Beyond Borders: Uniting Chapter Communications
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Communication lies at the heart of every successful association, driving growth, engagement, and impact in today’s fast-paced world. For chapters, communicating effectively is paramount to their strength and success. Are you ready to take your chapter communications to new heights?
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Beyond Borders: Uniting Chapter Communications
- 1. Beyond Borders: Uniting Chapter Communications
- 2. Reno #1
- 3. What tech tools will help lessen the administrative burden on my chapter leaders? How do I build more resilient components and volunteers? Who We Are
- 4. Priorities Shifted People have shifted priorities from work to personal lives. Challenges getting and keeping chapter leader attention Communication Complexity Too many channels to pay attention to – emails, texts, Slack, Teams, Asana. Volunteers Time Shift Less time to devote to role & training.
- 5. “Us” vs “Them” mentality Inherited mindset from past leadership Miss the chapter leaders’ perspective Too selective in what we share Ghosting chapter leaders Biggest obstacle = Lack of trust
- 6. How to build trust & strengthen communications with chapter leaders
- 7. Communication skill Framework (roles, responsibilities, expectations)
- 8. GOAL: easy two-way communication between chapters and associations. Open forums, virtual town halls, Ask Me Anything sessions Coffee chats & happy hours to foster connection with leaders A platform where chapter leaders and volunteers feel SAFE airing their challenges Easy scheduling for 1:1 Open Dialogue
- 9. GOAL: earn credibility as an ally, not “them.” Make time for individual check-ins Ask for feedback and opinions Track email clicks Record notes to keep chapter intel (& share internally!) Extend your capabilities: bring in third-party training/coaching Personal Support
- 10. Remember to set realistic expectations. Document/agreement on responsibilities of both chapters and association HQ Determine where separations are to prevent misunderstandings or finger pointing Expectations
- 11. GOAL: inspire volunteers & staff Share the impact of their contributions. Appreciate individually and collectively. Create a clear, ongoing strategy. Gratitude & Recognition
- 12. GOAL: Create a connection with your communications. Respect time & “inbox” Use audience segmentation. Track & use data (for timing, frequency, triggers, etc.). Understand the bigger picture. Consistency is key. Practice effective fundamentals (design, “skimmability”, conciseness, etc.) Timing
- 13. GOAL: Build their skills. Id skills needed on-the-job & volunteering. Workshops, webinars, meetings, coaching, tool kits, practice. Communication Training
- 14. Use concise, descriptive subject lines. Include deadlines, requests, action required, and due dates. Make the email easy to skim. Utilize bullets, bold phrases. Reemphasize what’s most important for them, short paragraphs are key. Use a consistent design on regular communications If possible, one topic or CTA per email Email Design
- 15. Helping chapters improve their communication practices
- 16. Provide with useful chapter resources. Add a chapter resources section on your website Create a chapter communication toolkit Train chapter leaders on how to use the communications toolkit Chapter Resources
- 17. Provide chapter leaders with approved, on-brand messaging from HQ. Association talking points About the association one-pager FAQ – myths and truths How to create a chapter communications plan How to use association in email signature List of communication resources available from the association Messaging
- 18. Share samples of approved HQ messaging for: Elevator speeches News releases Chapter website landing page Social media posts Journalist and legislator pitches Share Samples
- 19. Teach chapters skills they can use in their regular job – more valuable Convene on chapter leader workshop, webinar, meeting where they can share problems and consult their peers Chapter Communication Training
- 20. Connect chapter leaders who share the same challenges (one’s solved it already) Create an online community or virtual meetups where leaders can share success stories and ask for advice Share peer video clips on why something’s important, what’s effective, what they get out of volunteering Peer-to-Peer Communication
- 21. Join Beth Z, Your Nerdy Best Friend, Billhighway, Mariner Management, and Impexium for an in-depth look at ChatGPT and similar tools. Everything You Need to Know About ChatGPT: The Hottest (and Scariest) Technology of 2023 NOV 8 - WEBINAR REGISTER Earn 1 CAE Credit for attending!
- 22. Join your CRP people for a day of learning and connections. Watch for more details! CEX 2.0 Spring 2024 Coming soon Earn CAE Credits for attending!
- 23. Billhighway Mariner Management • Current financial reporting • Chapter member engagement data • Number of events they’re hosting • Types of events they’re hosting • Percentage of members and non- members attending • Discovering your chapter ROI • Innovating your chapter structure • Rethinking your volunteer strategy • Training & developing chapters leaders • In-depth & quick bites Tap us for… With Billhighway, you can see chapter performance data in real time—no more nagging chapters for: Want more? Contact us for a 15 minute chat. Your chapters need help? You need help with your chapters? Want more? Contact us for a 15 minute chat.
