BRIAN F. O ’LEARY

TOOLS OF CHANGE – CHICAGO

APRIL 9 , 2012

Using content to acquire new members (and do other fun stuff)

Six core ideas

Repackage great contentInclude content in recruiting effortsDistribute copies in “public place” locationsSell institutional subscriptionsGive content awayRemember the leave-behind

One core lesson: understand your targets

Member, Subscriber, Purchaser, Loyal Consumer

Lapsed

Aware

Not aware

Repackage great content

Capitalize on or create a nicheRebrand a professional series (e.g “member toolkit”)Target a group (e.g., “young professionals”) and

show how your content works for them“Just in time” content: a chapter or a compilation

from several other publicationsCross-over compilations: content taken from books,

magazines, newsletters, blogs and moreAdapt print content for webinars and other mediaIt’s okay to charge for this (or at least put a price on

it)

Sources: James Heib, Marble Institute of America; Magellan research

Tools of the trade

Print-on-demand and short-run vendors like Author Solutions, Lulu, Smashwords and CreateSpace (Amazon)

SharedBook’s “Blog2Print” optionPressBooks, a WordPress-based tool that

supports output to PDF, EPUB and HTMLApple’s iBooks platform, competing with

Kindle Direct for paid salesThe Daisy Consortium (accessibility)

Make content part of your recruiting offer

Make “best of” or “special issue” offers that borrow from member-benefit content

Ask yourself: “What do we know/do that no one else knows/does?”

Show prospective members (buyers) how your content meets their expressed and latent needs

Differentiate platforms (magazines for thought leadership; blogs for perspective and debate, etc.)

“Tools of the trade” can be used here, too

Use “public place” locations

Relevance varies; know your nicheUse response vehicles (cards, source & QR

codes)Track results (it’s a data-driven business)Single-copy sales (cautiously!)Example: American Academy of Cosmetic

Surgery

Sources: Folio:, James Heib, Scott Oser, Magellan research

Sell institutional subscriptions

Journals, annuals, special reportsSome publicationsWorks well if you have vetted contentContent can sell at a (much) higher priceHelps to validate your credentials

Sources: Scott Oser, Magellan research

Give content away (smartly!)

First: know the companies or individuals you want to recruit

Offer samples whenever you exhibit at or attend relevant conferences and trade shows

Court industry influencers: government leaders, key decision makers

Evaluate lower-cost, digital-only options

Some digital-only options

Apple’s iBooks Author platform (iPad only)Google Currents (format for mobile)Kindle Publishing for PeriodicalsAdobe Digital Publishing (tablet only)Inkling (cross-platform, cloud-based)WordPress (and PressBooks)Multiple HTML5 frameworksThe Atavist, Byliner (longer-form, for-sale

products)

Source: Magellan research

Remember the leave-behind!

Editors, writers and contributors often speak outside of your association

Give them copies of the publications in which their work appeared

Encourage them to give it away, mail or e-mail it to their contacts and colleagues (make it easy to do so)

Partner with organizations that need your content and can introduce it to non-members

New rules of thumb for recruiting with content

Not “outbound”; think “surround”Targets resist “campaigns”; try “experiences”

and “relationships”Increasingly “segments” are too broad.

Develop offers that resonate with “individuals”

Think about selling relevant books or compilations published by others (look bigger, more helpful)

Source: Forrester Research, 2010

Six core ideas

Repackage great contentInclude content in membership recruiting

effortsDistribute copies in “public place” locationsSell institutional subscriptionsGive content awayRemember the leave-behind

Additional resources

Association Media & PublishingScott Oser, Clay Shirky, James KaneASAE’s membership sectionO’Reilly Media’s Radar blog (books, new

media)Magellan’s blog (associations, magazines,

books)A mini-bibliography: http://bit.ly/HlBuNY