{"id":6660,"date":"2016-11-11T15:52:06","date_gmt":"2016-11-11T20:52:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/?p=6660"},"modified":"2016-11-11T15:52:06","modified_gmt":"2016-11-11T20:52:06","slug":"diversified-non-dues-revenue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.naylor.com\/associationadviser\/diversified-non-dues-revenue\/","title":{"rendered":"Did You Know: The Most Valuable Source of Non-Dues Revenue is Diversified"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Diversified<\/p>\n

Last month, we asked our readers: What are your most valuable sources of non-dues revenue?<\/p>\n

The results came in as follows:<\/p>\n

\"What<\/p>\n

For the majority of respondents to our October poll, when they need funds, they can reliably turn to supplier and vendor members. It’s not surprising that this group was cited as the most valuable source of non-dues revenue by half of our poll’s participants. Member suppliers\/vendors usually join with the intention of investing in the association and the industry members who belong to it. This investment commonly comes with the expectation of getting something in return \u2014 face-to-face time with members\/potential customers at an event, name recognition on printed or online materials or space within publications to air sponsored content. Being experts at what they produce or provide, associations have all the reason to work with suppliers to cultivate these types of mutually beneficial relationships.<\/p>\n

About one-third of respondents cited non-member suppliers and vendors as their most valuable source of non-dues revenue. This lower percentage may be because non-members are typically not as invested in an association and its activities as members. Furthermore, some associations restrict membership to individuals only or limit the number of supplier members allowed on the rolls at any time. Thus, an organization can support an association only as a non-member.<\/p>\n

Whatever the reason, non-member organizations can still be an integral part of an association\u2019s non-dues revenue stream. Regardless of their membership status, they are still a member of the industry and likely have technical expertise to share, products or services that members can benefit from the knowledge of and a desire to connect with members. Don\u2019t discount non-member vendors \u2014 talk with them to discover their goals and work with them to find ways to build mutual association-vendor support.<\/p>\n

Government sources of non-dues revenue were deemed the most valuable by 17 percent of poll respondents. Depending on the end beneficiaries and the nature of the industry, some associations can take advantage of federal block grants, community development block grants, economic stimulus grants or disaster assistance.<\/p>\n

However, associations should be cautious not to rely too much on any single funding source. Just as a typical financial adviser will counsel an individual investor not to put all their “eggs” in one basket, associations are wise to diversify their funding sources so that if one source scales back their funding, the association is financially able to continue operating at the same level. Maintaining a diverse roster of benefactors or revenue streams also forces associations to remain creative, relevant and innovative, as Mark Rowh of The Meeting Magazines notes in his article about generating non-dues revenue<\/a>. Corporate sponsorships, advertising sales for print and online publications, branded merchandise and fee-based educational programs are tried-and-true methods for raising non-dues revenue, but continual revenue growth requires discussing business goals with supplier members and sponsors and finding mutually satisfying ways for fundraising to work between the association and the sponsor.<\/p>\n

Other potential sources of non-dues revenue include:<\/p>\n