The Joy of Membership Podcast

How is your year going? Hitting all your metrics? Have you even paused for a moment to look? In this episode, I share the 3 major areas that I think warrant a mid-year check-in. Take a listen and let me know your thoughts! Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

In this episode, we're continuing a special series during which we're exploring how to use technology to help you grow things that are NOT membership. In the work that I do with clients, I'm most often talking about membership growth, but in the quest for that, organizations often find themselves needing more people power. Questions begin to bubble up about who will help with outreach and follow-up. So listen in as I share 9 specific ways that technology can make it easier to grow your volunteer base. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

If you've been listening to this podcast for any length of time at all, you know that we talk about membership growth a lot, but there are actually LOTS of other things that membership organizations want to grow, too: donations, sponsorships, volunteers, event attendees, certification holders, non-dues revenue, and more. With this episode, we're kicking off a special series during which we'll explore how to use technology to help you grow things that are NOT membership. We're starting this week with growing your donor program - attracting, engaging, and retaining more donors. I'll be curious to hear what you think. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

We're solidly into the 4th month of the year, which means there's an entire first quarter of progress in the rearview mirror. Often, the metrics that organizations look at most closely throughout the year is the number of members who have signed on or renewed. After all, these are the numbers that seem most directly connected to revenue. Today, we're talking about a different number. How many PROSPECTS did you gain this quarter? In this episode, we'll cover a few reasons why your organization should keep an eye on this metric. I'll be curious to hear what you think. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

This past week, I had the opportunity to be a guest on an episode of Radio-Free 501c with host Cecilia Sepp as part of her special series focused on the 21st Century Membership. As I contemplated what being a "21st Century Membership" means in advance of the show, a few things came to mind. I'll be curious to hear what you think. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

Last week, I spent some time consulting with a small membership organization about their tech options. They've been operating primarily on paper but are now exploring how to up-level in the coming year. Their new membership chair was a flurry of ideas and optimistic about possibilities. It was an exciting conversation. As I stepped away from the conversation, I had to remind myself that, despite the energy of the moment, we had to be realistic about where this organization currently sits in their journey into technology and be cautious about jumping into something that could overwhelm their small team of volunteers. That conversation was the inspiration for this week's episode. You see, there's a natural progression that typically needs to happen when organizations are considering new tech. If you skip over stages, you'll risk not having the necessary foundation in place to make the more advanced work successful. I'll be curious to hear what you think. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

This week is another guest episode. This time, I’m joined by Amanda Lea Kaiser from Kaiser Insights. If Amanda’s name sounds familiar, it’s probably because she’s pretty well known in association circles, but it could also be because she appeared here on this podcast back in Episode 64. So if you listen today and want to hear more from her, you might scroll on back about 50 episodes and listen to that initial conversation, too. Amanda is a member engagement speaker and she came on this episode to talk about her brand new book titled, Elevating Engagement: Uncommon Strategies for Creating a Thriving Member Community. If you’re listening to this episode when it airs, you can actually get the book today because it’s officially being released today, February 14th. Amanda and I share a passion for member engagement, so that’s the focus of today’s conversation. Connect with Amanda Website: https://amandaleakaiser.com/book Buy the Book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1774583267/ref=sr_1_1 Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

This past week, Wild Apricot clients learned that a 25% price increase was coming to all pricing tiers in April. It's not unusual for companies to have to increase prices periodically, so this is to be expected. Yet, every time the price of technology goes up, boards start to wonder if they need to look around at what else is out there. If yours is feeling that urge, you'll likely be interested in this article that I first published back in January of 2022. It's just as relevant and timely this year. If you are a Wild Apricot customer who is beginning to look at options, I encourage you to add JourneyCARE to your list of possibilities. I did a demonstration on Friday specifically highlighting the similarities and differences between the two platforms. You can watch it here: https://joyofmembership.com/wild2023 (no registration required) Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

