TWO MOBILE ENGAGEMENT STRATEGIES TO INCREASE GENERATION Z & MILLENNIAL ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP
Associations need new members. In 2021, associations reported titanic declines in membership of 47% (MGI,2021). In 2022 deterioration continued, or growth was stagnant for nearly two-thirds of associations (MGI,2022). According to Marketing General, Inc. (2022), “Adding new members appears to be one of the top drivers of total membership growth.” Regardless of age group, “associations must improve the personalization and customization of their members’ and customers’ experience and access” (MCI, 2022, p. 11). As a result, associations must understand how and where to approach Generation Z or Millennials to remain viable.
According to Forrester (2021), 74% of the workforce by 2030 will be Generation Z (Gen Z) or Millennials. Each of these generations consumes content differently than older generations. They also obtain content from different channels. Gen Z is a mobile-, social-, and video-first generation (data.ai, 2022). Millennials rely on digital technology for their content and are among the most significant users of social media (Lebow, 2021). Associations that do not embrace these channels and types of content, can’t attract these generations.
There are many strategies that can be employed to attract these potential members. Two specific mobile engagement strategies are SEO improvement and video with social media. The SEO strategy is designed to attract more millennials, leveraging an association’s existing digital channels. The video with social media strategy attracts Gen Z memberships, using an association’s greatest asset, its current members.
seo strategy
Members are spending as much as five hours a day on their mobile devices. More than 90% of that time is spent on apps. Members are not typing web addresses in their browsers on their mobile devices. If they don’t have an app for specific content, they’re asking Google and Siri to find the information. As a result, an association’s competition has changed.
If an association’s webpage does not land in the top three of SEO when a potential or existing member asks for that information, that opportunity is going to the competition. The competition may be another association. It may be a corporation. Regardless, that competition now can monetize the association’s member or potential member. The moment that happens, the association loses the demand for their goods and services, as well as the perceived benefit of membership.
Creating an effective SEO strategy leverages the association’s existing Content Management System (CMS). It blocks the competition when Google or Siri are asked for information. Couple that with an improved mobile responsiveness of the CMS, an association now has an effective mobile engagement strategy for attracting Millennials.
video with social media
As previously stated, Gen Z is a mobile-, social-, and video-first generation. Gen Z spends more than four hours a day on social media with over 50% of the time spent in YouTube and TikTok, split about evenly (Insider Intelligence, 2022). If an association wants to attract Gen Z, prospective members, videos with social media that have algorithms to attract these potential members make sense as the marketing channel.
A simple way to participate in that marketing channel is leveraging an association’s current members with a video partner, and TikTok. Association members have phenomenal testimonials that can be shared via video. Companies like Gather Voices , which specializes in video production for associations, can create excellent video content, using best practices. TikTok has a representative specifically for nonprofits to create a proper media-buy strategy for member acquisition. Combining these resources makes for an effective mobile engagement strategy for obtaining new members.
Each of these strategies, SEO and video, allows the organization to measure the results. Web and social media analytics can track keyword searches and views to conversion. Millennials and Gen Z are finite defined groups. The Association Management Software (AMS) provides data on revenue from new membership to event registration including age or year of birth. In other words, an association can track the return on investment (ROI) of each strategy, allowing the organization to determine its value and continued investment.
To remain viable, associations must attract new members as their existing membership atrophies with age. Adopting simple mobile engagement strategies with targeted marketing techniques in the proper channels effectively reaches the intended audience. In turn, associations will attract new and younger stakeholders, increasing membership dramatically, and extending their value generationally.
J. Mark Wallach, MBA, is the CEO Emeritus of Engagement Mobile Strategies, a consulting agency committed to associations increasing member engagement, member retention, and non-dues revenue through mobile technology selection, strategy, and implementation.
Visit engagementmobile.com for more information about member engagement and mobile technology.
References
data.ai (2022). State of Mobile 2022 Report
Forrester (2021). The Next-Gen Workforce: Five Key Tech Areas Separate Younger Workers From Older Generations
Insider Intelligence (2022). Which Social Media Platforms do US Gen Z Adults Use the Most
Lebow, S. (2021). Social media holds more sway over millennials than Gen Z. Insider Intelligence
MCI (2022). Association Engagement Index 2022=
MGI (2021). MGI Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report 2021
MGI (2022). MGI Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report 2022
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