Most clubs are searching for solutions to rising labor costs and ever-greater member expectations. Some have tried to systemize services and the result has been depersonalizing member services. Beware! The best member services are strictly personal.
Behavioral scientists at the University of Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom have proven the power of personalization. Distributing some 240 wallets throughout Edinburgh, Scotland, 88% of wallets returned contained a baby photo. While none of the wallets contained money, 42% of total wallets were returned and it was the ones containing the baby photo that had the highest return rate. Wallets containing a photograph of a dog generated at 53% return rate, a picture of a family was returned 48% of returned wallets, and those with a photo of an elderly couple were returned at a 28% rate.
Clubs share an emotional—not transactional—relationship with members, so make the club’s services personal. Here are five tactics for personalizing services at your club:
- Reserved or Reserved for…? Recognize reserved tables with a reserved placard that shows the name of the member for whom the table is reserved. Underscore that “we have been anticipating your arrival!” Bring emphasis to the value of reservations for the sake of recognition and the operational efficiencies created from the process are an extra benefit.
- Monitor Club Communications for Engagement. Most clubs blindly issue email communications to members with little-or-no tracking to understand if the message was received, opened, read or acted upon. Follow-up on the emails from your club with calls to individual members who are not opening or engaging with club communications. Ask if the messages are being received—although your analytics will have told you so already. Learn what topics interest your members and which topics are uninteresting. Most members expect greater transparency and increased accountability at their clubs. Be transparent and accountable in managing the effectiveness of club communications.
- Personalize Your Club’s Communications. As suggested above, develop a personal communications profile for each member. As is done with a Facebook or LinkedIn profile, enable members to populate their own profiles. (Some members may need help from the club with this.) For example, learn what topics interest each member, in what media they prefer to receive messages, what days and times they want the messages to be delivered and from whom at the club they wish to receive important messages. Most importantly, stop issuing “Dear Member” communications.
- Meet with Members. Whether one-on-one or in small (fewer than four people at a time) member groups to discuss the club and its various priorities. Ask members for their feedback; learn their priorities; and ensure that they know and understand the board’s strategic priorities.
- Facilitate Member-to-Member Introductions. Most members are truly acquainted with few of their fellow members. Make your board, committees and staff “connectors” who make it easy for members to become better acquainted. Evaluate the benefits of a digital (online) member directory to enable members to learn more about one another. Host multiple welcoming events for new members. Using the member profiles described above, connect people with similar backgrounds—such as universities attended, or hometowns or places of employment—to enable members to become better acquainted with one another. Clubs are more fun when people know more people.
Private clubs are a platform for socialization. An undeniable characteristic of successful clubs is the sense that “everyone knows one another.” Help your members get to know one another and, in so doing, make your club ever more relevant to the members.
Treat your members as the valuable resource that they are. Help them know that they are recognized, respected and valued.
Henry DeLozier is a principal at GGA Partners, an international club management consulting firm that provides specialized services to more than 3,000 clients from offices in Toronto, Phoenix and Dublin (IR). He can be reached at [email protected].