Renewals

Chapter Leader Onboarding Series

Renewals

PA R T 4

Sigma membership is on an annual cycle, and members must renew each year to continue to receive benefits from Sigma and the local chapter. This training piece will cover the logistics of a member’s renewal experience, as well as ways chapters can help supplement these efforts. Your role in chapter leadership may or may not be directly involved with helping members renew; however, it is an important part of the membership journey that everyone should understand. Chapters depend on renewing members for financial stability, to serve in leadership roles, and to recruit new candidates by conveying the value of membership.

Sigma’s Renewal Process Sigma follows industry standard best practices for associations with annual membership renewals. The renewal process begins approximately three months before membership lapses, and includes multiple email and postal mail notifications. Sigma sends the following communications during the renewal cycle: •

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Approximately 110 days before the renewal date an email is sent, asking members to verify their mailing address before renewal notices begin sending. This is an important first step to make sure members receive their renewal communications.

Approximately 90 days before the renewal date a member receives a mailed and emailed renewal notice.

Approximately 60 days before the renewal date a member receives a second email reminder highlighting Sigma resources. (Members without an email on file receive this notification by mail.)

Approximately 30 days before the renewal date a member receives a final mailed and emailed renewal notice.

One day before a membership lapses, an email is sent as a final reminder.

During this time, reminders are also communicated in Sigma Update, My Membership, The Circle, and through social media ads.

The communication does not stop after membership lapses. Within two weeks of a member lapsing, they are sent a lapsed notice via email. One month after, they receive an exit survey via email to provide feedback about why they did not renew. Sigma continues to communicate with lapsed members over a 30-month period to help keep them engaged. Lapsed members continue to receive the Scope newsletter twice a year to learn about new Sigma benefits and initiatives, which also provides an opportunity to renew.

Creating a Chapter Renewal Plan In addition to the renewal communication touchpoints sent by Sigma, chapters should also connect with renewing members to help supplement these efforts. If someone is unsure of renewing, it is important for them to be reminded of all the offerings the chapter provides and what opportunities there are to engage with Sigma locally. A very important group for chapters to connect with are first-year members who are renewing for the first time. This is a vulnerable group who have significantly lower retention rates than those members who have already renewed in the past. Chapters can help first-year members navigate the online renewal process, and reiterate the benefits they will continue to receive beyond their first year, whether they are students, new graduates, or already in the workforce. A “First Year

Anniversary Letter” template is available in the All Chapter Officers Workgroup that thanks them for their membership, allows the chapter to share what has been accomplished in the past year, and perhaps more importantly includes upcoming activities and ways to get involved.

Besides contacting members who are due for renewal, it’s also recommended that chapters touch base with members who have recently renewed. A note of thanks acknowledges their renewal and lets the member know they are valued and recognized, and the chapter is grateful for their support. Chapters can also invite those who have recently renewed or reactivated their membership to an upcoming orientation session. This is especially important if someone has renewed after a long period of time, but will even benefit those who renewed on time. Sigma offers new programs and initiatives all the time, and many chapters also create new and creative ways to keep members engaged. Take the time to continually inform or remind members of all that their membership has to offer, and ways to get involved and remain engaged.

Finally, chapters should take the opportunity to contact members who let their membership lapse. By doing so, the chapter can obtain valuable feedback about why they chose not to renew. Some may have simply forgotten to renew on time, and contact from the chapter may be all that’s needed for them to take action. Most industries agree that efforts to contact members soon after they have lapsed result in a high reactivation rate.

It’s also worthwhile to contact those who have been lapsed for a longer period of time, as they may not realize the ways Sigma and the chapter have grown and evolved, and may be intrigued by a new benefit or program and feel encouraged to rejoin. Some chapters’ lapsed member rosters are long, and chapters can make this task manageable by setting parameters. For example, some chapters reach out to lapsed members who would be approaching a significant date, such as a five- or ten-year anniversary of induction.

