For any association, the on-boarding process is critical to how welcome a new member feels, and how meaningfully they engage with you. So how do you maximise this opportunity?
If you’ve been following the traditional welcome email approach, perhaps it’s time to assess how effectively this is working. While emails are an easy and low-cost method to connect with a new member, they do have their drawbacks.
At Optimum, we know that a welcome phone call beats a welcome email hands down. Here are just four reasons why:
1. A phone call can build instant rapport and engagement
A carefully crafted phone call is the human connection that can make all the difference to how your new member feels about belonging. It’s a chance to engage in a positive conversation that helps the member feel good about deciding to join.
2. A phone call won’t get lost in the in-box
An email is easy to be missed or relegated to the ‘I’ll read later status’.
3. A phone call can reveal valuable information and insights about the member
In addition to verifying contact details about the new member, an on-boarding phone call is a great chance to dig a little deeper. Asking questions about the new member’s career goals lets you direct them straight to your association’s resources that are most relevant to them. And clarifying their areas of interest means you can point them to online forums or groups they might enjoy, or the right networking events and conferences that you offer.
4. A phone call helps you tailor future communication
The information and insights that you glean in this initial phone can directly inform your association’s future interactions with them. You can tailor your standard newsletter to match their areas of interest or location, and keep them updated when a relevant course or event is happening in their area. Delivering content that’s of interest to them, instead of a mass communication approach, will help them to feel valued by your association.
All of the above can go a long way come renewal time. At Optimum Contact, we conduct a lot of new-member phone calls on behalf of our clients, tailoring our approach to make sure we connect to build a sense of value and engagement. If you’d like some help to on-board your new members, we’d love to talk!
