Well-crafted Member Stories Add Value

In association publishing, two of the most important things are reaching members on a level that helps them see value (and renew their membership!) and inspiring them to continue interacting with the association. Just think if every member read every issue, renewed year after year and shared their positive experiences with a colleague, membership and readership would climb exponentially. And a growing readership, as we all know, garners more advertisers to support and enhance the association’s communications. Oftentimes though, we get caught up in the association news (data, conferences, etc.) and we forget how valuable the members are to each other. Their common experiences — their stories — resonate with each other as they find friends and mentors in business that can support their knowledge and growth. Associations Now published an article recently on How to Unearth Great Member Stories. In the article, author Joe Rominiecki shared five tips on how to bring “behind-the-scenes magic to make one member’s story meaningful to others.” While these are good rules of thumb for all journalists, the tips also provide a perfect step-by-step guide to getting more than good member testimonials, but truly great stories that provide a reader experience.

One of our clients, the Texas Self Storage Association, did just this in their latest issue. Members contributed their stories about how to handle crisis. As industry peers, they shared their stories of crisis and their solutions, providing more than just a checklist, but a way to connect to a fellow member’s experience. The take-away solutions and ideas had great impact when presented as a story from one member to another. And the association edited these stories into a well-crafted article — that “behind-the-scenes magic” Rominiecki was talking about!

It’s the power of an experience that adds value and keeps your members active, interested and involved. Providing those experiences in your editorial as well-crafted, member stories is one more way to retain and grow membership.