Today, I have a special guest with me. It’s been a while since we’ve had a guest episode, so I hope you enjoy this conversation with Aron Murch. Aron is the Co-Owner of 2H Media. Aron works with nonprofits in Ontario, focusing especially on building video-driven websites that reduce confusion and encourage engagement. He believes that you can increase your signups and improve member satisfaction by understanding what you members value… and that’s so true, isn’t it? Because he’s a marketing expert, you might assume that he’d be here talking about what you should be doing in your marketing, but we actually talked about what you should do BEFORE you ramp up your marketing. He clearly loves what he does and I think you’ll really enjoy this conversation. So let’s jump in… Connect with Aron Website: https://2h.media/non-profits/ Email: aron@2h.media Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

Do you have contacts who have just been sitting in your database for months, maybe even years, without ever becoming a member? Some organizations keep those old contacts on their list forever. Other organizations are constantly trying to clear their databases out because the cost of their membership software is based on the number of contacts. My recommendation for clients lies in-between those two approaches. In this week's episode, I share the 3 options I suggest for handling old, inactive contacts. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

Raise your hand if you’ve ever wondered why the heck people think that what your organization does is brilliant, but they still don’t become a member. Go ahead, raise those hands. I’ll wait. If your hand is now raised, you are in good company. In fact, getting interested people to decide “yes” is something that challenges a lot of membership-based organizations. There may be hundreds of potential members who sit on a mailing list, attend an organization’s hosted events, and keep an eye on what’s happening without ever officially becoming a member. In this episode, I share 7 reasons why your prospective members might not be joining. Take a listen and see which ones might apply to your organization. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app

For many organizations, this time of year is when things get "real". You can see whether revenue went up or down. You can see whether you have more members or less. This means that this is the time of year when it makes sense to consider if these are the same results that you want next year. In this episode, I share 3 questions that organizations should be asking as one year winds down and the new one begins. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app Download The Journey Roadmap: https://journeycare.app/roadmap **** ABOUT YOUR HOST Yes, there is a “real” Joy in The Joy of Membership. Founder & CEO Joy Duling has been working with leaders of associations, trade groups and nonprofits since 2005. She has also walked the same journey, serving for nearly 10 years as the Executive Director of a membership-based nonprofit which she helped launch from scratch and led to annual revenues of more than $1M exclusively from membership contributions. Joy has been widely recognized as a speaker, an online educator and a trusted advisor, twice winning the “Unsung Hero Award” from the National Association of Women Business Owners' Central Illinois Chapter. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Social Work with Specialization in Policy, Planning and Administration. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, team facilitation, change management, and association operations. But beyond industry experience and education… Joy Duling is the calm voice you want to have in the room when you, your team, or your board is overwhelmed by ideas and options. She's a trusted resource at the other end of an email or phone call who knows the answer, or can find the answer, when it's not clear what to do next in your approach. She's a planner of systems and driver of progress that helps your organization achieve stretch goals. She's a gifted facilitator of conversation, collaboration, and constructive growth. And she's approachable and results-oriented, which makes it easy to shake loose of the old and start fresh on the new. Finding value in this podcast? Consider leaving a rating or review at joyofmembership.com/review

