In Part I, I talked about the transformational change in the speed, size and cost of news, information and knowledge and noted the impact of the change on "legacy media." I then posed the question as to what this means for trade associations and professional societies.
Today's associations face challenges similar to those of newspapers and other media. What was once restricted to subscribers/members is now free to all.
The explosion in technology (Web, Web 2.0, Google, Bing, etc.) has opened information to members and potential members. They don't have to join. They just Google it. And, Bing, it's available. Usually for free.
Associations need to focus on answers to three specific areas as the communications revolution continues a relentless march forward:
1) What does it mean to be a member?
If anyone can get anything, why will people join organizations who focus mainly on providing information (content) to members?
2) Can associations adjust?
As "centers of knowledge" for professions and industries, associations face moving from "publisher" to "content provider" in the "age of free." It won't be an easy transition. It is a new business model. It goes against all we have learned throughout our careers.
3) What is the revenue model of the future?
If we "give away" content to anyone, what is the value proposition for members? And, if we give it away, how do we generate revenue to sustain the organization? Premium content?
So, what do associations to do?
1) No matter how you answer the questions, you need to go to every identifiable social media site and register your association name and trademarks as user-IDs. These are first-come, first-served functions as were Web domain names. So, even if your association does not plan to use social media tools, you still should protect your name on all sites.
2) Consider a content management strategy.
Adding value to your community is a major strategy for consideration. Content management is a major tool. Creating content that "everyone reads" matters. A couple of key areas to consider:
• Think of current programming (conferences, seminars, Web site, newsletters) and social media tools (Webinars, YouTube, SlideShare, Facebook, LinkedIn) as "platforms" for delivering content / knowledge.
• Integrate content on various platforms and find ways to efficiently repurpose and repackage content to increase value to your members.
• Help members handle the ballooning volume of content by collecting, digesting and repackaging it. If done well, it could serve as a valuable "member only" benefit for your organization.
• Monitor and follow discussions in your association’s content area.
3) Re-evaluate your membership model
In the age of free content, develop new strategies about membership and member services. Determine which content will be available to anyone and which – if any – will be restricted to members. For example, two of our clients are now e-mailing Tips of the Week to members and non-members. The Tips also go to various industry blogs as well as some traditional media that post them for their readers/listeners. This delivery helps establish the credibility of the association and enhance perceptions of the value of the organization within its industry. The new relationships allow the association to invite the nonmember to become members and invite all recipients to enroll in Webinars and/or the annual conference. I’ve seen other organizations who provide lots of free content but "reserve" some of the "premium" content for members. Others create enough "eyeballs" with its free content that they are able to generate revenue from sponsors and/or advertisers.
The important point is that trade associations and professional societies should step back, review the status and impact of social media changes and thoughtfully consider how it can take advantage of the opportunities presented – even if it means changing your membership model – before they become a threat to the future of the organization.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Reinventing Associations: Part I
We are witnessing (and helping create) a transformation change in the availability and transfer of information and knowledge. It is a chance not seen since we moved from an agrarian society to the industrial society (which Putnam defines as the "Gilded Age" and "Progressive Era").
The "poster child" for this transformation? The decline in influence and profitability of "legacy news media" (newspapers, radio and television). So far this year:
105 newspapers have been shuttered.
10,000 newspaper jobs have been lost.
Print ad sales fell 30% in Q1 '09.
23 of the top 25 newspapers reported circulation declines between 7% and 20%.
Up front disclosure: This blog post has been influenced by several excellent sources I’ve read over the last 12 months. Key among them are:
Clay Shirky's Here Comes Everybody
Chris Anderson's The Long Tail and (soon to be released) FREE: The Future of a Radical Price
Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff's Groundswell
Robert Putnam’s Bowling Alone
Joe Pulizzi’s content marketing blogs at Junta42
Seth Godin's daily blog FeedBlitz
Joe Water's blog Selfish Giving
Three key elements highlight the transformation:
1) Anyone can be a "publisher."
We have moved from an era where news and information came to us from a "publisher" who owned the printing press or broadcast tower. Because of cost, the rest of us couldn’t afford to be "publishers." The internet, Web sites, blogs and social media tools (such as Twitter) have changed the definition and speed of news and information. Anyone with access to the Internet (wired, wifi or mobile) can be a publisher. Recent examples: A plane crashes in the Hudson. Someone on a nearby ferry snaps a photo and links it to the world (and legacy media) via TwitPic. Tweets, YouTube videos and Facebook photos from a rally for freedom in Iran sparks worldwide interest despite the government’s restrictions on "foreign journalists."