- 24. Thank You!
Editor's Notes
- Communication – essential for chapter success – recruiting and engaging members and other audiences, promoting events and activities, keeping the chapter running smoothly. To help chapter communications – need open and effective communication between your association (you) and chapter leaders – if you don’t have that, not in position to help chapter leaders, they won’t be receptive or they won’t be aware of how you can help them improve chapter performance and member experience. Introduce Sheri Singer of Singer Communications with us today to go deep in this topic.
- Let’s record - Yes, we’re recording this webinar! We’ll share the slide deck, chat & recording in a follow-up email Attending live earns you 1 CAE credit Please fill out our post-webinar survey
- Let’s Meet the Team – This webinar is brought to you by the fab partnership of Billhighway & Mariner Management! In fact this topic comes out of our work. You may think you are buying a tech solution from BH or a chapter solution from MM but you are also bringing in communications savvy. We both understand the power of communications to support or deep six great iniatives. That brings us to today’s conversation. @Billhighway – Chapter Management Solution. We increase ROI across your entire organization by providing technology tools to help chapters perform better; as well as delivering member engagement and component performance data to headquarters. @Peggy - Mariner – Let’s create the greatest possible value for your members and volunteers! Our Shared Purpose To build community the component relations community and connect CRPs.
- Association CEO (Aaron at USBG) said his members were putting less priority on “workplace-adjacent activities” like volunteering and chapter leadership Sheri: The pandemic caused many people to shift their priorities, wanted to spend more time with friends and family, exercising, cooking and eating better “Many of us realized we didn’t need to be busy every minute of every day” “With these shifting priorities, I can see how volunteering as a priority has dropped into a different rung on the life ladder” Full inbox, too many communication channels to pay attention to – personal and professional email, texts, workplace platforms like Slack, Teams and Asana Difficulty in getting volunteer leaders to spend time doing anything extra, like communications training
- POLL “In the decades I’ve been working with associations, it’s been a “them” and “us” mentality.” Mindset toward association often inherited by chapter leaders’ successors Might not be based on anything real, or it’s based on a misunderstanding 14 years ago, but it’s still there Associations unintentionally make it difficult to strengthen trust Not seeing situation from chapter leader perspective Sheri: Chapters place a greater emphasis on local events, that’s where they allocate money and time, don’t always have time to tend to both chapter and association priorities, not intentionally ignoring HQ priorities, but are making tough choices about where to spend their limited time Sheri: associations often forget that chapter leaders/staff are part of your extended staff – need to communicate with them as much care as you do other internal audiences, like the board, and external audiences (press, elected officials, prospects) Seen associations not giving chapter leaders information before sharing it with other audiences. Should treat them like the VIPs they are. Or “ghosting” chapter leaders—just not communicating with them at all.
- Let’s bring in an expert. Sheri opened her business in 2002. Since then she’s been a partner with 100s of associations, corporate and government clients, picking up awards along the way. While she offers the full plate of communications (check out her case studies), what’s germain here is the work on developing communication strategy (think what’s my overall strategy for engaging chapters/communities), putting together communication campaigns (think how do I provide chapters with a toolkit to move an issue/message forward) and training (think I gotta get my volunteers better at working with the media or any comm skill). POLLS Ways to measure effectiveness and identify areas for improvement What methods help resolve communication breakdowns? Elaborate on walking chapters through a communication toolkit What should be in the toolkit? Do you have a template for a communications audit? What training ideas have you seen work for chapter leaders?
- I want to start by noting that communications are built on a firm foundation – & there are two parts to this: 1 – communication skills. And that means practice. 1st thing to practice: Listen first, then respond 2nd thing is don’t assume, clarify – make this a conscious part of your communications 3rd don’t use 10 words when 5 is enough – concise is critical 2 – framework for the relationship – expectation settings, roles, resp. This is your AA, your job descriptions.
