Successful Associations Today

Eboni Wall is the VP of Global Strategy and Innovation for the Produce Marketing Association who leads innovation conversations inviting all staff to get out of their ruts and out of their own way. Having an established innovation process encourages ideas from staff that will help membership and internal operations and culture. Part of that process is knowing that when you try new things, there will be failures -- and that is a great part of the innovation process. It's all about learning from those failures and adjusting based on what you've learned. Eboni shares how PMA developed their strategy and built an innovation welcoming culture that has allowed them to achieve some big wins along the way. Please click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Celisa Steele and Jeff Cobb are co-founders of Tegoras and co-hosts of the Leading Learning podcast. Each has spent more than 20 years designing, developing, delivering, and marketing adult lifelong learning, continuing education, and professional development. At the forefront of learning technology trends, they have developed deep expertise in helping organizations grow and improve their continuing education and professional development. In this episode we explore the key trends in adult learning that associations should be considering as we think about a post-pandemic future and the educational strategies that will help the association capitalize on them. Please click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Melynn Sight and her company nSight Marketing help associations win the battle for member attention, readership and engagement. It all begins with a compelling value proposition that conveys why the association matters. She is the author of the book Breakthrough Value which helps associations understand what a value proposition is and the 7 critical steps to discovering and backing up their own unique value message. What is the job of the value proposition? How do you discover what your members think is important, what they need? Once you have a compelling value proposition, what next? Discover all this and more in this value-packed episode. Learn more about Melynn and her book at https://breakthroughvalue.org Please click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Hilary Marsh is president and chief strategist of Content Company, a content and digital strategy consultancy that helps associations get better results from their content by improving their practices. Content is more than just your magazine or newsletter or blog. From Hilary's perspective, content is everything an association does including event sessions you deliver, journals, clinical practice guidelines, advocacy position papers -- everything that comes back to words and pictures, audio and video that you share with the world. Content strategy is the practice of planning for the creation, delivery and governance of content that is useful, usable and effective. Many associations are missing the boat by not starting with what their audience needs and wants from them. What are the channels through which we can deliver content and how do we make sure we're doing it best? What is the CEO's role in understanding and demanding content strategy for an association? What are the obstacles associations face in developing and deploying a solid content strategy? We answer these questions and more in this fascinating episode. Please click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Maddie Grant, CAE is co-founder of Propel and an expert culture designer and digital strategist who focuses on helping organizations prosper through culture change. She has specific expertise in digital transformation and generational differences in the workplace. Even though associations have been talking about digital transformation for years, the pandemic forced the topic to the forefront. Associations had the realization that they actually could think outside the box and use technology to continue serving their members and staff. It also provided a window of opportunity to think about the ultimate change, the transformation, more than the technology. With so much information and so many definitions out there, we're bringing it back to the basics of what associations really need to know right now to fully embrace the "digital first" concept -- including the difference between being digitized and being digital. I'd really appreciate it if you would click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Guests: Joe Skeel, Executive Director of the Indiana State Bar Association, Stephanie Mercado, CEO of the National Association of Healthcare Quality and Jackie Davis of Loyalty Research Center. Market research can help your board envision the future, determine where to focus and prioritize, and guide conversations and planning. It can also help you develop the relationships you have with your members - growing engagement, satisfaction, and top-line revenue. We're sharing conversation and case studies to illustrate the challenges and successes of associations who are using market research to develop strategy. I'd really appreciate it if you would click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Seth Kahan is an executive strategy advisor on change and innovation who works with senior leaders and association executives. He is also the author of four books including business bestseller, Getting Change Right. Taking time for solo thinking is a habit we encourage all leaders to incorporate into their lives because if you're not pouring into yourself, then who is pouring into you? And if you're coming from a place of emptiness, how can you lead others with energy and enthusiasm? For Seth, solo thinking time happens while camping "off the grid" where he retreats when he feels the need to think clearly without the demands of everyday life. For Mary, it's not quite so primitive and might be a cabin on a lake or a retreat center. For both, however, the benefits of checking in with themselves outside all of their different daily roles is a way to reconnect and refocus on what is most important. Solo thinking time doesn't have to be camping in the wilderness or a week away at a cabin. It can be one day or half a day or even an hour. The benefits and return on investment can still be profound. What are the benefits of taking intentional time away? How can you create rituals to start and end your thinking time or retreat? How can you set aside solo thinking time and stick to it? Why is it even more important for solo thinking time when you're too busy or overwhelmed? It's easy to be busy, but not necessarily busy doing the right