It's easy to talk about "the members" as if they're one group with one set of needs. They're not. A brand-new member finding their feet, a twenty-year stalwart, an early-career professional, a senior leader, a member who joined for networking versus one who joined for advocacy — these people want genuinely different things from you. Treating them as a single audience means serving all of them a bit, and none of them well.
The associations that feel valuable to their members understand this. They recognise the distinct segments within their membership and tailor at least some of what they offer to those different needs — the right content, the right events, the right communication for the right people. It doesn't mean infinite personalisation; it means not pretending a one-size-fits-all approach fits anyone particularly well.
This is also where the data you already hold earns its keep. You likely know more than you use about who your members are and what they engage with. Putting that to work — even simply — lets you serve people as the individuals they are, not as an undifferentiated mass.
Ask: do we actually know our members' different needs — or do we treat them all the same and hope?
Understanding and serving your member segments well is a thread through What Every Association CEO Needs to Know.
Explore the Association CEO course
Free first step: the Membership Health Scorecard.
Annie
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