2) Everyone can find everything.
Wherever information is (Websites, blogs, YouTube, Flickr, Twitter or print), Google, Bing and other search engines mean that we can discover nearly anything ever published, posted, photographed or videoed. And, we can find it fast. We create it. We share it. We own it. As a result, we are no long totally dependent on a "publisher" with exclusive control of information and knowledge.
3) It’s FREE!
We can access almost all of this information and knowledge at no cost (other than our time). The search engines are free. The software is free. And, it is changing the business model of all who were able to sell information and knowledge. Craigslist’s free services have assumed classified and want ads that were once a huge profit center of newspapers. eHarmony "stole" the personal ads, another money maker. And, Free blogs and "e-letters" from individuals and companies are replacing newspapers and professional journals.
Some manifestations of the change: The American Newspaper Editors Association has changed its named, dropping "paper" and now is the American News Editors Association. The Christian Science Monitor drops its printed editions. The Detroit News/Free Press drops home delivery two days a week. A CBS radio station ends a news report saying "for more details, see our Twitter feed on our web site." News out of Iran’s election projects flooded the world even through the traditional media was shut off. Tweets announced the death of Michael Jackson 37 minutes before CNN announced it. Valuable information from MarketingProfs.com that used to be exclusive information for members of the American Marketing Association.
As an association professional, I am both excited and worried about the impact of the transformation on trade associations, professional societies and charitable foundations.
Why?
Because our model resembles that of publishers/owners of legacy media.
For more than 100 years, trade associations and professional societies have been knowledge centers exclusive for their members. Since we controlled the information and delivery mechanisms, we could restrict it to those who paid member dues to belong. The association’s printed newspaper and/or magazine and/or journal and/or convention served as a major benefit of joining your trade association or professional society.
The high cost of "publishing" content made it virtually impossible for others to provide knowledge reduced the chance of competition. The result drove membership and permitted associations and societies to charge dues (subscriptions) for the content and knowledge.
As the news media establishment has discovered, that model has changed.
Today’s members and potential members can find "our" information fast and free from a multitude of sources.
What's an association to do?
That’s the subject of Part II.
The "poster child" for this transformation? The decline in influence and profitability of "legacy news media" (newspapers, radio and television). So far this year:
105 newspapers have been shuttered.
10,000 newspaper jobs have been lost.
Print ad sales fell 30% in Q1 '09.
23 of the top 25 newspapers reported circulation declines between 7% and 20%.
Up front disclosure: This blog post has been influenced by several excellent sources I’ve read over the last 12 months. Key among them are:
Clay Shirky's Here Comes Everybody
Chris Anderson's The Long Tail and (soon to be released) FREE: The Future of a Radical Price
Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff's Groundswell
Robert Putnam’s Bowling Alone
Joe Pulizzi’s content marketing blogs at Junta42
Seth Godin's daily blog FeedBlitz
Joe Water's blog Selfish Giving
Three key elements highlight the transformation:
1) Anyone can be a "publisher."
We have moved from an era where news and information came to us from a "publisher" who owned the printing press or broadcast tower. Because of cost, the rest of us couldn’t afford to be "publishers." The internet, Web sites, blogs and social media tools (such as Twitter) have changed the definition and speed of news and information. Anyone with access to the Internet (wired, wifi or mobile) can be a publisher. Recent examples: A plane crashes in the Hudson. Someone on a nearby ferry snaps a photo and links it to the world (and legacy media) via TwitPic. Tweets, YouTube videos and Facebook photos from a rally for freedom in Iran sparks worldwide interest despite the government’s restrictions on "foreign journalists."
2) Everyone can find everything.
Wherever information is (Websites, blogs, YouTube, Flickr, Twitter or print), Google, Bing and other search engines mean that we can discover nearly anything ever published, posted, photographed or videoed. And, we can find it fast. We create it. We share it. We own it. As a result, we are no long totally dependent on a "publisher" with exclusive control of information and knowledge.
3) It’s FREE!
We can access almost all of this information and knowledge at no cost (other than our time). The search engines are free. The software is free. And, it is changing the business model of all who were able to sell information and knowledge. Craigslist’s free services have assumed classified and want ads that were once a huge profit center of newspapers. eHarmony "stole" the personal ads, another money maker. And, Free blogs and "e-letters" from individuals and companies are replacing newspapers and professional journals.
