How to engage members when working online?

Many of our associations have made the move from the physical to the virtual world. But how does this affect our member engagement? We need to look at fresh ideas of how to manage our members. After all, without members, associations wouldn’t exist.

Of course, technology can be tricky to navigate. But don’t worry we have 4 best practices for increasing member engagement that your association can try.

Our top 4 ideas of how to engage members

1. Make new members feel welcome

As the saying goes, first impressions last. If you want to know how to engage your members, you need to make them feel at ease. The first encounter they have with your association will set the tone for the rest of their membership. Make sure you send your new members a welcome email with the following:

• Thank them for joining.
• Offer them a discount if they bring a new member into the association. This is a good technique of how to engage members to recruit others too.
• Make a buddy system for new members. That way they’ll have a point of contact if they have questions about anything.
• Remind them of the benefits they have of being a member so they feel they are getting value from your association.
• Send links to the information they might need. This could include FAQs or an online community.
• Notify them about upcoming events so they can clear their calendars.
  
  

2. Host virtual events

With the pandemic figures on the rise, it looks like physical events could be risky. The last thing your association wants to do is plan an event and have to cancel it for safety reasons. Events are a key element of how to engage members. They bring people together and add a social element to the association. 

If you are hosting a virtual event make sure it is as interactive as possible. Use an interactive event platform that has engaging features. Some key features you should have are breakout rooms, polling, and chat functions. Keep in mind that virtual events might be new for a lot of your members. So you should send out helpful information and links ahead of the event.

3. Content is key

A good way of how to engage members is to provide meaningful content. The content you provide should be in line with your association's values and help to build relationships with your members. For example, if your association is about education, try creating a blog on study tips.

Before you start posting content, don’t presume that you know what your members want to see. Carry out a survey to research what will keep them interested. You can then use this information to create valuable content. Your blogs, emails, and social media platform are great platforms to post your content. 

4. Collect feedback

Listening is one of the best methods of how to engage members. Your association cannot assume what you’re doing is working, you need to ask. Feedback is a simple and effective way to improve different aspects of your association. Your members will also be happy that you care about their opinion.

Collecting feedback might seem like a tedious task but technology will help you. For example, after your virtual event is over you could have a post-event survey. Your virtual event platform can analyze the responses to come up with data. You can then use this data to implement meaningful changes. Be sure to email your members with updates on the changes you have made.

How can I use these ideas?

So there you have it, our 4 best practices of how to engage members for your association. If you’d like to use some of our ideas the first thing you’ll need is a virtual events platform. Not all virtual event platforms have the same level of interaction. At Remo, we have a range of features that will help your members to engage with your association. For example, we have round-tables that mimic a real-life meeting. 

Of course, you should check out Remo for yourself. We have a range of plans, some of which start completely free. We also have product demos of our virtual events platform so you can get an idea of how it works.

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