How to Connect with Your Members and Build a Digital Community
Some organizations seem to have effortlessly made the transition to digital interaction with their members, but other industries – notably utilities and insurance – are still struggling with a digital engagement rate below 15 percent.
Connecting with members digitally is a drastically different way of doing business
It can be challenging for organizations to add digital options such as virtual meetings, online voting, online payments, outreach, etc. Sometimes the mountain appears to be so tall, and organizations will continue to put off beginning to climb it, especially when industries are highly regulated. Adding digital connection options can be disruptive, but in many cases, that disruption produces positive results.
Organizations feel their efforts to connect digitally are not paying off with their members
It’s a common issue: Your organization introduces a new initiative or option, but members don’t seem aware or interested in it. Often, this means you need more data on your members, what they want, and how they use and interact with your products and services. With the right information, you can better improve those connections with your members.
So, especially now, when in-person interaction is discouraged and becoming much more difficult, how can your organization make a digital connection with your members?
Virtual annual general meetings
Large gatherings will be unlikely for quite some time, so how can you make sure your bylaw changes, motions, budget, and prior meeting minute approvals happen? Give members an easy-to-use and secure way to connect to a virtual annual meeting. Address the change in format, but try and maintain the same tone as you have in past annual meetings. Provide members with incentives to participate, like giveaways.
Whatever you do, avoid using unsecured polling software or casting votes via unsecured email or a web conference chat. A surefire way to introduce doubt, suspicion about results, and possible challenges to your process is by utilizing easily manipulated software not intended for voting.
Remote board & committee meetings
Many boards and committees have long expressed a preference for meeting remotely due to convenience. Due to new guidelines and social distancing measures, related to the global public health emergency, remote meetings are experiencing a surge in popularity with hundreds of millions of new users.
However, the average remote meeting software does not offer participants a way to securely and confidently vote on motions, especially in real-time. Real-Time Voting Software handles real-time voting, the addition of motions and much more to replicate the secure results of in-person meetings.
Focus groups
Need to get members’ opinions on new products, services, new ads or marketing promotions, etc.? Your organization can also use Real-Time Voting Software to conduct remote focus groups to vote and share opinions. It is a great and unique way to keep members involved and feeling like they’re part of your community.
Don’t let “we’ve never done it this way before” be your motto for the future, especially when it’s easy to take a few simple steps to engage your members online and further involve them and keep them invested in your organization.
Start using our Real-Time Voting Software today!
Since joining SBS in 2011, Tony has led company communications, branding, and product launches, maintaining SBS as the go-to for governance solutions. He regularly hosts educational webinars and speaks at national trade association events across the United States. Tony’s expertise has earned him media recognition, with features in outlets like Rural Electric Magazine, The Association Adviser podcast, Associations Now, and NBC’s King 5 Mornings in Seattle.