Communicating Your Chamber’s Value

I've written on this subject before and the following are tips from a breakout session I attended recently led by Shari Pash.

What is your messaging? What are you known for? What is your Brand?

Go HERE for a past blog post on that subject.

Are you known for advocacy, knowledge, community leader? Are you a connector?

That’s where you want to be.  Most people have come to the realization that you can’t just be a chamber that does events.  She even mentioned the following:

• Are you a chamber who does events?; or
• Are you an event company who has members?

I suggest you want to be in the business of advocacy and helping your members solve-problems.

What are your doing after a new member joins?  Don’t overwhelm them with everything in one email or mailing.  Do the Amazon approach.  Dribble marketing.  Think a 30, 60 and 90 day marketing plan to engage your new members.

Learn how to tell the story of your advocacy work because that’s a great reason for members to join who don’t come to your events.  That is something they will see as real value.

She spent some time on how to respond to the "I don’t have time to be a member" conversation we've all had over the years.  She offered up the following responses:

• Tell them how you highlight members on your website - maybe a job announcement, highlight a good story of the member;
• List things that you’ve done on their behalf (things you’ve done for the entire membership);
• Perks while you work (talk about the things you’re doing for them while they are running their business - attending council meetings, research, etc.).

Start communicating your value!

Communicating the Value of the Chamber

What are you doing to keep the program of work your chamber is doing in the public’s eye in your community?

Do you have a regular communication tool that is informative and can be spread through social media?

There is no better entity than the chamber in telling the story of the community and how the chamber is playing a vital role in the health and growth.

Have you had a chance to review the great Horizon Initiative: Chambers 2025 report produced by the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives (ACCE).  It’s a great starting point to focus your chamber on what issues chambers are facing all over the country.

While we have the saying “if you’ve met one chamber, you’ve met one chamber,” that doesn’t mean we don’t have common areas of focus.

The key to all of the reports and stories you may read on chamber management and the trends, you’ve got to ask yourself a question, “What do you want to be.”

And then spend some time on how you can maximize your resources in attaining that goal.

I’m reminded of the Hedgehog Theory in Jim Collin’s book Good to Great, focus on what you can be or are the best at, what you have passion for and where you make money.  That’s the business you should be in for your members.

Always remember, you can’t be all things to all people, so stop trying to please everybody!

Focus on your mission and the strategic plan your membership has set forth.

Good luck!

Are You Clearly Explaining Your Value? Learn to Tell Your Story Better

First, you must have a story to tell.  We all do.

Now let's focus on what your story is!  In other words what does your chamber stand for?  Once you can answer that question, then it's time to build your story around it.

Once you've built your story - tell it!  Tell it everywhere and often.

The key.  State your story and don't change it.  One of our Institute faculty members, Tony Rubleski, used to say "use the COPE theory," create once publish everywhere.

That's something to think about.

If you have a consistent message your audience (your members, your community and your legislators) will know what your chamber stands for.

I hope your story is about advocating for your membership at the local, state and federal levels of government and building a stronger community.

Never forget we're here to serve our members.

Here's a great resource on tips written by Jasmine Henry on storytelling found on Writtent.  That blog post can be found HERE.

Box Stores: How Do I Get Them To Join?

As stated in a recent chamber educational session I attended with box store executives on a panel, they said it’s all about advocacy.

The big box stores are dealing with business issues at the local, state and national level as it relates to running their business.

It can be as simple as a street light or street sign or as complicated as a new road project or a new regulation that will affect the entire company.

Are you helping them before the city council, the local planning and zoning committee, or at the state capitol?  Even Capitol Hill in Washington, DC could be the place where they need your help.

If you are, it’s highly likely they’re members of your chamber.  If you’re not involved in the advocacy business at those levels, they’re probably not members or they’ve got an excuse why they are not members.

The days of the big box stores joining the local chamber for the sake of joining are over.  It’s all about what you can do for them.

Remember, we all listen to the same radio station WIIFM - what’s in it for me.

Dial them in to your chamber radio station and get them on board as members today!

The 80/20 Rule

Much has been written on this subject.

We’ve all heard it before, 20% of your members contribute to 80% of its success and carry 80% of the load, work/financial, etc.

Remember, you can’t be all things to all people.  So don’t go down that path and try to be.  Focus on your core competencies.

Here are a few provocative statements/ideas:

• Have you ever fired a member?
• Told a potential member that the chamber may not be the place for their resources?
• Kicked any "Sacred Cows" to the curb?

Again, focus on the 20%, that’s your core business.  Don’t apologize to the 80%.  And this goes without saying, you must always deliver the core goods (value) to your members.

That’s why the 20% back you!

As talked about before, a recent study by the Western Association of Chamber Executives (W.A.C.E) identified the following as what members want from their chamber:

• Advocacy
• Networking
• Business education
• Support the local community
• Economic development

This is a great place to start your next conversation with your board on what core competencies your chamber should be focused on, the rest just might be considered white noise.

