Engaging with members is essential for promoting loyalty and long-term relationships. A well-defined content strategy will allow your organisation to deliver personalised and consistent messaging that speaks directly to your members. This article will walk you through the steps to develop, maintain and continuously optimise a Content Strategy that drives meaningful member engagement.
1. Understand Your Audience
Membership organisations tend to cater to diverse audiences, each with specific and specialised needs and interests. It’s important to understand these differences by developing detailed member Personas. We have spoken about member Personas earlier in our “How To Series” but here is a quick example. Let’s say you run a professional association, your personas may include early-career professionals seeking educational resources and seasoned experts interested in networking opportunities or non-executive director positions.
Key steps:
- Conduct surveys to understand the level of interest in specific webinars or workshops.
- Analyse data from your current member portals to identify what content members engage with most (e.g., resources vs. events).
- Create Personas based on career maturity, level of involvement, or interests (e.g., advocacy-focused vs. education-focused members).
Example: A professional association might find that younger members want bite-sized, career-focused content delivered through social media, while older members prefer in-depth, technical articles through the member portal.
2. Set Clear Engagement Goals
Your content should have specific goals aligned with your membership organisation’s objectives. These might range from increasing event attendance to driving volunteer participation or renewing memberships.
Steps:
- Set measurable goals, for example increasing webinar attendance by 10% in the next quarter.
- Align content items with member needs, such as promoting continuing education opportunities for career development.
Example: A health-focused membership organisation may aim to increase participation in wellness programs by 15% over the next year. They can create content that promotes wellness challenges, features success stories from members, and offers tips for achieving health goals.
3. Develop a Content Calendar
A content calendar is a great tool for planning and delivering consistent and timely content. For membership organisations, this means syncing content with key events like annual conferences, membership renewals, or seasonal campaigns.
Steps:
- Plan content around membership cycles, such as sending renewal reminders and exclusive content to long-term members to remind them of the benefits of the membership,
- Plan for a good mix of content formats and not only focus on text, podcasts, videos, blog posts and interactive webinars are all good candidates.
Example: A trade association could align content around their annual meeting, creating a series of pre-event emails with speaker highlights, followed by post-event content featuring recorded sessions and member feedback.
4. Create Member-Centric Content
Create content that addresses members’ unique challenges or interests. Consider content that not only educates but also gives the feeling of community. This could include exclusive webinars, regional events or success stories from within your member base.
Steps:
- Focus on pain points your members face, such as responding to changes imposed by industry or the need to get new certifications.
- Use different content formats to address each pain point. For example, explainer videos are a good tool for complex topics where easily downloadable guides is a great vehicle for policy changes.
Example: A NFP membership organisation might produce a series of case studies showcasing how members have successfully applied for grant funding, helping other members to go through the complex application processes.
5. Leverage Multiple Channels
The days of single channels are truly gone. A multi-channel content strategy helps ensure your message reaches members on the platforms they engage with. For membership organisations, this often includes email, member portals, social media and events (in person and online).
Steps:
- Utilise your member portal to share exclusive resources, such as research papers or industry reports.
- Use social media to create connections by sharing success stories and highlighting members.
Example: A cultural membership organisation can use Instagram to showcase behind-the-scenes content from member-exclusive events, while sending more formal, industry updates through email newsletters.
6. Calls to Action (CTAs)
Content should always lead members toward action. Whether you want them to register for an event, fill out a survey, or participate in a discussion, clear CTAs can significantly boost engagement.
Steps:
- Tailor CTAs to specific member segments. For example, newer members might respond to calls for mentorship programs, while long-term members might prefer leadership opportunities.
- Test various CTA formats to see what drives the most engagement, such as buttons or links.
Example: A professional organisation might include a CTA at the end of an educational blog post, encouraging readers to sign up for a certification course.
7. Measure and Adjust Your Strategy
Regularly evaluating your content’s performance is key to refining your strategy. Membership organisations should focus on metrics that reflect engagement, such as event attendance rates, membership renewals, and resource downloads.
Key steps:
- Use tools like Google Analytics, email open rates, and social media metrics to understand what content resonates most with members.
- Survey members regularly to gather feedback on what content they find most valuable.
Example: A member-based environmental group might discover through google analytics that their webinar series on policy changes saw the highest engagement, leading them to prioritise more policy-related content in future communications.
Conclusion
Driving member engagement through content strategy requires a deep understanding of your members, clear goals, and the ability to deliver value across multiple channels. By creating targeted, meaningful content that resonates with your audience, your organisation can strengthen member loyalty and engagement.
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