Membership must grow

     For some organizations, membership is everything. It creates revenue, and it is vital for the organization to remain relevant. The goal is for current and future members to view their membership as something they cannot refuse, and something competitors cannot quickly replicate.

        Most organizations try to market membership in their organization as a solution to a broadly defined challenge, or a experience that provides access resources. Membership needs to understood as a means of solving a customer's core problem. By solving your customer's core problem, you are making membership in your organization mandatory for any company. This requires you to do something different from your competitors.

        Make a list of reasons a company should join your organization.  After making your list, make a second list of reasons your competitors would answer the same question. If you are saying the same things as everyone else, you are not providing a compelling reason for potential members to join your organization. This stage is critical and keeps the organization from falling into the trap of price reductions. Price reductions are never a solution. They can be quickly copied by everybody else in the market, and they are not sustainable.