17 Fresh Ideas to Grow Your Professional Association's Membership

Need to grow your membership but running out of ideas? 

Here are 17 tactics that go beyond the basics. Not revolutionary concepts, just smarter approaches that challenge how most associations think about recruitment. Each includes a specific action you can take this week.

Got other examples to include? Let me know →

1. Start a Non-Member Newsletter

Why This Works: Potential members need to stay connected to be exposed to the benefits of membership.

Email remains the most effective platform for nurturing relationships and converting prospects, but only 26% of associations provide an email newsletter that non-members can subscribe to.

For example, the SMSF Association: 

Your Move: Launch a monthly digest for potential members that includes member spotlights, industry news and previews of member-only content.

The Australian Water Association’s newsletter, ‘The Source’, is a great source (pun intended) of inspiration:

2. Partner with Industry Influencers

Why This Works: One authentic testimonial from a trusted member beats 100 generic ads.

Who are the respected voices in your industry who are also members of your association? Real people talking about real benefits cuts through marketing noise better than any campaign you could design.

Your Move: Identify 3 influential members. Ask them to share on their preferred social media platform why they joined and what they've gained.

3. Create Evergreen Membership Content

Why This Works: Non-members follow your association on social media - it makes sense to promote membership as part of your content mix.

Most associations post industry news and educational content but never showcase what membership actually delivers. Build a library of "Why I joined" stories, member benefit profiles and how membership has helped your members. 

Your Move: Draft three posts that promote three valuable and exclusive benefits of membership. Schedule one per week for three weeks.

Here’s an example from Speech Pathology Australia:

Here’s an example from the Australian Restaurant & Cafe Association:

4. Ask Members for Introductions

Why This Works: Your members know potential members - they just need a nudge. 

Wrong Question: "Do you know anyone who might like to join?" Right Question: "Who do you know who would benefit from membership too?” The first gets a vague "I'll think about it." The second gets actual names.

Your Move: In your next email newsletter, ask: 'Who do you know who would benefit from membership? We'd love you to invite them to join.

5. Launch a Member-Get-Member Program

Why This Works: Incentives turn occasional referrals into consistent ones.

Don't just hope for word-of-mouth referrals — reward them. Most associations rely on members' goodwill to generate new members, but a structured program with clear incentives transforms your best advocates into an active recruitment team.

Your Move: There are lots of ways to do this - here’s how I’d start.

Here’s an example (that accidentally arrived in my letterbox) from the  Australian College of Nursing: 

Other associations offering a referral incentive include Chiropractic Australia and Australian Marketing Institute (below):

5. Sell Corporate Packages

Why This Works: One HR director beats chasing 20 individual potential members.

Sell to employers who pay for multiple staff memberships. A single conversation can result in multiple new members.

Your Move: List 10 companies in your industry with 50+ employees. Call their professional development managers and ask: "Do you budget for association memberships?"

Here’s an example from the Australian Marketing Institute:

7. Lock Down Your Best Benefits

Why This Works: People value what they can't have.

Many associations give away high-value benefits for free. Your most valuable benefits should be exclusive to members. Create genuine FOMO by showing non-members what they can't access.

Your Move: Identify your three best resources and make sure they’re  members-only. Show previews to everyone else.

Here’s an example from the Tax Institute: 

8. Offer Trial Memberships

Why This Works: Lower commitment makes the decision easier.

A one-month taste test lets potential members join your community without full commitment. Lower barrier, higher conversion.

Your Move: Email your membership software provider. Ask: "Can we set up a 30-day trial option?" Most platforms have this feature built-in.

9. Upsell During Webinars

Why This Works: Non-members attending your webinars are already engaged.

Include membership information when interest is highest—during or immediately after valuable content. Add a 2-minute membership segment to every webinar. 

Your Move: Test it out in your next three webinars - sharing a unique QR code (I use Dub.co for this) is a great way to track responses.

10. Upsell at Conferences

Why This Works: Event attendees are primed to invest in their development.

Strike when enthusiasm is highest with dedicated membership offerings at conferences and workshops.

Your Move: At your next conference or major event, promote an exclusive offer to join your association that is only available to event attendees.

11. Run Targeted LinkedIn Ads

Why This Works: You can target exactly who you want instead of hoping the right people see your ads.

Skip Facebook's broad demographics. Go where your exact audience spends their professional time and narrow your audience to the right people. 

This is how granular you can get in the LinkedIn Ads setup:

Your Move: Run a single LinkedIn ad for one week targeting "[specific job title]s in [your city]." Budget $50 and track clicks to your membership page.

Here’s an example from Engineers Australia:

Running LinkedIn ads for the first time? I'll set up your first campaign targeting your potential members, and give you a template to run your own future campaigns. Get in touch →

12. Host Info Sessions

Why This Works: Potential members need a low-pressure way to understand what membership offers.

Regular information sessions give prospects a chance to ask questions and see membership benefits explained clearly. It's education, not a sales pitch.

Your Move: Schedule a "Membership 101" session and promote it on social media or in your non-member email newsletter (see #1). 

Here’s an example from the American Society for Non-Destructive Testing:

13. Host Social Events

Why This Works: Exposure to the community pulls potential members in.

When members bring colleagues to social events, those colleagues see the value firsthand and meet others who are part of the community.

Your Move: At your next networking event, give each member two guest name tags to bring colleagues. Track how many they use.

14. Follow Up Abandoned Applications

Why This Works: Potential members who started to join but didn’t complete their application are the definition of low-hanging fruit.

People abandon membership forms for dozens of reasons. A simple follow-up sequence captures many of them.

Your Move: Set up automated emails or even better, pick up the phone and call people (“We noticed you didn’t finalise your application…”). 

Identifying abandoned applications is possible using tools such as Fillout:

15. Provide Real-Time Chat

Why This Works: Unanswered questions kill membership momentum.

When potential members are exploring your website and have questions about benefits, pricing, or eligibility, make it effortless to get instant answers. Those crucial moments of interest shouldn't be lost to "I'll email them later."

Your Move: Add live chat to your membership pages - my favourite (free) tool for this is Tawk.to.

Only 2% of associations provide live chat - here’s an example from CPA Australia:

16. Respond to Email Queries Fast

Why This Works: Slow responses signal low priority.

When someone takes the time to formally email about membership, they're serious prospects. A delay (or non-response) sends the message that new members aren't important to you. 

I emailed 50 professional associations with a simple question to test their responsiveness to queries from potential members. One in three never responded.

Your Move: Set a 4-hour response target for membership inquiries.

17. Use Your CEO's LinkedIn Profile

Why This Works: Personal profiles get more engagement than company pages.

LinkedIn posts from CEOs receive 3x higher engagement rates than posts from regular company accounts and association CEOs have an average of 3,712 followers. That’s a great channel for membership promotion.

Your Move: Schedule 30 minutes with your CEO monthly. Draft one LinkedIn post together highlighting a member benefit or success story.

Start With One

Don't overwhelm yourself with 17 new tactics. Pick the one that feels most doable and test it for 30 days.

Need help deciding which tactic fits your association best? That's exactly what Member Labs does - we help member-based organisations recruit and retain more members.

With a steady stream of new members soon to come in, make sure you’re not pouring water into a leaky bucket.