Until next time!

Strong Chambers: Share Your Value

I wrote an article recently that highlighted the impact a local chamber can have on their members.

Are you communicating that value?

Are you promoting that fact?

Do you make a conscious effort to communicate the following values on a regular basis?

What would you add to the list?

• Advocate for them at the local, state and federal level;
• Introduce their business to potential customers;
• Offer networking opportunities;
• Offer volunteer opportunities; and
• Let’s not forget those discount programs on shipping, office products and insurance just to name a few.

Your chamber should be the one stop shop for the business community. Are you structured that way? Do you have that reputation?

Speaking of reputations, I’d like to reference a study conducted in 2012 by The Shapiro Group titled, The Real Value of Joining a Local Chamber of Commerce, that stated:

1. When consumers know that a business is a member of the local chamber, they are 49% more likely to think favorably of it.
2. Consumers who are told that a business is a chamber member are 51% more likely to be highly aware of it and 57% more likely to think positively of it’s local reputation.
3. Consumers are 80% more likely to buy goods and services, in the future, from a company that they believe is a member of the local chamber of commerce.

Strong chambers in strong communities.

That’s a win/win proposition!

Delivering Value

In today’s economic times, it is more important then ever to deliver the core good to your members.

I’d like to refer to a book I read on the restaurant business recently. The author is Anthony Bourdain, his book is titled, Kitchen Confidential.

In the book the author suggests that we go to the same restaurant year after year after year and order the same meal for one simple reason, we know what we’re going to get and we love it! The restaurant is delivering a core good.

What is your core good?

As chamber leaders it’s important that we continue to push the envelop of innovation. Our members expect us to be cutting edge. It’s ok to fail. In fact, I know of one organization that has a line item in their budget for “new projects.”

Many chambers have incubators for entrepreneurs to get a start on their business idea. This is your little slush fund for you to be innovative for your members and potential members.

Having said all that, it is important to note that while you are allowed to try new things and fail, you must never stop delivery the core good that Mr. Bourdain talks about in his book. That’s why your members renew their membership.

Are you on the cutting edge while continuing to deliver your core good?

Lifetime Value of a Member

In my previous post I asked the question "are all members important?" Are some members more important than others?

Let’s all say out loud “Lifetime Value of a Member."

You know the Lifetime Value equation:

(Average Dues + Average Non-Dues) x Average Number of Years of Membership

If you’re a numbers person, you’ll want to track this number on a regular basis. It’s all about retention. The better your retention rate the bigger the ROI will be when it comes to your lifetime value.

Are you incorporating engagement campaigns, especially for 1st year members, to raise your retention rate? We all have the challenge of a low first year retention rates vs. our base members.

If you don’t have a strategy in place to improve your retention rate, now is the time to start.

For a previous blog post on membership equations go HERE.

The Relevance of Chamber's of Commerce

Are Chamber’s of Commerce relevant? Are some more relevant than others?

Are all your members important? Are some more important than others?

The answer is yes to both, some chambers are more relevant than others and some members are more important than other.

The key is to fine what your chamber stands for and focus on executing that mission.

I’m reminded of the Hedgehog Theory – by Jim Collins in his book “Good to Great.”

As you may know, the theory uses three circles to make his point. Using these three circles, indentify what you have passion for, what you are or could be the best at, and what do you make money on. Where those three circles come together is where you should focus your energies.

Just a quick look at the numbers of chambers across the country are mind boggling. Differentiating your chamber from the competition is critical to your continued growth and success.

What makes us relevant? Based on a Winston Study in 2001, the following were identified by members of chambers across the country.

• Networking opportunities
• Economic/community development
• Issue advocacy/lobbying
• Tourism/Community promotion
• Leadership training
• We help our members grow their business

It should be noted that what is relevant for one chamber could be completely different for another. That again lies the real question. What do we want to be known for? What is going to make us relevant? If you don’t know, it’s time for you to conduct a board retreat and find out.

What’s Driving Change in Membership?

There are internal and external forces that are forcing chambers to change the way they do business. The following are just an example of the issues facing chamber execs each year, and as you can see, many are out of our control.

Internal

• Budget cuts
• Staff cuts
• Doing more with less (doing away with or cutting back on services – 24 hours just became a 48 hour turnaround time – is that acceptable)

External

• Economy (your members have fewer dollars)
• Internet (free or pay as you go)
• Competition (bookstores, state & regional chambers, local chambers, our members)

It’s important to revisit your value prop on a regular basis. You know the equation, Benefits – costs = value. The challenge is to communicate that value effectively to your membership, non-members and community alike.

I subscribe to the philosophy that all businesses in your community are either members of the chamber or are going to be members of the chamber.

