{"id":11530,"date":"2021-09-01T19:58:32","date_gmt":"2021-09-01T19:58:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/?p=11530"},"modified":"2021-09-01T19:58:32","modified_gmt":"2021-09-01T19:58:32","slug":"the-power-of-integration-creating-a-technological-ecosystem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-power-of-integration-creating-a-technological-ecosystem\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of Integration \u2013 Creating a Technological Ecosystem"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If the past year has taught us anything, it\u2019s that we have accelerated beyond online communication platforms being a mere convenience. They have become a necessity, more than ever before, for conducting day-to-day business. Today, the importance of integrating association-specific software into a cohesive technological ecosystem cannot be overstated. For many associations that have implemented and managed their own technological ecosystem, it has afforded them greater member engagement and higher non-dues revenue. For others, even just the idea of a technological ecosystem can seem like an overwhelming, disjointed and frustrating endeavor. But, there\u2019s hope for those left behind in this digital revolution.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>So what exactly is a \u201ctechnological ecosystem?\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">A technological ecosystem is an interdependent and interconnected network of multiple digital entities that communicate with one another. That\u2019s a mouthful of techno-jargon, but for associations, it simply means that it\u2019s everything that you have for your association related to technology connected together to form a larger, all-encompassing system. Every association is different, but it could be a conglomeration of all or some of the following:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Membership database<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Website<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Email communications (like Constant Contact)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Event registration<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Online job boards\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Online\u00a0 learning or certification\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">By using integrations to connect these separate software services into a single ecosystem, the member experience is streamlined and reporting is consolidated for your association staff.\u00a0 To illustrate, let\u2019s see what it looks like to not use integrations to connect association technology.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Without a digital ecosystem in place, you have one of two options.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Either:<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>You have everything under one software umbrella.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> This usually means you have all-in-one software like an AMS that has a membership database, website, email, event registration tool, and more built into it. However, in this case, you&#8217;re limited to whatever your chosen AMS has. For example, if you have an AMS that has all the functionality you\u2019re looking for in most areas, but you don&#8217;t like the way the events module works, you\u2019re out of luck. If you want to get rid of the events module, you&#8217;d have to get rid of the whole AMS system, too.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Or:<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><b>You have multiple systems. <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">On the other end of the spectrum, this means you are running multiple platforms to run your digital operation. In this case, without integrations in place to connect the platforms, your communications and user experience are disjointed. For example, from a member\u2019s perspective, if they want to sign up for an event, they have to remember their login for the event software, which may be separate from their association website or job board login. With no integration between them, the valuable member data in each system is completely separate, making a simple task like updating an email address utterly cumbersome for your members. Then, for you, the association, you have multiple places from which you have to pull reports.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">On one hand, you\u2019re stuck with having the all-in-one system that you can\u2019t customize at all and you take it as-is, and on the other, you can highly customize everything with best-in-class tools but it is also a lot of clerical work on the staff side, plus you&#8217;re asking a lot of your members to be able to get through all those different logins and communication deliveries.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Without the integration of a technological ecosystem, your association is, essentially, stuck with two bad choices.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Simplify with powerful integration<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Integrations are what bridge the gap \u2014 they provide the best of both worlds. By allowing data to pass from one software system to another, integrations act as a powerful tool that simplify communication and interactions between you and your members. And, it all starts with your member database (all of the information about your members in data form) because that is your centerpiece for beginning the integration transformation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The way to have a successful ecosystem is by connecting other software with that database, which is typically your AMS. An example could be making sure your AMS and job board have an SSO, or single-sign-on so that a member can log in once and be recognized as a current member in each.\u00a0 It could include taking credits that are earned in your online Learning Management System and making them automatically viewable on a member\u2019s profile on the website.\u00a0 There are many forms integrations can take, but the idea is always the same &#8211; have a single, connected source for your member data that can then extend out to any software platforms you utilize.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This thereby creates a system in which you only have one login and one dashboard. Your staff can see everything about all of your members all in one place. Members, likewise, only have to go to one website to get everything they need to know related to your association.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Make it as easy as possible for your members<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Making sure your members\u2019 experience is positive is crucial. Most people\u2019s experience with your association is now virtual and through a website. Your members\u2019 online experience with your association comprises most of their interaction with you. If they don\u2019t have a positive online experience, it can adversely affect your relationship, no matter how good your staff is or how much experience you have. Taking care of your members with an integrated approach, especially in the pandemic age, as they are trying to figure out where their dollars are going and deciding if they want to remain members, is paramount to your association\u2019s future success.