things -- the things that really matter and make a difference. Listen in and learn how to fill yourself up! I'd really appreciate it if you would click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Cynthia Mills is the President & CEO of The Leaders' Haven™, a consultancy serving clients as business strategist, board consultant, business and executive coach, succession planning and change management guide, leadership development catalyst, speaker, and facilitator. In 2018 she was inducted into the Academy of Leaders, a highest individual honor from ASAE. Cynthia founded The Leaders' Haven to help leaders and teams go beyond business as usual and continuously transform, so they can fulfill their true calling and exceed the expectations of the people they serve. Leaders often get caught up in the doing and the being of leadership, without making time to do the deeper work, both individually and as a group, that drives substantive change in associations. Cynthia shares her experience working with leaders to uncover the things that impact their own strategic thinking around the continuous design of their lives and to cultivate a willingness to focus on opportunity — because if you're staying strategic and focusing on opportunity it keeps you from becoming paralyzed and that is the key to successful leadership. I'd really appreciate it if you would click the like button above and leave a review if your favorite podcast app has that ability. Thank you! Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Aaron Wolowiec, the founder and CEO of Event Garde, established the Healthy by Association community for people in stress-riddled association and hospitality industries to connect around a shared lifestyle, embrace self-care, and ultimately inspire each other to invest in their health and enjoy the journey along the way. Right after the holidays in 2017, Aaron began posting on his personal Facebook profile how he was dealing with the stress in his own life by going to the gym in the midst of the Michigan winter to run. As his runs got longer and more consistent he started to receive great feedback from others who were inspired and motivated by his posts. He realized the opportunity to build a community for those in similar industries who were health and wellness minded and created the Facebook community Healthy by Association. The typical travel schedule in the association and event space makes navigating healthy eating and workouts difficult when our schedules are off and we don't necessarily have the opportunities or equipment we might need. The Healthy by Association group supports its members with Motivation Mondays, sample workouts on Wednesday, and healthy recipes on Fridays. They acknowledge and celebrate successes with a challenge coin program, and even create new playlists each month around a theme. The group helps people be accountable, not necessarily to any particular game plan, but to the plan that works best for them. During the pandemic of 2020, moving from on-the-go to stay-at-home created new and different challenges which Aaron speaks to and how Healthy by Association is supporting its members' health and wellness in creative ways. Healthy by Association is an open Facebook community and can be found at https://www.facebook.com/groups/742854905869919/ Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Jeanne Dee, CPA, CGMA is the Audit and Assurance Practice Leader for the not-for-profit group at Anders CPAs + Advisors where she specializes in audits of financial statements for not-for-profit organizations, government entities, employee benefit plans and closely held businesses. We're talking about the financial side of what's happening for associations during the pandemic in 2020, 2021 and beyond and what we can do to stabilize our financial future. With updates to the Cares Act, a lot of new opportunities for increased funding to associations have become accessible — employee retention tax credits and PPP loans, for example — which offer some optimism, but Jeanne suggests we still tread carefully as things begin to shift and move closer to our "next normal". Jeanne reveals the most important financial aspects association leaders should be thinking about as we move forward, including how to find revenue for things like cybersecurity as we transition to more online and hybrid events. Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Dr. Michael Tatonetti is the founder of Pricing for Associations -- a training and consulting firm on a mission to advance associations in their pricing models for financial stability. We're talking about the biggest mistakes associations make in pricing. Pushed by the pandemic, associations are starting to have real conversations about the value they provide and what their sponsors, members, and attendees value. It's really a conversation about innovation — sun-setting things that aren't working and starting new things that can work. Many associations, when they really dig into their pricing, find out they're actually losing money on products and service for which they thought they were making money. The right way to use free as a strategy Taking incremental steps to improve what we offer and then capture the price so we're not pricing out of fear or worry that no one will pay for it How to be deliberate and intentional about pricing How to come from a position of strength in pricing to create excellence Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers

Keith Chamberlain is Director of Membership & Experience at the Healthcare Financial Management Association who co-led a digital business model transformation with a Netflix-inspired, all-access structure. The 3-prong project included a new business model, new technology platform and realigning staff to support the new initiative -- all of which put HFMA in a great position when the 2020 pandemic occurred in the U.S. We're talking about the human-centered design thinking process they used to conduct a unique strategic planning process in which hundreds of members were interviewed to develop themes and priorities that led to the 3-prong transformation to deliver what those members said they needed and wanted from the association. The new all-access membership offering includes a number of digitally delivered benefits that used to require ala carte purchases including online education, certifications, a new online community and unlimited web content. Within one year HFMA experienced a 36% growth in new individual members and retention rates improved by 4.5%. Visit https://www.marybyers.com/contact/ for links to join the conversation on our social sites. © 2021 Mary Byers