The VOI of Membership is Greater than the ROI

1©2015 Hight Performance Group The VOI of Membership is Greater than the ROI 1

The VOI of Membership is

Greater than the ROI


Cathi Hight

• President of Hight Performance Group

• The member retention specialist

• Developer of the Member Retention Kit

• National instructor for the U.S. Chamber’s

Institute for Organization Management

• Previous VP of Operations for the Chamber of

Commerce of Hawaii

• Serves on Austin Chamber’s Member Relations

Council

• Immediate Past-President of the Boulder Area

Human Resource Association (BAHRA)

• Is a member of the:Association Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE)

American Society of Association Executives (ASAE)

Texas Society of Association Executives (TSAE)

Austin Human Resource Management Association

(AHRMA)

Greater Austin Chamber


Session Objectives

• Discover the power of VOI and why it means

more than ROI ever will

• Identify the top 12 VOI benefits associatons

deliver to members

• Consider how to leverage your VOI to

communicate the value of membership

• Explore how to develop a VOI campaign to

recruit and retain more members


The Challenge of Communicating

Membership Value

• Members feel you

communicate too much

• Members don’t open e-mails

or read what you write

• Members don’t respond to

opportunities or access

benefits

• Members complain that they

don’t receive value

• Benefits don’t resonate with

prospects


Why Communication Fails

• People don’t care about you

until they know “What’s in it

for Me?”

• People use selective listening

due to over-stimuli, lack of

perceived relevance and

distractions

• If people have to work to

translate what you mean, they

tune out


The “So What?” Factor

• Key Takeaways from the book:

– We have fallen into the trap of

selling what we think is important

– We sell features and not benefits

that really matter to our audience

– We use MY language and not our

that of customers’ or prospects’

– We don’t answer the “So What?”

question and people stop listening

7©2015 Hight Performance Group The VOI of Membership is Greater than the ROI

What Matters Most?

Common Interests and NeedsSupport a thriving local economy

Education, transportation, talent attraction, job creation

Promote the local area and region

Influence a business-friendly environment

Develop relationships with policy and regulatory decision-makers

Create a positive sentiment toward business

Develop a skilled existing workforce

Skills development on current and emerging needs

Leadership development for younger talent and succession plans

Provide support to growing enterprises

Local and global visibility, advertising and marketing opportunities

Cost savings, experts and mentors, and strategic connections

Create opportunities to build a local network

Networking and events at no or low cost to schmooze

Welcome newcomers and start up businesses seeking connections


Community Investors• Sustainable, thriving economy

• Long-term vision for the area

• Business-friendly environment

• Support sustainability for all

• Do the right thing (civic-minded)

Community Builders• Sustainable, thriving economy

• Business-friendly environment

• Community involvement for brand

• Execute corporate initiatives

• Workforce development

Business Investors• Lower operational costs, regulations

• Advertising and marketing to drive

traffic and sales w/out involvement

• Attract and retain skilled staff

• Access to experts, best practices

Business Builder• Just-in-time marketing (leads=sales)

• Pay by showing up

• ROI with limited $ investment

• Exposure, connections

• Personal visibility

Member Profile Matrix—The 4 Types

Get Something Done Through You

Get Something for Their Business

I N V

E S

T E

D I N

V O

L V E D


The Role of Value Propositions

• What’s a “value proposition” for associations?

A clear and succinct statement

on the benefits of membership.

• Two types of value propositions

General: Targeted for large audience (one size fits all)

Unique: Targeted for specific group/person (benefits are specific to a group/person’s interests/needs.)


Characteristics of Strong

Value Propositions

• It must be about what matters most to

the audience

• The “what” or feature is clearly stated

• The benefit or “what do I get as a

result?” is spelled out

• The language is mine, not yours, and

translation is not needed


“So What?” is All About

Benefits, Not Features

Association Features

1. We hold a Meet the Legislators

forum each fall.

2. We offer 4 different networking

events a month. Our After Hours

Mixer alone draws over 150

people each month!

3. We hold a Business Expo each

spring to promote our members.

4. We offer discounts for office

supplies, shipping, and utilities.

So What? Benefits

1. Get face-to-face with representatives at

the Meet the Legislators forum each fall

and tell them how issues directly impact

your business.

2. With 4 different networking events each

month, you can access over 400

prospects for free or low cost to market

what you offer! (BAH = 150 contacts @

$15!)

3. Our spring Business Expo attracts 4,000

prospects and high visibility for your

business.

4. We increase your profits by saving you

money on everyday business costs.


General Value Propositions

• Are intended to

serve a broad

audience

• Are core benefits of

the Association

• All members would

value the benefits

• State the General Value

1. What are the 3 key or

primary issues most

businesses face?

2. What are the 3 things

you do to address these

issues?

3. State the issues and

value you deliver in

common business

language.


Format to Create General

Value Propositions

Easy format for 45 second

messages:

1. Do you know how. . .?

2. We. .

Other general value propositions:

We monitor actions by local and national

policymakers and weigh in on issues that

impact your business so you can grow and

be profitable.