Recently, my team and I provided event support for a client that was hosting its first "back-to-live" Conference after a pandemic hiatus. Along the way, I noted a few things that could be woven into the experience next time that will likely have an impact on membership growth. Listen in to catch what those are. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app 25 CAREpoints Checklist: https://journeycare.app/carepoints-pdf Download The Journey Roadmap: https://journeycare.app/roadmap **** ABOUT YOUR HOST Yes, there is a “real” Joy in The Joy of Membership. Founder & CEO Joy Duling has been working with leaders of associations, trade groups and nonprofits since 2005. She has also walked the same journey, serving for nearly 10 years as the Executive Director of a membership-based nonprofit which she helped launch from scratch and led to annual revenues of more than $1M exclusively from membership contributions. Joy has been widely recognized as a speaker, an online educator and a trusted advisor, twice winning the “Unsung Hero Award” from the National Association of Women Business Owners' Central Illinois Chapter. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Social Work with Specialization in Policy, Planning and Administration. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, team facilitation, change management, and association operations. But beyond industry experience and education… Joy Duling is the calm voice you want to have in the room when you, your team, or your board is overwhelmed by ideas and options. She's a trusted resource at the other end of an email or phone call who knows the answer, or can find the answer, when it's not clear what to do next in your approach. She's a planner of systems and driver of progress that helps your organization achieve stretch goals. She's a gifted facilitator of conversation, collaboration, and constructive growth. And she's approachable and results-oriented, which makes it easy to shake loose of the old and start fresh on the new. Finding value in this podcast? Consider leaving a rating or review at joyofmembership.com/review

In this week's episode of The Joy of Membership Podcast, we're diving into how you can turn a seemingly dead-end opportunity for new members into a membership growth opportunity. All you have to do? A little follow-up! Take a listen and let me know if you're interested in adding some automation features to your membership practices. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app 25 CAREpoints Checklist: https://journeycare.app/carepoints-pdf Download The Journey Roadmap: https://journeycare.app/roadmap The Journey is my signature program to help membership organizations boost member attraction without getting bogged down by internal conversations, lost in tech, or overwhelmed by change. The end result? Faster joins, more enthusiastic engagement, and renewals that happen without hesitation. **** ABOUT YOUR HOST Yes, there is a “real” Joy in The Joy of Membership. Founder & CEO Joy Duling has been working with leaders of associations, trade groups and nonprofits since 2005. She has also walked the same journey, serving for nearly 10 years as the Executive Director of a membership-based nonprofit which she helped launch from scratch and led to annual revenues of more than $1M exclusively from membership contributions. Joy has been widely recognized as a speaker, an online educator and a trusted advisor, twice winning the “Unsung Hero Award” from the National Association of Women Business Owners' Central Illinois Chapter. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Social Work with Specialization in Policy, Planning and Administration. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, team facilitation, change management, and association operations. But beyond industry experience and education… Joy Duling is the calm voice you want to have in the room when you, your team, or your board is overwhelmed by ideas and options. She's a trusted resource at the other end of an email or phone call who knows the answer, or can find the answer, when it's not clear what to do next in your approach. She's a planner of systems and driver of progress that helps your organization achieve stretch goals. She's a gifted facilitator of conversation, collaboration, and constructive growth. And she's approachable and results-oriented, which makes it easy to shake loose of the old and start fresh on the new. Finding value in this podcast? Consider leaving a rating or review at joyofmembership.com/review

New members: We all want them. But when it comes to attracting new potential members, is your organization falling short? In this week's episode of The Joy of Membership Podcast, I dive into five types Discovery Magnets (more commonly known as lead magnets) that can drive reach and new member leads for your organization. As always, after you tune in, feel free to reach out with any questions. I'd love to get to know you and the work you do! Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app 25 CAREpoints Checklist: https://journeycare.app/carepoints-pdf Download The Journey Roadmap: https://journeycare.app/roadmap The Journey is my signature program to help membership organizations boost member attraction without getting bogged down by internal conversations, lost in tech, or overwhelmed by change. The end result? Faster joins, more enthusiastic engagement, and renewals that happen without hesitation. **** ABOUT YOUR HOST Yes, there is a “real” Joy in The Joy of Membership. Founder & CEO Joy Duling has been working with leaders of associations, trade groups and nonprofits since 2005. She has also walked the same journey, serving for nearly 10 years as the Executive Director of a membership-based nonprofit which she helped launch from scratch and led to annual revenues of more than $1M exclusively from membership contributions. Joy has been widely recognized as a speaker, an online educator and a trusted advisor, twice winning the “Unsung Hero Award” from the National Association of Women Business Owners' Central Illinois Chapter. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Social Work with Specialization in Policy, Planning and Administration. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, team facilitation, change management, and association operations. But beyond industry experience and education… Joy Duling is the calm voice you want to have in the room when you, your team, or your board is overwhelmed by ideas and options. She's a trusted resource at the other end of an email or phone call who knows the answer, or can find the answer, when it's not clear what to do next in your approach. She's a planner of systems and driver of progress that helps your organization achieve stretch goals. She's a gifted facilitator of conversation, collaboration, and constructive growth. And she's approachable and results-oriented, which makes it easy to shake loose of the old and start fresh on the new. Finding value in this podcast? Consider leaving a rating or review at joyofmembership.com/review