To get started creating a plan, a chapter should first analyze current data and set realistic retention goals. The industry standard retention rate for membership associations like Sigma is currently 74%. A comprehensive renewal plan will contain a policy and procedure for routinely pulling reports of members who are due for renewal, those who have recently renewed, and lapsed members. A policy will outline when this is done and by whom, and the procedure will detail how it is performed. The chapter will also outline a communication plan or timeline to reach these groups. Once this work is done, different metrics can be monitored to find out if this plan is increasing the chapter’s retention rate.

Identifying Members To find information about who is due for renewal and member contact information, chapters utilize a variety of reports using the “Roster Report Tool” in the Chapter Management System (CMS) – https://Management.SigmaNursing.org •

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Active Members Due for Renewal: Download the “Active Only” report into an Excel file. Sort the report based on the “Expiration Date” column to see who will be coming up for renewal.

Depending on your chapter’s policy, this should be done on a regular basis, either monthly or further in advance of someone’s renewal. Remember that Sigma begins sending renewal notices approximately 110 days before someone’s membership lapses.

Members Who Have Recently Lapsed or Renewed: Download the “All Activity – Last 90 Days” report. This will detail anyone who has renewed or lapsed in the last 90 days, along with anyone who has joined or transferred.

Lapsed Members: Download the “Inactive Only” report to access a list of all of the chapter’s lapsed members. Remember that this list may be long, but it can be separated into manageable sections by reaching out to individuals with specific anniversary dates, like those who were inducted less than three years ago, or those who are approaching a significant induction anniversary, like five or ten years.

Communicating With Members Below are tips and suggestions for communicating with renewing or lapsed members using membership rosters.

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Sigma provides renewal message samples in the All Chapter Officers Workgroup. Download versions for members who are due to renew and those who have recently lapsed. Remember there is also a template for first-year members, who renew at a much lower rate.

Besides mail or email communication, many chapters experience success holding calling campaigns. Phone calls are often viewed as more personal and allow members a chance to ask questions they may have about the chapter before renewing. It’s also an opportunity for them to hear directly from chapter leaders and members who are passionate about the organization.

This may be a very effective tactic for reaching first-year members or those who have lapsed in the past 90 days. Review Sigma’s calling campaign materials.

When emailing groups of members, keep in mind that bulk emails (more than 10-15 recipients) should never be sent from a personal email account. Bulk emails like this are very likely to be caught in spam filters, but more importantly may be in violation of spam regulations because they do not offer recipients an option to opt-out. Personal, one-to-one emails are allowed and will likely be more effective. If your chapter is contacting a large list of people and the task cannot be divided among chapter leaders to contact people individually, the chapter should consider using an email service provider. This resource helps explain more about bulk email sends.

Chapters should download a new membership roster before each new communication.

Members update their contact information through Sigma, so this will ensure chapters have the most up-to-date list. Remember to remove anyone from this list who has indicated they no

longer want to be contacted by the chapter, or anyone who has opted out from an email service provider.

Making an Impact on Membership Renewals To achieve the maximum number of renewals possible, chapters must work to supplement Sigma’s renewal efforts; however, this is just one factor in increasing retention rates. Multiple communication touchpoints will help ensure members remember and know how to renew, but what will ultimately help them make the decision is the value they see in their membership yearround.

Members begin making the decision to renew from day one of their membership, and the chapter experience they have throughout the year will determine whether they see value in renewing. By the time someone is due to renew, the opportunity to significantly sway their decision is mostly diminished if they have already made up their mind. Sigma staff hears frequently from chapters that want to increase the likelihood of renewal as a large membership cohort approaches their anniversary date. While a chapter renewal plan will help with these efforts, the real work must begin much sooner in an effort to provide an ideal membership experience.

Chapters can determine what members will find valuable by conducting membership surveys and implementing programs, benefits, and services that meet these needs. Another key component is helping members establish an emotional connection to the organization and their chapter experience. Crafting an ideal membership experience is crucial to maintaining a membership base, and ideas and tactics for accomplishing this will be explored in the next piece in this training series.

Questions? Contact us!

888.634.7575 (US/Canada toll-free) +1.317.634.8171 (International) chapserv@sigmanursing.org SigmaNursing.org/ChapterLeaders