We work on attracting new employers to

the area and help existing businesses

expand and grow. This creates more jobs

and increased prosperity for our

community.

State the General Value


primary issues the

majority of your audience

faces?

2. What are the 3 things that

you do to address these

issues?

3. State the issues and value

that you deliver in

language common to your

audience.


Create Unique or Targeted

Value Propositions

• Are intended to

serve a specific

audience or person

• Are specific benefits

of the Association

• Only certain

members would

value the benefits

State the Unique Value


primary issues a specific

type of member faces?

2. What are the 3 things you

do to address these issues?

3. State the issues and value

you delivers in language

common to this audience.


Examples of Unique

Value Propositions

Do you know how costly it is for small, independent restaurants to

advertise and promote specials on a consistent basis?

The Texas Restaurant Association offers low-cost advertising on

our web site and in our directory to help downtown Austin

restaurants reach over 2,000 people a month and generate traffic to

the downtown area.

Do you know how hard it is for small manufacturers to train their

staff and stay on top of all the new regulations?

The NAM offers timely, low-cost training made available by our

generous sponsors so your staff can get the skills and information

they need to do their jobs and comply with new regulations.


Move from ROI to VOI to

Communicate Value

ROI is about the bottom line

Value = $ invested – Hard Costs

Make the shift to VOI (Value on I______)

where “I” is more than Investment

Value = Perceived Business/Personal Benefits

that go beyond Hard Costs


Membership is All about the Value

of I_________

• Investment: Direct return for dues/non-dues (sometimes)

• Information: Unique sources, timely and for members only

• Initiatives/Issues: Taking positions/ lead on what matters

• Influence: Ability to persuade and affect outcomes

• Impact: Direct result of initiatives, positive consequences

• Introductions: Access to mentors, customers, peers

• Interaction: Positive experiences, quality of conversations

• Innovation: Cutting-edge ideas, opportunities, technology

• Instruction: New skills or applications learned

• Intelligence: New awareness, understanding, knowledge

• Insights: Lessons learned, breakthroughs

• Integration: Ability to implement ideas into business


Strategies to Move

from ROI to VOI

19©2015 Hight Performance Group The VOI of Membership is Greater than the ROI

• Discover members

and non-members’

challenges,

interests and

perceptions

o Surveys

o Interviews

o Quick Polls

o Phone Calls

o Focus Groups

#1: Know What Keeps People

Up at Night


• Which sources of information from us do you

value the most and why?

• Describe one initiative we led and how it

positively impacted your business.

• What value do you receive from interacting

with other members?

• How have we helped you to develop

relationships with others in the industry/area?

• Describe something new you learned as a

result of one of our educational opportunities

and how it helped you or your business.

• What new ideas or perspectives did you learn

about from other members that have been

integrated into your business?

• What one thing do you value the most from

your relationship with _____?

#2: Discover Your VOI


# 3: Let Members Tell Your Story

• Interview “champion” members and

showcase their businesses (use Flip

video cameras)

• Showcase video and print

testimonials on your website,

newsletters, directory, etc. (ex.

http://www.boulderchamber.com/)

• Ask VOI questions on social media

platforms and allow members to

comment

• Use the “So What?” language

members provide and mirror it

• Create a FAQ on member benefits

and feature responses from members

who use those benefits

http://www.boulderchamber.com/


# 4: Develop a VOI Campaign to

Recruit and Retain Members• Review existing marketing collateral (web

pages, brochures, flyers) and evaluate if

messages answer the “So What?”

questions or has strong VOI benefits

• Rewrite marketing messages in language

that makes prospects and members say,

“I need that,” “Just what I’m looking for,

“That’s why I’m a member!”


Steps to Create a VOI Campaign

1. Determine which benefits resonate best with the 4

types of members

– Consider specific benefits for each type of member

2. Use VOI statements to communicate your value

propositions

– Talk to members that represent each of the 4 types of

members and collect a testimonial that speaks to a VOI

benefit they value

– Use their “language” so it will resonate with their peers

– Post video clips on your website, YouTube and social

media sites

– Use VOI statements in all marketing materials


“Value is validated by a

member’s willingness to

exchange money or time

for something.”

Road to Relevance

Do you communicate what really matters?


Session Summary

• Value propositions sell the real benefits of membership in the eyes and language of members

• Strong propositions are unique to the Association and are focused on benefits that matter most to prospects and members (they answer the “So What?” questions)

• Communicate the Value of I__________ and realize that membership is much more than Investment

• Current members who get the value of membership communicate the messages the best!


• Benchmarking and special projects

• Onsite and virtual staff training

• Board retreats and strategic planning

sessions

• Membership retention plans

• Conference presentations and

workshops

• Books, webinars and articles on our

web site: www.hightperformance.com

• Contact us at (512) 354-7219 or at

[email protected]

To Your Success!

http://www.hightperformance.com/

The VOI of Membership is Greater than the ROI

Government & Nonprofit

Transcript of The VOI of Membership is Greater than the ROI