The weekly list of free educational events and resources for the association community…
Remember the early days of Twitter when you had actual conversations with people? Some of whom later even became your friends? Then social media scheduling platforms arrived along with celebrities and trolls and everyone else. Something was lost in this new Twitter.
I’m part of the problem. I schedule tweets because I like sharing good reads, but I must admit, some days I never visit Twitter. When I do, it’s rare to find a live person there. What I do find is mostly scheduled tweets, like mine.
Nikhil Krishnan to the rescue! He explains why Twitter is still dope and how to use it. He’s inspired me to make time to go on Twitter like I used to. I’m spending more time in my “Home” column in Hootsuite looking at the tweets of the 3604 people I’m following because it’s more interesting and serendipitous. But, I also check some of my lists because I’m a practical sort of person too. Come back to Twitter, my tweeps!
If you pay someone to produce content (staff or freelancers like me), don’t just post it and expect miracles. For The Interested shares eight ways to maximize the value you get from content.
Got a brilliant new idea? Test it out with a pilot or trial program before committing too much time or money. Rasa.io explains the benefits of experimenting with a trial program and how to select or recruit participants.
WBT Systems shares tips on how to prepare your association for working with an instructional designer so you can get the best return on that investment.
Some quick hits before we get to the list of free webinars:
- Amazon’s new Alexa Blueprints lets anyone create custom Alexa skills and responses. Associations, this would be a good use of a trial program. (TechCrunch)
- 19 great truths a grandmother told her grandson on her 90th birthday. (Marc and Angel Hack Life)
- An explanation of cognitive computing, AI, machine learning, and deep learning. (Information Week)
Way off-topic: Check out my Grabbing the Gusto blog for the list of recipes I’ve made this week or plan to make in the coming week, and my list of recommended fiction and non-fiction ebooks (including cookbooks) on sale right now.
Now, the main event: free professional development events for the association community. It’s a short list this week. If your organization has a free webinar or event coming up, please send me the link. I’ll be happy to feature it as long as it’s not product-centric.
Tue 5/1 at 2 p.m.* – Flipping the Script (Association Chat)
Lowell Aplebaum interviews Association chat host KiKi L’Italien. More info/register.
*All times are Eastern Standard Time unless otherwise noted.
Wed 5/2 at 12 p.m. CST – Chapter Roundtable in Chicago IL
Connect with fellow Component/Chapter Relations Professionals (CRPs) to network and discuss current chapter challenges, such as how to measure and increase the health of chapters; best practices for chapter operations (volunteer tools, processes, etc.); and how to get the right statistics to prevent national and chapter level members from leaving. Lunch provided. 1 CAE credit. Location: Chicago IL. More info/register.
Host: Billhighway
Wed 5/2 from 12 to 4 p.m. – SURGE Spring 2018
SURGE Spring is a free interactive virtual summit based on the belief that transformation is a team effort. Assembling thousands of association professionals under one virtual roof, SURGE Spring is about harnessing collective knowledge to transform the association space together. Attendees have exclusive access to 12 pre-recorded, expert-led sessions, each focused on the innovative potential of our industry. During the sessions, speakers and attendees can engage with these topics through a simultaneously running chat, so resources can be shared and questions can be answered in real time. Up to CAE and a CMP credits. More info/register.
Host: Associations Success
Wed 5/2 at 2:30 p.m. – How Non-Salespeople Can Be Great at Selling
Leveraging an association’s technical specialists (even the CEO) is a great sales tactic and builds a membership culture within the organization. Many associations have technical experts who possess valuable industry knowledge and can greatly enhance your membership recruitment endeavors. Learn how these “non-salespeople” can sell. More info/register.
Host: The Moery Company
Presenter: J.P. Moery, founder and president, The Moery Company
Thu 5/3 from 12 to 4 p.m. – SURGE Spring 2018
SURGE Spring is a free interactive virtual summit based on the belief that transformation is a team effort. Assembling thousands of association professionals under one virtual roof, SURGE Spring is about harnessing collective knowledge to transform the association space together. Attendees have exclusive access to 12 pre-recorded, expert-led sessions, each focused on the innovative potential of our industry. During the sessions, speakers and attendees can engage with these topics through a simultaneously running chat, so resources can be shared and questions can be answered in real time. Up to CAE and a CMP credits. More info/register.
Host: Associations Success
Thu 5/2 at 2 p.m. – Making Your Pitch: Selling Your Ideas
Boards who aren’t interested in changing things up, participants leery about spending money, and, for independent planners, selling yourselves to prospective organizations requires successful verbal and virtual sales conversations. Learn at least five authentic ways to boost influence with stakeholders. Find out how to apply steps to take control of the next step in the “sales process” and present your ideas in the most compelling manner virtually. 1 CMP credit. More info/register.
Host: PCMA
Presenter: Sue Hershkowitz-Coore, better known as SpeakerSue, founder and President, High Impact Presentations
Thu 5/3 at 3 p.m. – We Want You Back: Tools to Re-engage Lapsed Members (Reston-Loudoun VA Idea Swap)
It is your association’s goal to provide meaningful experiences so that your members stay engaged, but what happens when for some reason or another they choose not to renew? More importantly, what can you do to bring these former members back into the fold? Get the strategies and tools you need to re-engage and win-back your lapsed members for life. Location: Reston VA. More info/register.
Host: ASAE Greater Washington / National Capital Community
Presenter: Scott D. Oser of Scott Oser Associates
Fri 5/4 from 12 to 4 p.m. – SURGE Spring 2018
SURGE Spring is a free interactive virtual summit based on the belief that transformation is a team effort. Assembling thousands of association professionals under one virtual roof, SURGE Spring is about harnessing collective knowledge to transform the association space together. Attendees have exclusive access to 12 pre-recorded, expert-led sessions, each focused on the innovative potential of our industry. During the sessions, speakers and attendees can engage with these topics through a simultaneously running chat, so resources can be shared and questions can be answered in real time. Up to CAE and a CMP credits. More info/register.
Host: Associations Success
Tue 5/8 at 11 a.m. – The Road to GDPR Compliance: People, Process, and Technology
Learn what you need to consider on the road to GDPR compliance, with a focus on the people, process, and technology involved. Find out what GDPR is and who it affects; the key challenges for most organizations; what minimum requirements must be reached for compliance; how to assess where personal data is stored and may be implicated; how to review and revise policies and notices directed at members and business partners; internal protocols and processes regarding access to data, data retention, information security, incident response, access requests, etc.; and ongoing record-keeping requirements. 1 CAE credit. More info/register.
Host: Matrix Group
Presenters: Joanna Pineda, CEO, Matrix Group, and Ryan Costello, Operations Manager, Europe, eTERA Consulting
That’s it for now. If you can’t attend a live webinar, go ahead and register if the topic interests you. Most webinar hosts send registrants a link to the recording.
Association Brain Food Weekly is published Friday mornings. If your organization offers free professional development for the association community, please send me the link via email or Twitter.
Creative Commons licensed photo by Guillaume Bourdages on Unsplash.
Association Brain Food 