- Let’s highlight a few tips we picked up from Sheri in our interview. In building trust between chapters and associations it’s communication, communication, communication. Open dialogue, create ways for easy two-way communication Schedule regular Zoom open forums or virtual town halls Most important, build a platform where chapter leaders and volunteers feel SAFE airing their challenges, then can work as a team to solve them. When people don’t feel safe – no real dialogue During pandemic, several associations started Ask Me Anything sessions, coffee chats, happy hours, town halls to ensure members and/or chapter leaders knew they were listening and to foster connection
- Through your personal support of chapter leaders - earn credibility as an ally, not “them” They see you as a source worth making time for, worth reading Responsive within boundaries, show you care Can’t blast everything – make time for individual check-ins via phone/Zoom Listening – asking for feedback and opinions, taking it in, what’s being said and not said, addressing difficult topics Tracking email clicks – what’s of interest (and not) to them Report to rest of HQ on what you’re learning of relevance to them Chapter intel – recordkeeping – notes on emails and meetings, historical record, smart idea for succession training Third-party support – leadership coaching, finance training, on-call advice
- Set realistic expectations – document/agreement on responsibilities of both sides (chapter and assn), where separations are – prevents misunderstandings, finger pointing
- Gratitude and recognition Gratitude, tell them how their contributions affect members, association, industry, illustrate their impact on mission through stories and data Create opportunities for chapter recognition, awards, chapter of the month profiles
- Both association and chapters are competing for the most precious commodity of all--time. Volunteers have limited time, and they are most likely going to pick and choose where they want to put their volunteer efforts. Don’t waste their time - make sure everything you ask for makes their job easier somehow, not just asking for things because you always have, do you really need it, why, how will it help them, connect the dots Respect their time and inbox— care and attention to frequency and relevance, what’s in it for them, focused on recipient’s needs (not HQ’s), Segmentation by chapter size, chapter role—emails and meetups Email timing – track opens and community postings, best time to send Frequency – email audit – what else are they receiving from you and rest of HQ Consistency – tip of the month, membership minute, leaders in the loop; same date for regular emails/calls Email design Descriptive concise subject line, include words like deadline, request, action required, due date—don’t dilute urgency by overusing it From line is work email, not generic email box Easy to skim – bullets, bold phrases—reemphasizes what’s most important for them to take away, short paragraphs Consistent design – know where to look – timely essentials they need to take action on or be aware of; HQ news of interest to their members (not sales pitch); leader resources If possible, one topic or CTA per email
- Chapter communication training Better if the skills you’re teaching them are ones they can also use in their regular job – more valuable, more likely to make time (or employer will let them make time) Convene a chapter leader workshop, webinar, meeting where they can share problems and consult their chapter leader peers (and the association) for answers Teach chapters skills they can use in their regular job – more valuable Convene on chapter leader workshop, webinar, meeting where they can share problems and consult their peers
- Email design Descriptive concise subject line, include words like deadline, request, action required, due date—don’t dilute urgency by overusing it From line is work email, not generic email box Easy to skim – bullets, bold phrases—reemphasizes what’s most important for them to take away, short paragraphs Consistent design – know where to look – timely essentials they need to take action on or be aware of; HQ news of interest to their members (not sales pitch); leader resources If possible, one topic or CTA per email
- Chapter resources section on your website Chapter communication toolkit – Sheri went on road virtually to walk chapter leaders/members thru toolkit , helps to position chapter leader as association and industry leader, can talk “on brand” about the association
- Messaging – key messages and sub-messages – association talking points, foundation of your verbal brand About the association one-pager FAQ – myths and truths, especially good in controversial industries How to create a chapter communications plan – largely tactical Sample elevator speeches How to use association in email signature Sample news releases Sample chapter website landing page, social media posts, journalist and legislator pitch, and more, plus… List of communication resources available from the association
- Chapter communication training Better if the skills you’re teaching them are ones they can also use in their regular job – more valuable, more likely to make time (or employer will let them make time) Convene a chapter leader workshop, webinar, meeting where they can share problems and consult their chapter leader peers (and the association) for answers
- Encourage peer-to-peer communication, connect leaders who share same challenges (one’s solved it already or working on it) Online community, quarterly virtual meetups, share success stories, ask for advice Peer video clips - why something’s important, what’s been effective for them, what they get out of their service (volunteer recruitment videos)
- Register now >> https://billhighway.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMsf-ygrD0vHdTBGu0aqI63ocnnik9YjuaG
- April or May 2024
- Billhighway Software like Billhighway allows for a healthy balance of association visibility and chapter autonomy. You can see chapter performance data in real time—no nagging required. For example, with Billhighway, you can see the: Full financial picture of chapters Insight into member data Number of events chapters are hosting Types of events they’re hosting Percentage of members attending Percentage of non-members attending Mariner We are all about optimizing your local presence, whether it’s the traditional chapter or something else. We help you empower volunteers, improve the member experience, answer tough questions about components.
- Any questions? Thank you!