At a recent board meeting with one of our association clients, the board discussed how to reach out to local national members who had not joined the chapter. I can relate to the non-chapter affiliation. I recently joined a professional association as a member-at-large because I knew nothing about the two chapters closest to me, and wasn’t sure which would be a good fit. Within a week of joining, I was contacted by the president of one of those chapters inviting me to attend the next meeting, which was scheduled for the following day. After a few emails back and forth, she took the bold step of sending me a membership transfer form saying she was excited about the possibility of me joining her chapter. I was so pleased that even though I was unable to attend the meeting, I will likely join the chapter. After all, this president took the time to contact me personally; a gesture that made me feel, well, special!

Does your board personally contact new members, especially those with no chapter affiliation? Who knows – your next awesome volunteer could be just a phone call or email away.

Peggy challenges us all in her post Meme Time! How are you going to change the world in 2012? to post our goals for the coming year. For me it means continuing our project Association Volunteers! where we shine the spotlight on those people who give their time and talent to their professional associations. The project was launched in 2010 with the Association Volunteers! Facebook fan page where fans can share stories, find inspiration, and give thanks to those that have made a difference.  

 Not familiar with the project? Then check out who we highlighted in 2011. Each shared a unique story and a unique perspective on association volunteerism. Here’s a sampling of what they said…

Dina Wasmer on not seeing volunteerism simply as a way to build your resume (Instead, Dina believes you should use volunteerism as a way to build relationships that will not only benefit you, but also benefit your clients and your community): You have to do a gut check of what kind of time you have to devote to this and do it well. Be sure to pick organizations or associations that you can feel good about or you’re most interested in. Then you’ll be able to put your best foot forward, and ultimately, the people you are trying to help will benefit.

Kathy Berkowitz on the benefits on toughing it out (Kathy spearheaded a major project for her association, which proved to be a difficult sell at times): What has really helped keep my enthusiasm up is when people have the AHA! moment, and they get it. They’ve allowed themselves to put aside their fears for a moment to really look at the model and see the advantages it will bring, then to stand up to their peers and say, we do need to change.

 Davida Breier on how her professional life has a direct relationship to her volunteer life (Davida feels lucky to be in a position where there is some crossover between the two): In many respects, what I learn from one volunteer experience often has a direct application to the other or to what I do by day. Likewise, what I do by day helps with what I’m doing in my volunteering.

 Jim DeArmey on it’s never too late in your career to start volunteering for your association (Jim’s inner-volunteer may not have kicked in early on, but once it did…): There is something in it for everyone at whatever stage of your career as long as you still have an interest in growth and increasing your knowledge. 

Chaz Miller on having a unique perspective on association volunteerism (Chaz is both an association professional and an association volunteer): When you are on both sides of the fence, as an association volunteer and as an association professional, you see the complexity of it even more. When you work for an association you approach things one way; yet when you're a volunteer, you see it from a different perspective. I appreciate the richness of that experience.

For more stories, see who we highlighted in 2010 at 7 Association Volunteers Tell Their Stories.

So help us get the word out! Go to our fan page Association Volunteers!  and post away. Better yet, tell us your story by emailing me or sending us a note through our Facebook fan page

Finally, now that my college career is over (at least for the time being), I’ve decided I need join an association for my own professional development. After all, as the front desk voice of an AMC, I see firsthand the value that involvement in your association brings to your professional and personal growth. So my goal for 2012 is to find that one place that will inspire me as the experiences of our featured volunteers have inspired them. I’ll let you know how it goes!

Maddie Grant kicked off a Meme, in response to Craig Newmark’s post, asking all association peeps to answer “how are you going to change the world in 2012”.

In 2012, I hope to help associations reinvent the volunteer model. With my intrepid partner, Peter, and a host of very cool peeps (like my fellow ASAE Executive Management Section Council team and good friend Leslie White), my goal is to deconstruct the volunteer model. Then, tapping cool examples from the community-service sector along with innovative ideas coming out of a few associations, we’ll explore lots of options, ideas and possibilities.

We know that volunteers are what make associations unique as organizations and fuel our success. But,  even as we in associations embrace new technologies and – to a more limited degree – new business models, we haven’t addressed the volunteer model. We are still recruiting, developing, managing and rewarding as we did decades ago even though this no longer works. ASAE's Decision To Volunteer study sent out an alarm in 2008 that we can expect a turnover rate in our most active volunteers of up to 28%.  It’s time to change.

We’ll get some help on this journey through ASAE. A group of us from the EMS Council submitted an idea for a think tank project that I understand has been selected for funding in 2012. Also, two of us from the Council have submitted a very cool session for Annual Meeting on the topic (fingers crossed!). And, we have an informal group of association execs who are exploring, through open conversations, new models and sharing their own association’s journey. (We welcome more to the table for those conversations – just contact me for details.)

Lastly, to help inspire people to volunteer for their association and to shine the light on the great contribution association volunteers make, we launched a Facebook page Association Volunteers! Join us there, like it, add your own comments, and celebrate volunteers you know!

Happy to hear from others … join the meme (hint, hint Leslie White, KiKi L’Italien, Cynthia D’Amour, Frank Fortin,  Kerry Stackpole, Kim Howard).

In the December 14th posting on the Personal Branding Blog, Roger Parker discusses his strategies on a successful content marketing in 7 Content Marketing Tip for Small Business Success. The one point that really struck me was to think of your readers as students and you as the teacher. Don’t focus on selling your brand; instead, concentrate on bringing relevant content to your readers, thus building relationships that will benefits both sides. Give them good editorial content and they will reciprocate.

Seems simple enough, yet I constantly see Tweets and blog posts that are actually advertisements for the author’s products and/or brand. A good example of this is a Yahoo discussion group of which I am a part. I joined to get writing tips and information, but found that many conversations were members selling to other members. So, I turn away. This, unfortunately, also means I could be missing the very information I am seeking.

This selling happens in another way in associations – where association staff (or volunteers in charge of programs or activities) only send out “sales” messages on their listservs, Twitter feeds and emails. You know, that endless litany of save the date for this, register today, here’s the best book on xxx. Like above, members view it as only about the $$. 

Parker’s tips will serve us well here at Mariner as we work on developing content strategies with our association clients. We have to build a relationship with our members, because if members feel they are being sold to, they may simply turn away. And no association wants that.