The Role of Social Media in Attracting and Engaging New Members
Social media has become a powerful tool for membership organisations to communicate their value proposition, attract new members, and engage existing ones.
With the right social media strategy, you can not only boost member acquisition but also retain and strengthen your relationship with current members.
11 Effective Ways to Leverage Social Media to Achieve Membership Goals
In this blog, we’ll explore ten ways that you can use social media to your advantage to attract and engage new members to your organisation.
1. Use social to tell your story!
Use your social media platforms to share your organisation’s history, mission, and success stories. Potential members are more likely to join when they can connect with your organisation’s purpose and impact.
Just don’t forget that the true purpose of social media is to connect and engage with people. So when you are crafting your copy, make sure it feels like you’re talking to someone and not preaching at them.
2. Highlight Member Benefits
Regularly showcase the tangible benefits of being a member. It’s a great way to sell to your audience without making them feel like they’re being sold to. Consider showcasing access to exclusive content, discounts, or events. Visual posts and testimonials from satisfied members can be particularly persuasive!
3. Share Educational Content
You should be doing more than just trying to sell to your audience on social media. Providing valuable content like tips or articles can help showcase your knowledge whilst also proving value. It also gives people a reason to follow you on social media, even if they’re not quite ready to become members.
4. Engage with Prospective Members
Respond promptly to comments and messages on social media. Engage in conversations, answer questions, and make potential members feel heard and valued. This can go a long way to building a good reputation for your brand in their minds.
5. Leverage Hashtags
Research and use industry-specific hashtags to increase the visibility of your posts. This helps potential members discover your content and connect with your organisation.
6. Use Social to Promote Events
If your membership organisation hosts events (whether in-person or webinar) then social media is a great channel to promote them on. You can utilise in-channel tools like events on Facebook, live streams and even countdown timers to generate excitement and registrations.
7. Tease Exclusive Sneak Peeks
Offer sneak peeks into member-only content or events to pique the interest of your social media followers. This exclusivity can drive them to become members themselves. It provides a reason for them to want to sign up.
8. Member Spotlights
Regularly feature current members and their achievements. This not only recognises their contributions and drives engagement from current members but also encourages others to join and be part of your community.
9. Feedback and Surveys
Use social media to gather feedback from your current members. Things like LinkedIn polls are a great way to quickly collect valuable information. They’re also a great way to show potential members that you value input and are continually striving to improve their experience.
10. Run Contests and Challenges
Engage your current members and encourage them to invite friends or share content by organising contests or challenges. This can create a snowball effect, bringing in new members through referrals as well as driving brand awareness.
Running appropriate contests is a great way to attract and engage new members. You’re not only offering an additional benefit to being a member but a different way of interacting with you too.
11. Keep it consistent
Consistency is key in social media marketing. Develop a content calendar and schedule posts in advance to maintain an active online presence. That way you’ll always be in the minds of both new and existing members.
How Social Media Marketing Can Attract and Engage New Members
Social media is a powerful tool for membership organisations to both attract new members and engage with existing ones.
By effectively communicating your organisation’s value, benefits, and community through social media, you can foster a strong and loyal following.
