Is social media a threat or an opportunity for associations?
It’s both.
Social media as disruptive technology is rewriting the association business environment. It puts associations between a rock and a hard place.
Do we defend the rock? Associations have value. In person meetings have value. We have to charge for virtual attendance because it costs us.
Or do we leap forward to the hard place? We’re going to do everything digitally. I’m going to stop paying association dues because I get so much more from online resources.
Neither is “right.” All deep good in life, in business, and especially in recessions, comes from the courage to chart a new course that seems impossible. It’s only impossible when viewed through the lenses we now wear.
Ring of Death movie download Passing through a tight spot comes when we find the opening, reframe the issue, bring in new voices, lose the fear of new ideas, and summon the courage to make imperfect decisions. This is the water that always finds a way when the road seems blocked.
Social media not only offers new tangible opportunities to associations for revenue. The ETHOS of social media communication also offers new opportunities that can reinvigorate the heart and soul of associations.
Look at how well this discussion on Jeff Hurt’s blog has moved in just a few hours. What if he wrote a print article that only went to paid members? None of this creative exchange would he happening.
At the core of my decision to pay membership dues to an association is the value proposition: am I getting my money’s worth? I may pay because it keeps me credentialed, or because it provides a benefit plan.
But if I can be drawn in to a community in which I am present at the cutting edge of discussion in my field — and it was at my fingertips every day, and I grew as a person because of the intensity of engagement — I would pay in a heartbeat. I couldn’t be without that.
That is the opportunity that associations have. It is what they can become. I don’t know what will happen to meetings (they are evolving — not disappearing — in the Internet Marketing world, but that is for another post).
I do know that our willingness to engage in the process of becoming fluent in social media — to be the water, not the rock or the hard place — is how the elite associations of the future will evolve from today’s confusion. You know what I mean, the associations EVERYONE raves about because they are so remarkable, so valuable.
And if today’s’ associations don’t do it, internet entrepreuers and social media pros will. The are creating new business models now, as we speak, that put these technologies at the center of intensely valuable networks.
There’s no time to waste — this recession is the 11th hour.
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We need to keep our thoughts on ecg other. We are the opportunity we are because every person brings some experience that offers insight and value.
Building community is it’s own reward.
I certainly agree that Social Media can have powerful benefits for associations that deploy them well.
It is a combination. I make the “digital commute” as a freelancer. Though most of my work is done from home, I will tell you, in-person meetings can never be replaced with technology. That interaction is incredibly valuable and so much gets accomplished during meetings. The virtual workplace does cut costs, but once in a while, an in-person meeting is necessary.
-Ethan
Smedia is opportunistic. It’s simply a new and less structured communications medium. I suppose part of the allure, perhaps even most of it, is the unpredictable nature. Something can potentially become viral and garnet the desired attention.
Threat/opportunity? It’s called risk. And it seems that risk has been thrown completely out of the window in all things Smedia. It’s temporal. Anybody can say anything and it get buried very quickly by the torrent of “spew” coming from many corners. Of course, this doesn’t preclude someone in the Smedia-sphere dredging-up some muck and making hay with it. That unstructured, unpredictable aspect can occasionally rear up and bite you on the arse.
It’s really just another way to sell stuff only with a much looser association with responsibility and integrity. I suppose this best represents the duality of the situation: it IS both a threat and opportunity. The buyer, or consumers of content, should always be very wary that results may vary from those stated.
And the economy is no where near hitting bottom. The auto company bankruptcies haven’t fully taken effect. The unsecured creditors will get dumped by the roadsides very unceremoniously. Their credit shattered and business prospects crushed. These mostly small to medium-sized businesses employ a lot of middle class people who’ll begin to ratchet-up their credit exposure. Not a good thing. The large companies and banks get paid while the ripple-effect of bad debt and poor sales prospects will continue to drag down everything else.
And we haven’t even addressed the commercial real estate crunch yet. The continued borrowing from the Federal Reserve and promoting more financial fakery will only make the problems worse.
Thanks for expressing so clearly the bearish view. If we don’t look at how bad it could become, we don’t feel the urgency to act. No one has an answer, but there are some perennial strategies that work in recessions, and innovation is one of them. The other is to offer a compelling value proposition to your customers/members.
I think social media is a tool that can move associations toward the reward side of the risk/reward spectrum. Their business model, like everyone else’s, is getting crushed, and I don’t think it does anyone any good to assume that it is temporary. “True north” is and will always be using your best qualities to help others make it through a tough spot, in life and in business.
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