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How Does Your Professional Association Measure Up?
By Neville Hobson
Expert Author
Article Date: 2009-03-11
An intriguing post showed up in my RSS reader this morning under the 'public relations' tracking tag:
Ten things to manage in a recession: 1 - memberships.
The writer, Paul Wilkinson, says:
[...] if you are a marketeer, what can you do to help your business survive (and - perhap more importantly - keep your job!)? [...] Number one: "Cut association memberships" That's a worthwhile thought whatever your profession. I ask the question this way:
What does membership offer me that makes my annual subscription an indispensible investment? It's a bit of a selfish view - it certainly doesn't look at reciprocity as in "what do I offer my professional association?" - but we're in tough economic times and, in this post, looking only at judging the maximum return from a direct investment in a professional association.
Wilkinson offers six suggestions. Here they are as headlines (visit his post to read the detail): - Get your association to enable and encourage online involvement.
- Look at low-cost alternatives to the big associations.
- Look at online networking groups and communities of practice.
- Establish a new network, or a sub-network.
- Build your own informal network.
- Several, or all, of the above.
They're good suggestions, valid to apply to the professional association you belong to, whatever your profession.
I did that for my membership in IABC (the International Association of Business Communicators), the only professional association I belong to and have done continuously for 20 years.
A no brainer - I'm very happy with the return IABC gives me, not only in the obvious things from the suggestion list (eg, items 1 and 3) but also the open framework that lets me do things like items 4 and 5.
And, by the way, IABC just launched the IABC Marketplace last week - if you're a communication consultant (as I am), it's a terrific free resource to showcase what you offer to your fellow members.
How does your professional association measure up?
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About the Author:
Neville Hobson is the author of the popular NevilleHobson.com blog which focuses on business communication and technology.
Neville is a UK-based communicator, blogger and podcaster. He helps companies use effective communication to achieve their business goals. Visit Neville Hobson's blog: NevilleHobson.com.
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