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Enable your members to be able to do all the things you want them to do, so they can enjoy interactions with your association.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>How do I get started?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Often, and usually out of convenience, associations tend to create multiple communications platforms but don\u2019t understand that they need to be connected. That\u2019s where integrating and creating an ecosystem can help. There are two crucial steps that an association needs to take to integrate a technological ecosystem.<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Make sure member data is correct, first and foremost. This is your source of truth for all your data. Figure out whether you\u2019d like that to reside in a small database or Excel sheet, or something more powerful like an AMS; this is where your digital ecosystem will start. Your database is your gateway to your membership &#8211; if one data point is incorrect, it can disrupt the rest of the processes.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Make sure you examine every component of your future communications. Do you need a newsletter? Do you need a job board? Are your existing tools helping you service your members more effectively, or would you benefit from the use of specialized association software tools?\u00a0 From here, you tie everything back into your database.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><b>Naylor is here to help your association navigate the process<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">If you realize that all of this is important and you are overwhelmed or not sure what to do, then you need to talk to someone who can help.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Naylor Association Solutions provides innovative association tools and services for strengthening member engagement and increasing non-dues revenue. Our offerings include member communications, management of live and online meetings and events, online career centers, Association Management Software (AMS) and Member Data Platform (MDP), full-service association management and online learning.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">With expertise in all of these individual services, Naylor brings the benefit of a holistic perspective on how associations interact with their members through their data. And, even if we&#8217;re not your source of data with our AMS, we still understand how those connections need to work and can assist your association by lighting the path for you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Grow your membership and revenue using a membership management software built to help you scale.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Want to learn more?<\/span><b>\u00a0<\/b><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/content.naylor.com\/AMSContactUsConsultationLP.html?utm_source=AssocAdviser&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_campaign=ongoing\">Schedule a consultation.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div><div class=\"author-info row\"><div class=\"col col-3\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-img\" src=\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2018\/10\/Nate-Brown.jpeg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/div><div class=\"col col-9\"><div class=\"author-info-content\"><h3>About The Author<\/h3>\n\t\t\tNate Brown is the director of business development for SaaS solutions at Naylor Association Solutions. Email him at <a href=\"mailto:nbrown@naylor.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>nbrown@naylor.com<\/strong><\/a>.\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If the past year has taught us anything, it\u2019s that we have accelerated beyond online communication platforms being a mere convenience. They have become a necessity, more than ever before, for conducting day-to-day business. Today, the importance of integrating association-specific software into a cohesive technological ecosystem cannot be overstated. For many associations that have implemented [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":174,"featured_media":11531,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31,6],"tags":[650,1712,1713,57],"class_list":["post-11530","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-technology","tag-ams","tag-digital-integration","tag-software","tag-technology-2"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Power of Integration \u2013 Creating a Technological Ecosystem - Association Adviser<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Associations that connect their separate software services into a single ecosystem can streamline their member experience and make life easier on staff.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-power-of-integration-creating-a-technological-ecosystem\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Power of Integration \u2013 Creating a Technological Ecosystem - Association Adviser\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Associations that connect their separate software services into a single ecosystem can streamline their member experience and make life easier on staff.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-power-of-integration-creating-a-technological-ecosystem\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Association Adviser\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-09-01T19:58:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2021\/09\/shutterstock_1199235616-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1311\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Nate Brown\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Nate Brown\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-power-of-integration-creating-a-technological-ecosystem\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-power-of-integration-creating-a-technological-ecosystem\/\",\"name\":\"The Power of Integration \u2013 Creating a Technological Ecosystem - Association Adviser\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2021-09-01T19:58:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-09-01T19:58:32+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/#\/schema\/person\/0dc6a0b308c4702c834634e154a755a0\"},\"description\":\"Associations that connect their separate software services into a single ecosystem can streamline their member experience and make life easier on staff.\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/the-power-of-integration-creating-a-technological-ecosystem\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/\",\"name\":\"Association Adviser\",\"description\":\"Leadership Strategies &amp; 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