The age of Cloud Computing & Online Membership Management

Two opportunities have come my way for interesting discussion which I feel enters at least on the peripheries of social media and online public relations for associations and non-profits. Recently, I was made aware of a possibility of speaking at the Trillium Chapter of CSAE's annual Tech Conference. The subject? Cloud Computing and Social Media. What is cloud computing? Basically, this new development allows organizations to store information on online sources instead of on individual hard drives. Myself, being an active Mac user subscribe to a similar service with Apple's Me.com. This new development provides some interesting opportunities in that from a social media perspective, groups and in particular, associations can share information amongst colleagues, members and supporters. Security protocols can limit access where needed and allow groups of stakeholders to contribute online to documents, for example.

With memberships being the lifeblood of many associations, keeping track of them all can be a challenge - especially in a social media age where everyone on the net expects content to be personalized. As a result, I am firm believer that for associations and NGOs to stay ahead of the curve and communicate regularly (and in a personalized manner) with their supporters. For that to occur, associations need to develop robust CRM (Customer Relationship Management Software) databases. Smart organizations also develop means of allowing this information to be shared over distances, safely stored at a remote location, and preferably allow their supporters to contribute to the database online.

As recently as a few years ago, an organization who wanted to do even mildly sophisticated things online needed to hire web designers and programmers to create a custom member database, to design their website, or to customize existing software to their needs. The process was expensive and laborious. Often these projects would require elaborate and expensive IT infrastructure. And, all too often, the end result was just a temporary fix — a site unable to accommodate the growing organization or, even worse, failing to meet its goals in the first place.

This leads me to the second opportunity which has had me thinking of social media, cloud computing and membership management - all of which are essential to successful membership retention and recruitment. I stumbled upon a newly released white paper "Membership Management Software Selection Guide: For non-profit organizations". While it is produced by my friends at Wild Apricot, it does present a number of important points in how you would consider managing your membership from a cloud computing perspective.

So, how is your NGO or association considering cloud computing, online membership management or even the sharing of documents online?


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Mark Buzan is principal and chief magnifier in Action Strategies, a full service strategic communications, public relations and public affairs consultancy for nonprofits and associations. Contact him for advice on reaching audiences you may or may not have yet considered in your marketing communications and PR campaigns. You can view his website at www.actionstrategies.ca.

Linking Communications to Membership Strategy

So, we've arrived at year's end. Notably, I have seen most non-profit and association offices rapping up their work and settling into Christmas parties. But as staff gather around the eggnog and water cooler, this also becomes the time NGOs must analyze the past year and that which is coming. 2009 is upon us and if there has been anything at all that I have learned about the non-profit sector is that membership recruitment and retention is the lifeblood of an association.

Communications is really the heart that pumps the blood of membership outreach efforts. Without an effective communications strategy, members feel disconnected from their association. Donors don't connect with a charity's cause and result, don't see the need to donate! For all to occur wherein donations keep flowing and members become potentially involved in the board and its committees, an organization's intrinsic value needs to be communicated and understood. The same goes especially for campaigns. Here, not only do your audiences need to feel related to, your campaign should have a strategy to relate those campaigns back to the overall value you wish to have identified when thinking of your association.

In all, while I may sound harping, year's end really is the time for non-profits to think of this as the perfect period for a Communications Strategy New Year's Resolution. Namely, let's think of ways that membership and donor strategy can and should be linking to how audiences need to be communicated with.
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Mark Buzan is Principal and Chief Magnifier in Action Strategies, a full service Strategic Communications, Public Relations and Public Affairs Consultancy for non-profits and associations. Make sure to contact him for advice on reaching audiences you may or may not have yet considered in your marketing communications and PR campaigns. Drop him a line if you are looking for help in developing a public relations campaign. You can view his website at www.actionstrategies.ca.