Some manifestations of the change: The American Newspaper Editors Association has changed its named, dropping "paper" and now is the American News Editors Association. The Christian Science Monitor drops its printed editions. The Detroit News/Free Press drops home delivery two days a week. A CBS radio station ends a news report saying "for more details, see our Twitter feed on our web site." News out of Iran’s election projects flooded the world even through the traditional media was shut off. Tweets announced the death of Michael Jackson 37 minutes before CNN announced it. Valuable information from MarketingProfs.com that used to be exclusive information for members of the American Marketing Association.
As an association professional, I am both excited and worried about the impact of the transformation on trade associations, professional societies and charitable foundations.
Why?
Because our model resembles that of publishers/owners of legacy media.
For more than 100 years, trade associations and professional societies have been knowledge centers exclusive for their members. Since we controlled the information and delivery mechanisms, we could restrict it to those who paid member dues to belong. The association’s printed newspaper and/or magazine and/or journal and/or convention served as a major benefit of joining your trade association or professional society.
The high cost of "publishing" content made it virtually impossible for others to provide knowledge reduced the chance of competition. The result drove membership and permitted associations and societies to charge dues (subscriptions) for the content and knowledge.
As the news media establishment has discovered, that model has changed.
Today’s members and potential members can find "our" information fast and free from a multitude of sources.
What's an association to do?
That’s the subject of Part II.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Iran-Kodak-Cause: the Power of Social Media
The recent events in Iran ... freedom fighters using Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, etc. to spread work of the resistence after the Government shut down "legacy media outlets ... has shown the power of Social Media tools to bypass governments, organizations and the media.
Seems as though this is a lesson for those of us in the association world ... as we transition from traditional communications tools to the variety of tools in the Social Media arsenal.
Thanks to a Tweet, I had a chance to watch a presentation of Jeffrey Hayzlett, Kodak's Chief Marketing Officer, at the 140 Characters Conference. http://www.blip.tv/file/2251088/ He talks about why Kodak is rapidly adopting Social Media tools to meet its four core marketing objectives: 1) Engaging; 2) Educating; 3) Exciting; 4) Evangelizing.
Aren't those four "Es" characteristics of many of our organizations? What tools are you using to engage, educate and excite your members? And engage in evangelize to help find new members?
By the way, Hayzlett's presentation itself shows the power of Social Media for associations. Notice I did NOT attend this conference. Yet, I was watching a video of one of the keynote speakers within three days of the conference. And, this video is speeding around the world ... and making people like me think I should attend this conference the next time it is held!
What are you doing to share the content coming from your conferences and educational programs? "Keeping it" for "members only" ... or, sharing this content as a way to building awareness, trust and knowledge of your association, industry, profession?
Meanwhile, cause marketing continues to offer trade associations and professional societies a new strategy to engage members, build positive awareness and generate funds. While Corporate America and charitable non profits continue to aggressively expand their adoption of cause marketing alliances, many trade associations and professional societies seem to standing on the sidelines. I don't understand why. The Cause Marketing Forum asked me to give a Masters Series Telesession on how companies and causes can "tap in" to the association world. Here's the Power Point. http://bit.ly/cukWB I'd like to hear from trade associations and professional societies: what is holding you back?
What are your thoughts on these two issues?
Steve
Seems as though this is a lesson for those of us in the association world ... as we transition from traditional communications tools to the variety of tools in the Social Media arsenal.
Thanks to a Tweet, I had a chance to watch a presentation of Jeffrey Hayzlett, Kodak's Chief Marketing Officer, at the 140 Characters Conference. http://www.blip.tv/file/2251088/ He talks about why Kodak is rapidly adopting Social Media tools to meet its four core marketing objectives: 1) Engaging; 2) Educating; 3) Exciting; 4) Evangelizing.
Aren't those four "Es" characteristics of many of our organizations? What tools are you using to engage, educate and excite your members? And engage in evangelize to help find new members?
By the way, Hayzlett's presentation itself shows the power of Social Media for associations. Notice I did NOT attend this conference. Yet, I was watching a video of one of the keynote speakers within three days of the conference. And, this video is speeding around the world ... and making people like me think I should attend this conference the next time it is held!
What are you doing to share the content coming from your conferences and educational programs? "Keeping it" for "members only" ... or, sharing this content as a way to building awareness, trust and knowledge of your association, industry, profession?
