Why Understanding Your Member's Needs is the Key to Engagement

Can we all say needs assessment survey?

If you don't ask your members what they want how can you deliver valuable programs?

Many chambers make the mistake of creating programs where no one or not nearly enough show up to make the program profitable.

What do we call a program that doesn't make money?  A member benefit! We're all guilty.  Let's stop doing that today.

I'm a big fan of the Hedgehog Theory discussed in Jim Collins' book Good to Great.  The concept is that your chamber should only be doing programs that:

  • You have passion for;
  • You are the best at or can be the best at; and
  • You make money.

Where those three circles intersect, those are the programs you should focus on and be involved with.

Kick the rest to the curb!

Vision vs Mission Statements

What’s the difference?

One is the BHAG (big hairy audacious goal) and the other is what you do, day in and day out, month in and month out, and year in and year out.

If we search the Internet there are plenty of examples of vision vs mission statements.

In its simplest form, the vision is the highest level of what you want to do and the mission statement is how you’re going to achieve that goal.

A couple of examples:

Vision Statement

  • Cure cancer
  • Eradicate X disease
  • Every high school student graduates

Mission Statement

  • Help people live with cancer
  • Help people live productive lives with X disease
  • Provide assistance to high school students to achiever their best and graduate from high school

I think you get the drift from the examples above.  The way I see it, the vision statement is something that will never be achieved, but is a laudable goal.

The mission statement is what we all do on a daily basis to try and reach that goal.

For more information and resources on putting your vision and mission statement together go HERE.