Building a Strong Membership

1
Building a Strong Membership
2
Two Simple Questions
1) How can I recruit and/or develop members?

• 2) How can my chapter become an Ideal chapter?

3
What is ASDA?

• The American Student Dental Association is a
  national student-run organization that protects
  and advances the rights, interests, and welfare
  of students pursuing a career in dentistry. It
  introduces students to lifelong participation in
  organized dentistry and provides services,
  information, education, representation and
  advocacy.

4
Membership

• Strong membership is essential to ASDAs success
• Largest national organization solely dedicated to
  dental student concerns
• 86 membership amongst dental students (17,000
  total members including predentals, associates
  and international students)
• Membership year Jan 1-Dec 31
• ADA student member

5
Five Types of Membership

• Predental Undergraduate or high school student
  interested in dentistry (55 per year)
• Predoctoral Students enrolled in attending an
  ADA-accredited US dental school (72 per year)
• Associate Dentist or professional in a field
  related to dentistry (55 per year)
• International Any person interested in dentistry
  who resides outside the United States (80 per
  year)
• International Student Students enrolled in
  international dental schools outside the US (85
  per year includes ADA membership)

6
ASDA Membership Benefits

• Discounted NBDE online courses and preparation
  materials
• Access to members-only area of ASDAnet.org
• Health, Disability, Auto and Homeowners/Renters
  Insurance
• 50,000 FREE life insurance
• New discounted wireless plan with T-Mobile
• New discount on Lexi-Comp print and electronic
  products
• ASDA MasterCard
• Discounted books, music and DVDs
• Leadership opportunities at local and national
  levels
• Networking

7
Publications

• ASDA News Monthly Newsletter
• Mouth Quarterly Journal
• Getting Through Dental School Handbook
• Guide to Postdoctoral Programs
• National Board Reprints
• Getting Into Dental School Handbook (for
  predental members)
• New monthly e-newsletter Word of Mouth

The Voice of the American Student Dental
Association
8
ADA Student Membership Benefits

• Publications
• Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA)
• ADA News
• Practice management and marketing tools
• Low-cost student disability insurance coverage
• ADA library reference service
• ADA Infopaks on career alternatives,
  associateships, etc.
• Financial resources, including publications and
  scholarships
• Success programs for dental students at your
  school
• Much more! Visit www.ada.org/goto/student

9
FREE Insurance Benefit

1. Register for FREE 50,000 Life Insurance coverage
   (coverage doesnt roll over from year to year
   you must re-enroll annually)
2. Get 80 of your schools students registered for
   the FREE Life Insurance
3. ADA Insurance Plans will give your ASDA chapter a
   check for 300
4. Money that your chapter can use for activities!

10
Ways to Recruit Members

• Automatic Billing
• ADAs Student Block Grant Program
• State societies can be reimbursed 3,000-5,000
  for activities with direct interaction with
  students
• Important for ASDA members to let dental
  societies know about this reimbursement
  opportunity
• Funding does not go directly to ASDA chapter or
  school, but offers students an important
  opportunity to interact with their state
  societies and offer ideas of how they can
  collaborate

11
Membership Recruitment

• Recruitment takes place everyday, year round, you
  just may not know it!
• Students learn about ASDA at membership drives
• Students experience ASDA formulate their
  opinions when events activities are held
• Competing messages for their attention
• Brand ASDA events to remind them

12
Member Recruitment

• There are three basic target groups to recruit
• TAILOR YOUR APPROACH!
• Active members focus on maintaining their
  interest in order to keep them active
• Enable them to lead!
• Inactive members spark their interest and get
  them involved
• Survey them!
• Non-members show them why they should become
  members of the organization
• Especially survey them!

13
Active Member Retention

• Active members involvement and efficiency
• Active members generate ideas, get involved and
  make our activities successful.
• They are the most important component in each of
  our chapters like YOU and me... without them our
  chapters cannot thrive.

14
Inactive Member Recruitment
Dental education

• Convert interested inactive members to active
  members (20/80 rule)
• Dont pressure anyone into becoming more involved
  than they feel comfortable, some members do not
  want to get highly involved
• (and thats OK!)
• Advertise (survey) ways for people to become more
  involved, offering varying degrees of
  participation topics!
• (survey says)

15
Recruitment of Non-members

• Communicate the benefits
• One of the most common reasons why a person wont
  join is because they just dont know (or they
  forgot!) what the membership benefits are
• Add value to membership
• Only members eligible for raffle prizes at lunch
  learns, vendor fairs, etc.
• T-shirts for membership
• Charge small fee for non-members to events

16
Plan

• Be organized!
• Work with your leadership team
• Be educated!
• Know the topics what ASDA is doing about them
• Be able to direct members to the right source
  (ASDA central office, ADA or somewhere else)
• Be enthusiastic! Its contagious!
• Be willing to ask for help!
• Communicate with the central office or your
  District Trustee

17
Remember

• Advertising ASDA benefits is key to recruiting
  and retaining members
• Be creative to come up with your own local
  benefits
• Actively recruit members from all three groups
  (active members, inactive non-members)
• MEMBERSHIP IS THE FOUNDATION
• OF OUR ORGANIZATION
• MEMBERSHIP GIVES
• OUR ORGANIZATION POWER
• WITHOUT EXTENSIVE MEMBERSHIP,
• WE LOSE OUR COLLECTIVE VOICE
• (person yelling or stadium roar)

18

• My chapter has several motivated members
• now what?

19
Becoming an Ideal ASDA Chapter

• The Ideal ASDA Chapter Committee was formed to
  recognize the achievements and accomplishments of
  outstanding ASDA chapters

20
2010 Ideal ASDA Awards

• Ideal ASDA Chapter
• Most Improved ASDA Chapter
• Specific Awards
• Outstanding Membership Communication
• Outstanding Involvement with Organized Dentistry
• Outstanding Activities
• Outstanding Advocacy
• Outstanding Fundraising
• Outstanding Involvement with Predental Members
• Increasing Ethical Awareness
• Largest Membership Market Share Increase
• Highest Membership Market Share for a Recruited
  Chapter
• Implementation of Automatic Billing System

21
Questions

• ASDA Central OfficeDanielle Bauer, Chapter
  Relations Manager(800) 621-8099, ext 2826 or
  Danielle_at_ASDAnet.org www.ASDAnet.org
• Council on MembershipAndrea Salazardent_at_umich.ed
  u
• District Trustee www.asdanet.org/trustees.aspx