From Sending to Facilitating
With all the new digital possibilities, the way associations shape their services and communication is changing. The traditional top-down association with leaders is becoming more listening and democratic. The modern, facilitating association of the future is more data and community-driven.
Digital Service & Communication Model
In the ‘Digital Service & Communication Model for Associations,’ we apply this three-part division to different aspects of the association. This provides insight into how far an association has come in terms of digitalization.
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This model provides tools to develop digital services and communication within your association. You might even use it as a roadmap.
Read more about the model, tips, and successful examples in our blog series.
Blog Series: How the Role of Associations is Changing
1. From Broadcasting to Facilitating: The Changing Role of Associations
How do you respond to new needs and expectations of your members? How do you increase their engagement by growing your association digitally? Mathijs Vleeming and Dennis van Aalst from Yard | Digital Agency outline the background of the ‘Digital Service & Communication Model for Associations.’
2. Sharing Knowledge and the Changing Role of Associations
Your association is full of knowledge. Not only (association) experts but also members have a lot of knowledge. Sharing that knowledge is key to creating value for your members. But how do you do that? Mathijs and Dennis explain how to facilitate knowledge sharing more successfully and provide numerous tips for a thriving digital association.
3. Member Engagement and the Changing Role of Associations
Associations struggle to engage members with the association and with each other. As a result, members do not experience the full value of their membership. How do you improve member engagement? Mathijs and Dennis discuss how to facilitate engagement with and between members more successfully and share good examples.
4. Digital Services and the Changing Role of Associations
Modern associations facilitate knowledge sharing and connections between members. They do this online throughout the year, not just during events. But how do associations do this concretely? Mathijs and Dennis show what digital tools you need to grow digitally.
5. Organisation and the Changing Role of Associations
The modern association focuses on facilitating members. This requires a different organisation of your association. What should you consider? In this final blog, Mathijs and Dennis provide tools and tips to work on a successful facilitating association at the organizational level.
About the Authors
Mathijs believes that associations can increase their impact by connecting their members throughout the year and facilitating knowledge sharing. He draws on his 20 years of experience in the “heart of the world of professional community builders,” specifically in the international meetings industry for association conferences and events at the International Congress and Convention Association, where he was Director of Marketing.
For over 3 years, Mathijs has worked as a community strategist and consultant. In this role, he helps associations and other organizations create online community strategies. He does this at Yard Digital Agency, the market leader in digital communication and community solutions for associations and public organizations in the Netherlands.
Mathijs wrote an eBook with input from associations and community leaders titled “The Association Community Compendium: How to Harness the Collective Power of Your Members.” He is also a board member of the Community Consultants Collective and a contributing expert for Association Meetings International.
Dennis believes in the power of digital. With passion, he and his motivated colleagues support social organizations in achieving digital impact. Dennis is an experienced online strategist within the association sector. [Can you provide evidence of this and share more about your experience with associations?] Due to his in-depth knowledge of associations, he serves as a sparring partner and advisor for associations looking to grow digitally.
Together with the KNVB and Yard | Digital Agency, Dennis won the Dutch Interactive Award (DIA) 2021 in the category of communities. They won this award for the platform Eén tweetje, for which Dennis developed the strategy in collaboration with the KNVB [is this correct?]. “The community represents a game changer in the way the KNVB communicates,” according to the jury. “A shift from top-down to peer-to-peer.”
Additionally, Dennis is a trainer in digital communities at De Nederlandse Associatie (DNA). Through open and in-company workshops, he helps industry and professional associations discover the value of an online community. He also guides them in launching an online community and fostering interaction and engagement within the community.
Watch: Case Study TVVL
TVVL is the largest association of professionals in installation technology. How does this association use digital possibilities to connect its members and exchange knowledge? John Lens, Director of TVVL, talks about it with Mathijs Vleeming and Dennis van Aalst.
