We finally did it! We launched Tiered Dues during our fall membership campaign and the rollout was a success! My goal for writing this article is to share what tiered dues is and why it is a better investment plan for you, our present and future chamber members. Read on!
Chambers of commerce, your Chamber included, have long operated on what is commonly referred to as the Fair Share investment structure. The Fair Share structure sounds fair, but progressive thinkers begin to wonder if it really was the best plan for their members. All of you who are or have been Chamber members paid your Chamber dues under the fair share plan -- based on the number of employees in your company, or if a bank, based on your deposits. Under this concept, the larger the company, the more benefits it supposedly receives from the chamber and thus the larger cost it bears for the operation of the organization.
The number of employees a company has isn’t a direct correlation with profit margin. Although highly important, profitability is not the only consideration when investing company dollars into other organizations. The other consideration is involvement, or how much can a member be involved. Then the big one, ROI! Good business is a win/win for all parties or there should be no deal at all! Business members began to demand a more standard business relationship where they choose certain things and know the associated cost. In order to address these concerns and demands, the concept of tiered investments emerged.
Under the concept of tiered investments, members receive specific levels of services and benefits associated with their chosen level of investment. In this model, the more a member invests, the higher the level of benefits they receive. Members can look to a well-defined list and see exactly what they are receiving in exchange for their investment.
Key Benefits of the Tiered Investment Schedule are as follows:
1. Members will be able to dramatically reduce the numerous solicitations for financial support of programs & events that they receive each year from the Chamber.
2. The member will be recognized for their combined sponsorship, advertising, and membership dues support of the Chamber.
3. The member will have a definitive list of benefits and services for each tier of support and will be able to make informed decisions on their investment options.
4. The member’s distribution of support will be driven by the member’s needs and maximization of their “ROI” and not the Chamber’s internal business model.
5. Decisions on increasing levels of support will come with clear delineation of changes in their enhanced benefits and services.
6. Members can increase their investment through a wider range of options.
7. Member connection to the Chamber will be increased by virtue of a more standard business relationship.
We all like to have a choice and tiered investments allow those choices. As I said in the beginning, our September membership campaign launched tiered dues to all new members and was a success! We are now in the process of transitioning all members to tiered dues as their renewal dates arrive. The transition will be complete by September of next year, and over the next few months members will receive a tiered dues packet along with their renewal invoice from the Chamber.
Although the transition is time consuming and requires work upfront, I believe it is worth all the effort required and is a change for the better! Please call or e-mail me with any questions or if you want to discuss in more detail. My phone number is 526-2211 and my e-mail dcallahan@cookevillechamber.com. Thank you for making our Chamber the success it is and thank you for allowing me the opportunity to serve you! We will continue to look for ways to serve you better now and the years to follow.