned money

What They Really Want

Blue Marker – Yellow Marker

Highlight in BLUE If It’s About…

• You

• Your Association

• Your Products or Services

• Your Staff

• Your Location

• How Long You’ve Been Around

Blue Marker – Yellow Marker

Highlight in YELLOW If It’s About…

• Your Members

• Their Business

• How It’s Going to Help Them Make Money

• Keeping Them Out of Jail

• The Experience of Working With You

Blue Marker – Yellow Marker

Bottom Line:

If You Turn BLUE to YELLOW

Then YELLOW Turns to…

$$$ GREEN $$$

12 Components of an Compelling Message

1. Specific Purpose

2. Killer Headline

3. Clear Statement of Value

4. Compelling Story

5. Irresistible Offer

6. Overcoming Objections

7. Testimonials

8. Better Than Risk-Free Guarantee

9. Definite & Urgent Call to Action

10. Multiple Ways to Respond

11. Bonuses

12. A "P.S." Restating The Offer

Exercise

What are the key benefits you offer and how can you position them effectively for maximum

response?

Association Success Strategy #6:

Build a Foundation for Success

Eliminate…

• Unnecessary Tasks

• Unproductive Tasks

• Unprofitable Tasks

How to Get Real Traction:

• Standardization

• Documentation

• Automation

• Staffing

Why Have a Process?

• Consistent Delivery of Products/Services

• Facilitates Training of New Employees

• Makes It Easy for Backup Coverage

• Easier to Fix Process Gaps

Automation

You Can’t Automate a Process That Doesn’t Exist!

Why Automate Your Processes?

Computers Don't...

• Call In Sick

• Have Childcare Issues

• Have Personal Problems

• Take Vacation

• Draw a Salary

Why Automate Your Processes?

In All Fairness, Computers Do...

• Crash

• Get Viruses

• Act “Temperamental”

• Behave Unpredictably

What You Should Look For?

• Multi-Step, Multi Media Campaigns

• Consistent Follow-Up

• Niched Marketing Campaigns

• “Set It and Forget It”

• Integrates with Internet Marketing Tools

Consider Outsourcing

• Non-Mission-Critical Tasks

• What You Could Do While Watching TV

• Not Related to member Satisfaction

Where to Outsource

• Upwork

• 99 Designs

• Fiverr

Upwork

Upwork

Upwork

Upwork

Upwork

Upwork

99Designs

Fiverr

Fiverr

Fiverr

Fiverr

Hire the Right People

95% of People Surveyed Think They’re Smarter Than Average

Staffing for Success

1. Post a Job

2. Review Hundreds of Resumes

3. Phone-Screen Candidates

4. First & Second Interviews

5. Background Check

6. Extend Offer

Standard Staffing Sequence

Staffing for Success

If you’re interested in this position, DO NOT reply to the e-mail listed in this posting.

Staffing for Success

Staffing for Success

Staffing for Success

Staffing for Success

Staffing for Success

To submit an application, please click here…

Staffing for Success

Staffing for Success

• Why is this position of interest to you?

• What applicable experience and education are you bringing to the table?

• Tell us your strategies for effectively handling aggressive deadlines on multiple projects.

• Out of all the applications coming in, why would we want to hire you?

Application Questions

Staffing for Success

Because we place a high value on quality work, as do our customers, submissions containing spelling errors and typos will not be considered.

We’re very serious about this - please look over your responses carefully before submitting them.

Tell us your strategies for effectively handling aggressive deadlines on multiple projects.

• Time sensitive assignments are to be diligently to me.

• Time management and the ability to work own my own was a must. Excuses where not an option.

• Most importantly is to stay focus and organized.Its best to remember you are to complete a job or task.And also to have everything needed to complete such projects to lessen unnesscay interruptions

Actual Applicant Responses

Actual Applicant Responses

Out of all the applications coming in, why would we want to hire you?

• I am maticulous in everything I do.

• I am looking for a stabled job where I can build a career

• Although I did not finish my degree, I studied as an Englist major, so my proofreading and editing skills are top notch.

• 459 Clicked Link for More Info

• 85 Clicked Link to Survey (18.5%)

• 55 Completed Survey (64.7%)

• 5 Selected for Interviews (9.1%)

• 4 Showed Up (80%)

• 1 Offer

Admin Posting Results

Productivity Strategy #7:

Take Action!