For the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives (WSAE), creating meaningful connections for association professionals is the name of the game. There was only one problem: operating on outmoded systems, members were left feeling isolated and dissatisfied rather than connected and inspired.
When the need to adapt became apparent, Executive Director Jennifer Rzepka sought out modern, streamlined member management that could maximize member value while empowering staff to fill in the gaps behind the scenes.
Identifying Challenges and Breaking Down Barriers
WSAE faced several roadblocks on the road to modernization, including:
- Outdated website: An older site impeded member communications, making benefits difficult to understand and deliver.
- Disparate systems: With data spread out across various sources, processes were inefficient and time-consuming, inhibiting both staff collaboration and member value.
- Poor data quality: Without a single source of truth, WSAE struggled to understand its membership composition, making reporting and legislative lobbying efforts difficult, if not impossible.
- Stretched thin staff: Countless staff hours were spent on manual processes like renewals, payment processing and messaging, greatly underscoring the need for automation.
After identifying these key challenges, WSAE was ready to adopt a modern AMS solution that could remedy member pain points like communication and benefits, while helping staff fulfill the organization’s broader mission through automation, easier access to data and improved reporting tools.
Modernizing with Purpose
In collaboration with MemberClicks, WSAE embarked on a total modernization journey. Thanks to super-fast onboarding and implementation, WSAE completely revolutionized its user interface, backend structure and access to data—all on an extremely tight schedule.
How they did it:
- Introducing MC Professional: WSAE replaced their old system with MC Professional for enhanced communications, automated processes and data-driven insights.
- Lightning-fast website construction: Under a significant time crunch, MemberClicks launched a brand-new website for WSAE, just in time for renewals. “We were amazed at how fast we were able to get through that process so we could have a fresh website up for members in their renewal year,” said Jennifer.
- Taking control of data: Next, WSAE did a little data spring cleaning, streamlining data to build out membership demographic information for more effective messaging and more precise member advocacy in legislation.
- Integrating seamlessly: Having everything all in one platform made daily operations a breeze for WSAE staff, empowering personalized communications to improve engagement and retention.
- Leveraging features: MC Professional’s suite of features enabled WSAE to connect with members on a new level, from easy event signup and tracking to continual communications on the backend through custom form building to collect survey data.
As the partnership between MemberClicks and WSAE evolved, so did WSAE’s strategy, bringing with it significant optimizations in daily operations, member engagement and data capabilities.
Real Impact, Real Results
The switch to a modern member platform had profound impacts on WSAE, resulting in tangible benefits for members and staff alike:
- Unlocking automation: Automated processes including payment and dues renewal helped WSAE save hours of time and potential errors from manual operations, freeing up staff to focus on strategic initiatives and delivering value to members.
- Enhancing renewals: MC Professional’s streamlined, all-in-one platform empowered ease of use like never before, resulting in sky-high retention and renewal rates, dues paid not just on time but early, and significantly less staff time spent on renewal follow-up.
- Export reporting: Having everything in one place allowed staff to pull data directly from MC Professional, enabling easier education of board members and a much shorter time frame for report generation.
It’s hard to say who appreciated the transformation more, WSAE staff or its members. MemberClicks liberated communication silos between members and staff, allowing for a significant boost in retention rates, hours of time saved, and optimized data access for quick reporting to leadership.
“One of the amazing things about MemberClicks is the true partnerships they have with SAEs,” Jennifer said. “That partnership speaks volumes to the those of us in association management. We understand how it works, and that it’s not a commodity or an exchange, but a true partnership.”
Building on Success
Not content to stop there, WSAE is committed to continuously expanding benefits and improving the user experience for members. Here are a few ways they plan to keep innovating:
- Building an online CommUnity: To support newly robust member benefits, WSAE plans to build out an online CommUnity to allow members a gathering place to share ideas, as well as to improve continuity among committees as leadership evolves.
- Recapturing lapsed members: Even as retention rates skyrocket, some members are bound to fall through the cracks. WSAE plans to investigate how MC Professional tools can help bring back lapsed members, recruit new ones and customize messaging for existing ones.
“We’re very excited about these new features, and we’re going to be building it out right now.” Jennifer said. “For implementation this year, we hope that it provides great continuity for WSAE moving forward. So, we’re really excited about that.”
WSAE plans to continue innovating the member experience, leveraging every tool at their disposal, and working with MemberClicks to ensure optimal access to data for the best advocacy possible.
WSAE Modernizes Member Engagement and Operations with MemberClicks Partnership
The Wisconsin Society of Association Executives (WSAE) partnered with MemberClicks to overhaul outdated systems, streamline operations and reimagine the member experience. By implementing MC Professional and launching a new website under a tight deadline, WSAE empowered staff, improved data access and elevated communications. The collaboration enabled more efficient backend processes and deeper, more personalized member engagement.
“It’s a daily-use platform for us. We’re very happy to be working with MemberClicks because, as an AMC, we also endorse the product of MemberClicks through many of our other clients. It’s a great solution, because it has everything nonprofits need. And having everything in one easy to use, integrated system has been great for our staff.”
— Jennifer Rzepka, Executive Director at WSAE
With plans to expand benefits through online communities and re-engagement strategies, WSAE continues to innovate with MemberClicks as a trusted partner.
Your association is ready to reach its full potential. So why wait? Automate operations, enhance member engagement and stay ahead of the curve with MemberClicks’ innovative tools. See how we can help your organization achieve more.
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