8 Practices for a Successful Dues Restructuring

When it comes to evaluating and restructuring an organization’s membership dues structure it is a matter of aligning the needs of members with the organization’s value proposition and building a membership model that accommodates and supports those needs in a way that builds desire for prospective members to join the organization and active members to be loyal for years to come.

There are eight practices that are vital when considering a realignment or restructuring of your dues model:

  1. Understanding and Strengthening the Member Value Proposition – Many of your members (especially if you’re a trade association) aren’t even aware of their annual dues payment much less how much it is. When changing the dues model and informing them (see #8 below), they become more aware of those details. That’s when they start asking those pesky questions like “what’s in it for me?” and “what have you done for me lately?” Having a compelling and desirable value proposition will help support and justify the change throughout the membership. Begin looking at your member value proposition before taking any other step to restructure or change your dues model.
  2. Survey Members and Listen – It’s difficult to get feedback from members. They have short attention spans and are reluctant to be candid. Gathering the information, listening to it, and then trusting what they say is a critical step in making significant changes to your value proposition and dues model.
  3. Conduct an Environmental Scan – Getting beyond the walls of the organization’s headquarters and looking at what other organizations (competitors and others) are offering and charging will help provide context to inform your decision-making on changing the membership model.
  4. Set Clear Goals with Buy-In – The goals of a dues restructuring must be crystal clear and must have buy-in at all levels of the organization. The organization must be of the mindset that once a change has been put in motion there is no going back.
  5. Audit the Supporting Technology – When moving to a new dues structure, the underlying technological infrastructure must be able to support it. If there is a need to convert to a new association management system (AMS) or customer relationship management system (CRM) to do what is needed to grow under a new dues structure, then that needs to figure into the plans and the timeline. Trying to “fit a square peg into a round hole” will increase the risk of damaging the dues revenue stream which organizations usually rely heavily on for sustainability.
  6. Persistence – A dues restructuring is a long-term transformation of the organization. Build in plenty of time to do it properly.
  7. Prepare Financially – A dues restructuring should not be something that is done in a “down” year financially. Such a change will likely have a negative impact on your recruitment and retention efforts. Plan to dip into a surplus or borrow from investments if needed to finance the change to ensure stability throughout the transition.
  8. Communicate – Throughout the dues restructuring journey, the organization must be transparent and communicate with members and non-members. This will bring the feedback out of the shadows and open the dialogue with those that will be affected most. Be inclusive and provide opportunities to listen while providing updates and progress reports.

A successful transition to a new membership dues model fosters growth rather than interrupts it. Take the steps above into consideration when beginning your long journey of change.