Membership Is Everybody’s Business

Membership is what’s on everybody’s mind today, as is -- “How do we keep growing in these uncertain times?”

What is your organization doing to continue growth during the challenging months ahead?

My new pitch – “Membership is everybody’s business!”

I recently participated in a session on “Driving Change in Membership Services.” With fiscal year-end upon us, now is the time to review your organization's activities to ensure you are doing everything possible get back on the track of continued growth many of us experienced in the 80’s and 90’s.

General Themes

Membership is a labor-intensive activity. I would suggest the day of the phrase “build it and they will come” no longer applies. How about these phrases (sound familiar): “Where’s the beef” – “Show me the money” – and today I hear “What’s the value of membership.” As membership organizations, we must always be prepared to answer that fundamental question.

Membership is everybody’s business. We must remember that a bigger membership base means more book sales, program registrations and potential advertising dollars that the entire organization will benefit from – not just the membership department. All staff and all volunteers need to know the importance of membership and the key role they can play in influencing that process.

Continue to be innovative while still delivering the goods! I’m reminded by a book I read written by Anthony Bourdain titled Kitchen Confidential. In it he gives an analogy on why people continue to go to the same restaurants and purchase the same meals over long periods of time. They do it because they know they can expect the same quality of a specific dish on any day of the week or week of the year.

What’s Driving Change in Membership

There’s no question the past 12 to 18 months have created challenging times for all of us. Budget cuts, staff cuts and doing more with less are just three internal factors we're are dealing with everyday as we continue to deliver value to our members. Once you add the economy, the Internet and competition (sometimes from our own members) as three external factors we face, it’s no wonder recruiting new members is getting tougher and tougher each year.

When organizations and companies are affected by the economy, memberships are one of the first things that get reviewed, which leads to one of the most important equations membership professionals face today. Showing the value of membership! I’m sure you’ve read or heard that phrase before. Putting an actual dollar figure next to each could be problematic, but the following equation is what I suspect many of our members are calculating in their heads during invoice time:

Benefits - Costs = Value

An Eye Towards The Future

The future looks bright! It was reassuring speaking with many of my colleagues with all the creative membership campaigns being done in the membership arena. Now may be the time to look at that new class of membership your Board was thinking about creating to grow membership over the past couple of years (students, global, retired, etc.).

Members want a place they can call home - deliver the value – that’s our job!

What's Your Brand?

That is the $64K question.

Has your brand changed over the years?

Building a brand is important, it’s built over time, and you need to review your brand every five to ten years if you want to stay relevant.

Which leads me to my next question.

As I visit with the chamber community across the country, I’m always asked the following four questions.

1. Are Chamber’s of Commerce Relevant?
2. Are some more relevant than others?
3. Are all your members important?
4. Are some more important than others?

As you might have guessed, the answer is yes to all four. But, let’s not fool ourselves, some chambers are more relevant than others, and some members are more important than others.

Based on the Winston Group study, a question was asked – “What makes chambers relevant?” The top 4 answers:

1. Networking opportunities (41%)
2. Economic/community development (37%)
3. Issue advocacy/lobbying (16%)
4. Tourism/Community promotion (15%)

That being said, I’m quick to point out a conversation I had with a chamber CEO last year who stated, “If you’ve met one chamber, you’ve met one chamber,” which leads me to my next question.

What is your Chambers Value Proposition?

You’ve seen the equation: Benefits – Costs = Value.

What is your Chamber’s Golden Handcuff? What do you provide that every member wants to be a part of. That’s your golden handcuff, and that’s a question only you can answer.

I’m reminded of two books I’ve read and wanted to share two concepts that I keep “top of mind.”

The first, is by Jim Collins. The book is Good to Great, and it talks about how organizations make the leap. Mr. Collins refers to a concept called the “Hedgehog Theory.” And, in a nutshell, it’s a business model for lines of business. Think of three circles:

1. What do you do better than anybody else?;
2. What do you have passion for?; and
3. What do you make money at?

The book suggests to focus on where the three meet.

The second book, Kitchen Confidential, by Anthony Bourdain. Mr. Bourdain was the executive chef at Les Halles in New York.

He talks about why people go back to the same restaurant year, after year, after year for the same meal. I’m guilty. I went to Café Dalat, in Arlington, VA, for 15 years, and I order the same thing every time (without exception).

I’m so guilty, I go cross country to California and order the same meal at Lares, a Mexican restaurant, every year – that little tradition has been going on for 20 years.

Mr. Bourdain states that people order the same meal, from the same restaurant, because they know the quality of the meal will be the same every time.

I suggest the message to chamber leaders (volunteer and staff), is too never forget why your members join.

Your members will want you to innovate, push the envelope, create new products and services, but at the same time, you need to deliver the core goods that your members expect from your chamber.

As you look towards the future: show the value; communicate, communicate, communicate your brand; build partnerships/alliances; and never take a member for granted.