Chances are, you probably started off the year with a comprehensive plan to fuel growth for your association. Then COVID-19 struck and knocked all those plans out cold. As the year has gone by, we’ve all had to adapt and see what can be done now to keep things ticking over as planned.
So, how have you been helping to show value to your audience during 2020? Some have even asked; can you even promote your association in the age of COVID? Especially when so many are more concerned about just trying to make ends meet.
As we all know by now, we live in the age of the customer. The “what’s in it for me” factor is always the first question that should be asked even for acquiring new association members.
Reaffirming potential members needs and requirements is key for your association’s marketing efforts, it makes sure you remain relevant to the unique challenges they are facing in this radical climate.
How Do Young Members Value Organisations?
The main goal of any organisation is to provide value. Yet, research online turns up multiple sources showing younger professionals aren’t experiencing enough value from member benefits to justify the dues.
In the report Young Members 2.0, published by Personify, when asked about their experience with the association in which they’re the most active, almost half of young members, Millennials and Gen Z, agreed that their experiences with associations have been “underwhelming”.
What’s even more concerning is one in three young members and two out of five Millennials agree with the statement “I have no idea how being in associations actually benefits me”. This must spark the thought – what do members want and how can we provide it?
Providing Value During A Crisis
At the moment, many young professionals are struggling to navigate a volatile job market and a lack of job security which is tightening their spending in the process.
Across the board, from entry-level jobs to paid internships, the career prospects for new college graduates have plummeted during the pandemic.
Job postings for starter positions that are vital for new college graduates fell by 73% since the pandemic started, according to ZipRecruiter. With such a volatile job market it’s no surprise that Wiley’s 6th Society Member Survey found that while the top three main reasons professionals consider joining an association are:
- Content
- Career development
- Community engagement
Career development has now become the number one reason professionals consider joining.
A Career Centre Value
With career support being so important for young professionals, your organisation should make providing a powerful resource to address this need a priority.
Young members are looking to receive career development from joining an association. This means, the service you provide for them must go beyond just supplying relevant job opportunities. You need a career centre, a space for career development that will help them navigate the current recruitment climate – and long into the future.
A career centre should offer unique solutions like helpful content, guidance strategies, advise for advancing their professional goals. If you can offer this, your association can become their go to place throughout their professional life.
Added Bonus: Career Centres also allow you to gain more non dues revenue through recruitment advertising.
This need for career development with young members won’t go away any time soon. The market is saturated with young professionals ready to start their working journeys and trying to find a place to help them achieve it. With the market starting to pick back up and even growing in some sectors, this is a great opportunity to give the next generation a place to steer them through this turbulent time. They’ll thank you when they’re a CEO!
Madgex have been powering career centres for the world’s most prominent company’s, brands and associations such as BDA, RIBA, CIPD, BMJ Careers and ACCA since 2000. If you would like to know more about how to tap into this crucial area for members, check out our website. We are always ready to help organisations take that next strategic step from providing a basic job board, to delivering a career centre.
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