Why people abandon their association
Edward P. Salek, CAE, Executive Director | TLT Headquarters Report April 2017
Don’t let the benefits of membership escape your attention.
Many members inadvertently leave a professional association simply because they didn’t notice their renewal notices, according to a new study.
© Can Stock Photo / focalpoint
IT'S NOT DIFFICULT TO THINK of reasons why a person might drop membership in an association like STLE. The list could include a job change or reassignment, retirement, employer restrictions on membership or just dissatisfaction with the value of services relative to the cost of membership.
All these are plausible reasons, but new research on that question developed by an association services provider known as Marketing General, Inc. (MGI), points to a different and perhaps surprising explanation. According to MGI’s 2016 Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report, “Associations must realize that many members fail to renew because they simply aren’t paying close attention to renewal notices.”
Because this is the time of year when many STLE memberships are up for renewal, let me offer some tips on how quick and easy it is to renew.
Membership renewal can be completed online using a credit card for payment. One month prior to the renewal date, members receive an email message with a link to their STLE Website profile page where renewal can be completed simply and quickly. Additional notices are sent via email and hard copy at periodic intervals following this initial notice. The Website profile page also shows membership status and certification renewal status throughout the year, so members can check on both at any time during the year.
If you’re not an online person, call STLE headquarters at (847) 825-5536 during normal business hours and a staff member can check your membership status and process a payment if it is time for renewal.
Individuals who work within the industry or related fields of tribology and lubrication engineering also can join STLE through the same process—either online or by calling our headquarters office. Information and applications for corporate and student membership programs also are available online or by calling STLE headquarters.
More important than the renewal process is the benefits members receive for the annual dues investment. STLE membership is a mark of distinction and affiliates you and your organization with the world’s leading experts in lubrication. Tangible items include a subscription to the print and digital versions of TLT, as well as online access to two peer-reviewed journals, Tribology Transactions and Tribology Letters. Discounts on conference registration, education courses, certification tests and fees, books and other technical resources also are included.
In 2017 STLE has enhanced our membership package with a program that assists individuals in becoming technically competent as a Lubrication Specialist or Oil Analyst. STLE Learning Pathways is a new online resource library for lubrication industry professionals to help identify, align and target their education and career development needs. It provides STLE members with free access to hundreds of technical articles, courses, Webinars and books organized into topic areas and classified by level of experience (basic, intermediate or advanced).
People who are using this new training tool say it is a valuable resource for upgrading your technical knowledge, advancing your career and for becoming a more knowledgeable technical advisor within a company and with customers. Plans also include updating and improving the Lubrication Specialist and Oil Analyst Learning Pathways with new reference materials as they become available.
Go to STLE’s Website at
www.stle.org to explore the new Learning Pathways and, while you’re there, don’t forget to check if it’s membership renewal time!
You can reach Certified Association Executive Ed Salek at esalek@stle.org.