Meanwhile, cause marketing continues to offer trade associations and professional societies a new strategy to engage members, build positive awareness and generate funds. While Corporate America and charitable non profits continue to aggressively expand their adoption of cause marketing alliances, many trade associations and professional societies seem to standing on the sidelines. I don't understand why. The Cause Marketing Forum asked me to give a Masters Series Telesession on how companies and causes can "tap in" to the association world. Here's the Power Point. http://bit.ly/cukWB I'd like to hear from trade associations and professional societies: what is holding you back?
What are your thoughts on these two issues?
Steve
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Social Media Debate: Content Trumps Everything
When I first started managing conferences, I quickly discovered that topics (content) drove attendance. In survey after survey, participants told us they made a decision to attend based on the ontent (topics), not speakers and not location.
Commentaries and presentations about whether or not social media will transform associations fill the "air" at conferences, in blogs and on social media sites themselves.
Focusing solely on social media is like trying to decide whether to hold a conference in April or May when the real issue is who is the audience and what topics are important to them.
I was reminded of this the other day when a meetings magazine reporter was interviewing Miriam Yanders (our meeting planner) and I about "challenges to drive attendance to annual conventions."
Miriam and I shared our findings from back in 1993 and 1994 ... content (topics) trumps everything. If you deliver content relevant to the target audiences, they will come.
Get the content right and your association's members will flock to you.
Once you have the content right, you can determine how to deliver that content in a way that boosts your oganization and benefits your audiences (members, potential members, etc.). And what is really exciting today is that we have a whole host of delivery vehicles:
A couple of thoughtful blogs help give more detail on content marketing and what it means to your organization:
Five Reasons why Content Strategy comes before Social Media:
http://bit.ly/1a89Vw
How to Attract and Retain Customers with Content:
http://bit.ly/ezFYs
Your thoughts?
Steve
Commentaries and presentations about whether or not social media will transform associations fill the "air" at conferences, in blogs and on social media sites themselves.
Focusing solely on social media is like trying to decide whether to hold a conference in April or May when the real issue is who is the audience and what topics are important to them.
I was reminded of this the other day when a meetings magazine reporter was interviewing Miriam Yanders (our meeting planner) and I about "challenges to drive attendance to annual conventions."
Miriam and I shared our findings from back in 1993 and 1994 ... content (topics) trumps everything. If you deliver content relevant to the target audiences, they will come.
Get the content right and your association's members will flock to you.
Once you have the content right, you can determine how to deliver that content in a way that boosts your oganization and benefits your audiences (members, potential members, etc.). And what is really exciting today is that we have a whole host of delivery vehicles:
- A traditional conference
- A Webinar
- A blog
- Facebook Fan Page
- LinkedIn Group Discussion/News
- Tweets with links to blogs
- Web site
- Videos (via YouTube)
- Audio (via Podcasts)
A couple of thoughtful blogs help give more detail on content marketing and what it means to your organization:
Five Reasons why Content Strategy comes before Social Media:
http://bit.ly/1a89Vw
How to Attract and Retain Customers with Content:
http://bit.ly/ezFYs
Your thoughts?
Steve
Friday, May 29, 2009
DrakeCo in the News
Steve Drake quoted in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch today about the Social Media Workshop Drake & Company led for Businesspersons Between Jobs (BBJ) on May 20.
During the full-day seminar, Steve talked about becoming a content expert and Twitter aficionado; Becky Hadley covered Facebook and I talked LinkedIn and Delicious. All topics were introductory, hands-on and geared towards helping professionals "between successes" find new jobs.
"You've been given the gift of time," Drake told the 60 participants. "Now is your chance to become a content expert and get ahead of the curve on these new technologies that people with jobs don't have time to learn."
Here's the full story: http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/business/stories.nsf/story/7AF648CA61A11406862575C400762B06?OpenDocument
Find out how DrakeCo can help your organization learn social media and effectively use it to recruit new members, raise money and promote your message. Contact Brian Reuwee: reuwee@drakeco.com or (636) 449-5050.
During the full-day seminar, Steve talked about becoming a content expert and Twitter aficionado; Becky Hadley covered Facebook and I talked LinkedIn and Delicious. All topics were introductory, hands-on and geared towards helping professionals "between successes" find new jobs.
"You've been given the gift of time," Drake told the 60 participants. "Now is your chance to become a content expert and get ahead of the curve on these new technologies that people with jobs don't have time to learn."
Here's the full story: http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/business/stories.nsf/story/7AF648CA61A11406862575C400762B06?OpenDocument
Find out how DrakeCo can help your organization learn social media and effectively use it to recruit new members, raise money and promote your message. Contact Brian Reuwee: reuwee@drakeco.com or (636) 449-5050.
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