This week, I'm wrapping up the 3-part series called "The Roadmap to Membership Growth". This has officially served as the kick-off for Season 3 of the podcast, and this is Episode 103! If you missed the first six growth practices in The Roadmap to Membership Growth, be sure to flip back and listen to Episode 101 and 102. It's not that the practices have to be implemented in any particular order, but you'll find that there's context in the first two episodes that might be helpful to this one. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app Download The Roadmap to Growth (PDF): https://journeycare.app/roadmap

Ready for the next leg of our Membership Growth Itinerary?! Today's podcast is a brief overview of the second grouping of growth practices (remember - there are 9!) to achieve membership growth. If you missed last week's episode, listen in here, then come back and dive into ways your organization can improve member experience to achieve growth! Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app 25 CAREpoints Checklist: https://journeycare.app/carepoints-pdf Download The Journey Roadmap: https://journeycare.app/roadmap The Journey is my signature program to help membership organizations boost member attraction without getting bogged down by internal conversations, lost in tech, or overwhelmed by change. The end result? Faster joins, more enthusiastic engagement, and renewals that happen without hesitation. **** ABOUT YOUR HOST Yes, there is a “real” Joy in The Joy of Membership. Founder & CEO Joy Duling has been working with leaders of associations, trade groups and nonprofits since 2005. She has also walked the same journey, serving for nearly 10 years as the Executive Director of a membership-based nonprofit which she helped launch from scratch and led to annual revenues of more than $1M exclusively from membership contributions. Joy has been widely recognized as a speaker, an online educator and a trusted advisor, twice winning the “Unsung Hero Award” from the National Association of Women Business Owners' Central Illinois Chapter. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Social Work with Specialization in Policy, Planning and Administration. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, team facilitation, change management, and association operations. But beyond industry experience and education… Joy Duling is the calm voice you want to have in the room when you, your team, or your board is overwhelmed by ideas and options. She's a trusted resource at the other end of an email or phone call who knows the answer, or can find the answer, when it's not clear what to do next in your approach. She's a planner of systems and driver of progress that helps your organization achieve stretch goals. She's a gifted facilitator of conversation, collaboration, and constructive growth. And she's approachable and results-oriented, which makes it easy to shake loose of the old and start fresh on the new. Finding value in this podcast? Consider leaving a rating or review at joyofmembership.com/review

