StarChapter Success – IFMA San Fernando Valley

IFMA San Fernando Valley's mission is to promote knowledge sharing with integrity and professionalism to members in the built environment and the practice of facility management. We were able to connect with Debbie Reece, their chapter administrator, to learn how StarChapter has been able to help them with their membership engagement plan and streamlining the management of their chapter.

1. What was the chapter’s strategy for engaging new members in the past year?

The San Fernando Valley Chapter of IFMA is celebrating 35 years this year. We have had 80+ members for the past 10 years. Our chapter's strategy is pretty close to what we were created to do 35 years ago… “Our vision is to lead the future of the built environment to make the world a better place. As a member organization, we are deeply committed to helping our members learn, connect, and advance in their Facility Management careers!”

We have found new members and kept our current membership base by creating ways to stay relevant and supportive during the pandemic. We created events that allowed our members to engage online or in-person outside, when possible. We also connected through our International’s online platform called Engage. This allows people to network anytime, anywhere in the world at IFMA.org.

2. The chapter network is extensive. Does the board get ideas on how to improve membership value from other organizations?

Yes, the IFMA network is extensive.  We have 22,000+ members worldwide. We have more than 80 chapters and several councils and communities for all the different sections of our Facility Management industry. I believe StarChapter has about 50 IFMA chapters now as clients, if not more. I also manage the Denver Chapter of IFMA on StarChapter. We have grown our membership base over the past 5 years to nearly 400 members.

The San Fernando Valley Chapter of IFMA is considered a small chapter with less than 300 members. The Denver Chapter of IFMA is considered a large chapter. Whether large or small, StarChapter has been useful to us to manage events, our website, send out email blasts and create our newsletter.

The Chapter Executive Directors network together through monthly calls on Zoom to stay connected, learn best practices, get ideas on what is working well or not so well, etc. We are a close family and the chapters are run by great individuals that I am proud to call my friends. We call or email one another anytime we have a question. Several of us own association management companies, so we also use StarChapter for other clients.

3. Do you have any tips/advice to share with other board volunteers?

Most of our success in finding volunteers was by just asking someone for their help. Being VolunTOLD is usually the fastest way to get their support. In my 20+ years of association management experience, members usually don’t just help because they are bored, they want to engage in a smart way. Sometimes, they even like volunteering for a small project or task, not an ongoing commitment to the board. We accept all forms of volunteers, from a member doing a small project to the longer-term commitments on the board. If you develop their leadership skills  correctly and allow them to make connections, they usually find value in it and want to stay volunteering and advance to the board.

4. How have you been able to utilize StarChapter to run the chapter and reach its goals?  

StarChapter is a simple to use tool, without too many layers like CVENT. I have been using it for more than 12 years now. It allows us to keep an accurate list of members and future members all in one place, without separate lists in excel or other places, for a low cost. The membership directory in the members only area is also customized for us to allow members to find each other by category. This is important to our associate members (vendors) so the main professional Facility Manager can find the support they need, when they need it. We also have a list of sponsors on our website. Allowing them to become a sponsor online is a simple tool so we can get them to help share the costs of running the association, while keeping the membership dues low.

I also use StarChapter for sending out surveys and having people apply for scholarships. Education is very important to the IFMA members, giving back has been a great resource to promote the profession.

StarChapter Success – AAF Baltimore

The American Advertising Federation Baltimore Chapter, AAF Baltimore, traces its roots back to 1918. Their mission is to promote and support Baltimore’s thriving advertising community and to respond to the needs of their members through educational and informational programs, networking and social opportunities, and legislative advocacy. We were able to connect with their past president, Matt McDermott, to learn how StarChapter has been able to help them with their membership engagement plan and streamlining the management of their chapter.

1. What was AAF Baltimore’s strategy for engaging new members in the past year?

This past year, our chapter ensured new members got individual welcomes from members of the board, along with outreach from committee chairs based on the interests of the new members. We also reminded them of the various resources of the association and the importance of the industry network, while continually promoting events and news through social and email.

2. The AAF Baltimore network is extensive. Does the board get ideas on how to improve membership value from other organizations?

The board regularly looks to other organizations such as the AMA and AIGA for ideas and partnerships. We also receive great ideas from AAF National and our regular meetings with other AAF chapters within our district. We also depend on our members to provide insights into their challenges and their successes to help drive new ideas for programming.

3. Do you have any tips/advice to share with other board volunteers?

• Don’t commit unless you can follow-through. We have big goals – and big responsibilities to our members. We depend on our board committees to be active and accountable to one another.
• Bring ideas. Lots of them. Don’t be afraid to speak up. New perspective is essential to keeping our club relevant.
• View yourself as an ambassador. Know the values and benefits of the organization. You might just need it when talking to a potential member.

4. How have you been able to utilize StarChapter to run AAF Baltimore and reach its goals? 

StarChapter has allowed us to centralize all of our club outreach and engagement efforts into one CMS-CRM hybrid. It’s provided a solid administrative platform to manage events, communications and member data. Prior to StarChapter, we relied on a hodge-podge of spreadsheets and third-party providers to keep the club running. Our new website also allows for multi-user management of content and flexible page templates to make updates faster and easier.