Non-Dues Revenue Base Camp

Many associations inadvertently stifle non-dues revenue success. In this module, we're going to cover the mindset and approach that makes selling sponsorships, exhibits, and advertising less challenging and more productive.

Module 01 Highlights:

• We'll start with a non-dues revenue readiness assessment and benchmarking to clarify your starting point and your goals.
• We'll set the stage for improved messaging and more efficient use of time by defining your ideal customer profile.
• We'll get a draft value proposition started to help you speak the language of your best prospects.

An exhibitor prospectus isn't just about conveying options and prices, it is also about ideas to maximize results at your event. In this module we'll use templates to create beautiful event collateral pieces that focus on outcomes instead of price points.

Module 07 Highlights:

• We'll start with a review of the types of options available and how you might want to group them.
• Next, we'll cover the amount of information you should include about each opportunity to help them make decisions.
• Finally, we'll talk about creative ways to encourage higher spending.

Understandably, sponsors, exhibitors, and advertisers are not an association's primary audience, but to increase non-dues revenue, companies interested in reaching your audience need a starting point to quickly understand who you help them reach and how you deliver results. In this module, we'll start fixing the experience for your industry supplier audience with a new landing page.

Module 02 Highlights:

• First we'll look at your website from the perspective of a corporate prospect to better appreciate their current challenges.
• No time to make major website changes? No worries, we're all about bite-sized changes and this process will be easy to implement and update.

Your large sponsors and/or partners are your most important customers, and as prospects they need a very different approach than sending a matrix of benefits at various spend levels. In this module, we'll cover the approach and collateral that works best for securing these types of consultative sales.

Module 08 Highlights:

• First, we'll dig deeper into the pros and cons of a transactional vs consultative approach to larger sponsorships.
• Next, we'll use templates to create collateral pieces that fit the different buying stages of these types of prospects.

You've got a shiny new landing page after our last module, so now we need to make sure industry suppliers/partners can find it! Website changes often aren't made lightly, so in this session will cover different options for getting prospects to the right place.

Module 03 Highlights:

• We'll review options for navigation and help you decide what makes the most sense for your site.
• We'll explore the difference between transactional and consultative sales to help you reduce friction in the buying process.

Email marketing is still one of the most effective ways to reach prospects; however, a lot has changed and your email outreach probably needs a refresh. LinkedIn is another way to engage your prospects, but there are definite do's and don'ts you'll want to follow. In this module, we'll cover the outreach tactics and messaging for email and LinkedIn that work better in today's noisy marketing environment. 

Module 09 Highlights:

• First we'll cover the reasons why corporate customers and prospects need to hear different things from you.
• Then we'll cover what your early-stage prospects need instead of your major collateral pieces.
• Finally, we'll review tips and tricks that can improve your results from email outreach and LinkedIn engagement.

We all want to know what's worked for others with similar needs to our own. Not only do stories and testimonials help you sell externally, they also help you sell internally. What staff person doesn't like to hear that their hard work was valued by customers? Nothing you can say to prospects is as powerful as the voice of your existing customers, so in this module we'll collect testimonials and stories for your landing page, collateral, and sales conversations.

Module 04 Highlights:

• We'll go through a process for soliciting testimonials that also helps you strengthen your customer relationships.
• Next, we'll review how to make it easier to get testimonials written and finalized.
• Finally, we'll show you how to engage staff and volunteers in the process of finding good stories.

Picking up the phone to call prospects is usually one of the most intimidating aspects of sales for non-sales professionals.... heck, it's one of the most intimidating things for sales professionals, too!  In this module, we'll have some fun with cold calling, which is still a great way to engage your top prospects.

Module 10 Highlights:

• We'll talk about why cold calling works and how to make it less daunting.
• We'll review how to work your way up from warm to cold calls.
• Then once you can't WAIT to get on the phones (ha!), we'll give you a call plan you can totally handle.

Stories are great because they appeal to the emotional side of the buying process. But stats create another form of proof that accelerate sales when combined with stories. In this module, we'll gather the data that can shorten your sales cycle, increase renewals and expansions, and justify price increases.

Module 05 Highlights:

• We'll review a list of the 'must have' stats that customers expect you to know.
• But stats need proper positioning to do their best work for you, so we'll review when stats can stand on their own vs. when they need context.
• Finally, we'll get you a set of stats that most associations never collect, but are incredibly compelling to have.

Most deals start to go sideways in the very first conversation for a variety of reasons. In this module will cover how to have conversations with prospects and customers that are authentic, non-salesy, and lead to more productive outcomes.

Module 11 Highlights:

• Not a fan of awkward sales pitches? You're in luck! I'll show you how you to increase sales by eliminating the sales pitch.
• We'll walk through a discovery call framework and cover top do's and don'ts so you and your team can change your sales conversations for the better.
• We'll also discuss the number one thing you can do on every call to save a ton of time and improve results.

Your advertising collateral is multi-functional in ways other types of collateral are not. You need your media kit to convey not only your value and options, but also function as a technical reference for buyers to follow your specs. In this module, we'll use templates to create a sophisticated-looking media kit with testimonials, visuals, and clear specifications.

Module 06 Highlights:

• We'll review how much detail is enough and how much you should cross-reference other opportunities outside advertising.
• We'll also take a sneak peek at operational changes you can make to streamline ad copy collection.

If you're tired of sending out collateral materials that prospects request and then following up over and over again, only to have them disappear with no idea why, then this might be your favorite lesson! In this module, we'll cover how to build on your new first-call approach to move the right deals forward more efficiently and get ghosted less (though I can't promise it won't ever happen!). 

Module 12 Highlights:

• First, we'll diagnose why you're getting ghosted and cover simple tactics to save you (and your prospects) from a bunch of, "Just checking in" emails.
• Next, we'll cover how to more accurately predict which customers are likely to go somewhere and which ones are a long shot so you can spend your limited time wisely.