member referral

Written By:  LaTisha Steele

​Do you have a member referral program? Does it have a vision and purpose? Does it actually work?  In my experience, I started several member incentive programs that were complicated and communicated poorly.  I created them because it was the thing to do not because I knew what I was doing. Once I discovered the goal of a referral program the implementation was much easier.  
1. Increase word of mouth advertising. The best advertising you can have is word of mouth. 
2. Reward top users.  Start a member referral program by asking your top users to participate first. If people are frequently using your facility, they are the perfect messengers.  Reward their usage and also their willingness to share the love about the organization.  This by far has been my most successful method.
3. Cost effective advertising.  No billboards or commercial creation needed.  Referral program advertising can be very simple which saves money and time.  
4. Increases brand engagement. A member referral program is a great engagement activity for long time members. 
5. Early detection of issues. If you start a member referral program and no one participates, this is a great sign that something may be wrong.  Why won't people share or refer their friends and family? If you have low participation, stop and ask members why they aren't participating. It could be the incentive, the program is too complicated, but it may be something bigger that you can resolve sooner than later.  
Now that you know the purpose of a member referral program, find out how to create and implement it by Joining Membership By Design.  There are training courses for this topic and many more.

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