It's your official welcome to Season 3 of the Joy of Membership Podcast! In Season 1, you heard many interviews with membership leaders, exploring why they’re here, how they are being helpful to their audience, and what they’ve learned along the way. In Season 2, we explored lots of different CAREpoints...where what you do and how you do it makes a difference. And now, in Season 3, we’re embarking on the next leg of our journey together: your roadmap to growth. Just like a real-life road trip where there is an itinerary to plan, things that you need to pack in your suitcase, and adventures both expected and unexpected that come up along the way, the same is true about your road trip to growth. Connect with Joy Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app 25 CAREpoints Checklist: https://journeycare.app/carepoints-pdf Download The Journey Roadmap: https://journeycare.app/roadmap The Journey is my signature program to help membership organizations boost member attraction without getting bogged down by internal conversations, lost in tech, or overwhelmed by change. The end result? Faster joins, more enthusiastic engagement, and renewals that happen without hesitation. **** ABOUT YOUR HOST Yes, there is a “real” Joy in The Joy of Membership. Founder & CEO Joy Duling has been working with leaders of associations, trade groups and nonprofits since 2005. She has also walked the same journey, serving for nearly 10 years as the Executive Director of a membership-based nonprofit which she helped launch from scratch and led to annual revenues of more than $1M exclusively from membership contributions. Joy has been widely recognized as a speaker, an online educator and a trusted advisor, twice winning the “Unsung Hero Award” from the National Association of Women Business Owners' Central Illinois Chapter. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Social Work with Specialization in Policy, Planning and Administration. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, team facilitation, change management, and association operations. But beyond industry experience and education… Joy Duling is the calm voice you want to have in the room when you, your team, or your board is overwhelmed by ideas and options. She's a trusted resource at the other end of an email or phone call who knows the answer, or can find the answer, when it's not clear what to do next in your approach. She's a planner of systems and driver of progress that helps your organization achieve stretch goals. She's a gifted facilitator of conversation, collaboration, and constructive growth. And she's approachable and results-oriented, which makes it easy to shake loose of the old and start fresh on the new. Finding value in this podcast? Consider leaving a rating or review at joyofmembership.com/review

This week, Cecilia Sepp (founder of Rogue Tulips Nonprofit Consulting & Association Management Services) chats with us about how relations between local chapters and national organizations can and SHOULD work together. Cecilia has spent her entire career in the nonprofit arena - in association staff positions, as a high-level consultant, and volunteer. AKA she knows what she's talking about! Connect with Cecilia: www.roguetulips.com https://www.roguetulips.com/rfp-form https://anchor.fm/cecilia-sepp Connect with Joy: Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app 25 CAREpoints Checklist: https://journeycare.app/carepoints-pdf Download The Journey Roadmap: https://journeycare.app/roadmap The Journey is my signature program to help membership organizations boost member attraction without getting bogged down by internal conversations, lost in tech, or overwhelmed by change. The end result? Faster joins, more enthusiastic engagement, and renewals that happen without hesitation. **** ABOUT YOUR HOST Yes, there is a “real” Joy in The Joy of Membership. Founder & CEO Joy Duling has been working with leaders of associations, trade groups and nonprofits since 2005. She has also walked the same journey, serving for nearly 10 years as the Executive Director of a membership-based nonprofit which she helped launch from scratch and led to annual revenues of more than $1M exclusively from membership contributions. Joy has been widely recognized as a speaker, an online educator and a trusted advisor, twice winning the “Unsung Hero Award” from the National Association of Women Business Owners' Central Illinois Chapter. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Master's Degree in Social Work with Specialization in Policy, Planning and Administration. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, team facilitation, change management, and association operations. But beyond industry experience and education… Joy Duling is the calm voice you want to have in the room when you, your team, or your board is overwhelmed by ideas and options. She's a trusted resource at the other end of an email or phone call who knows the answer, or can find the answer, when it's not clear what to do next in your approach. She's a planner of systems and driver of progress that helps your organization achieve stretch goals. She's a gifted facilitator of conversation, collaboration, and constructive growth. And she's approachable and results-oriented, which makes it easy to shake loose of the old and start fresh on the new. Finding value in this podcast? Consider leaving a rating or review at joyofmembership.com/review

As Fall approaches (here in the US), it's the time of year that many organizations turn their focus to member recruitment. Whether it's an annual membership drive, a member-to-member referral campaign, or a growth effort conducted alongside conference registration, it's typically all-hands on-deck to work toward growing the organization's membership for the new calendar year. When growth is the goal, the natural inclination is to lean into marketing. Where can we get the word out? What channels can we use to reach new people? Do we need to re-tune our messaging to attract new attention? Yet, the truth is that marketing, in the vast majority of cases, isn't actually what grows an organization. Connect with Joy: Website: joyofmembership.com journeycare.app The Fastest Path to Growth Challenge: joyofmembership.com/challenge