When chapters create experiences worth talking about, growth becomes the natural result.
Despite what we’ve always believed, successful chapters do not grow primarily through membership drives, discounts, or referral campaigns; they grow because they create experiences that make members feel connected, valued, and engaged.
In this webinar, Peggy Hoffman offers advice on how you can achieve chapter growth by focusing on vibrant community experiences rather than traditional recruitment campaigns.
Watch below. Don’t have time to watch? Check out the recap for a quick summary of the highlights and takeaways.
Additional Resources:
- Download the slide deck (pdf)
- Download the 2025 Chapter Performance and Benchmarking Report
- Read How to Identify and Prevent Member Churn Before It Happens (AssociationsNow)
- Read What Satisfying Member Needs Means Now (AssociationsNow)
Highlights:
STORIES FROM THE FIELD
In each of these stories, chapters took an opportunity to create something that built a warm welcome, stronger interpersonal connections, and true support to their members, which in turn became a place for them to have growth.
Chapter 1: Structured New Member Onboarding. Strengthened new member engagement through a 90-day onboarding journey that included welcome calls, mentor matching, and local meetups. This helped members feel connected early, increased event attendance, and improved retention and renewal by ensuring new members felt seen and supported during their first months.
Chapter 2: Mentorship as a Growth Driver. Used mentorship to deepen engagement by pairing experienced professionals with newer members, creating volunteer mentorship opportunities, and mixing seasoned volunteers with prospective volunteers on short-term projects. These efforts strengthened relationships and produced enthusiastic advocates who promoted the organization through word of mouth.
Chapter 3: Local Value Grants. Created a small grant program to support professional development, learning cohorts, and small community events. By removing financial barriers, the chapter increased participation, helped members experience clear membership value, and encouraged them to invite colleagues into the organization.
FOUR LENSES FOR CHAPTER GROWTH
When members have a positive experience, they participate more often, bring colleagues in, volunteer, and become brand ambassadors by recommending the chapter to colleagues, and by sharing their experiences online. Growth becomes an outcome rather than a constant struggle. This growth can be activated via four distinct lenses.
Connection – Start by creating a welcoming culture where members feel recognized and valued from day one. Facilitate personal introductions rather than leaving networking entirely up to chance, especially at larger events where making connections can feel daunting. Design meaningful networking opportunities through small group discussions, peer connections, or virtual meetups centered on shared professional interests. And finally, establish an inclusive leadership pipeline by shifting how you talk about leadership and the pathway towards leadership to bring in new potential leaders.
→ Reality check: People rarely renew based on the event calendar. They renew because they’ve had relationships.
Value – Help members consistently gain something meaningful by offering learning opportunities centered around important issues or topics to their profession. Support professional growth by providing pathways to develop new skills and earn valuable certifications or credentials. Offer career support through resources such as certification, learning/study groups, mentorship programs etc. Provide access to subject matter experts through a network of experienced professionals who can offer guidance, insights, and specialized expertise when members need it most.
→ Ask: “What value would members miss if the chapter disappeared tomorrow?” Knowing this can help you really boost which of these are most important to your members.
Participation – Participation should be easy not complicated. Offer quick takes where people can get value in small bites such as virtual meetups, in-depth articles, one on one conversations etc. Offer micro volunteering opportunities that folks can do short term, or short projects such as sprints convened to solve a specific problem. Offer a good mix of virtual options to balance the in-person options. Make sure leadership pathways are clear and concise.
→ Ask: Can members engage in ways that fit their interest and availability? Members will tell you if they see something of interest or if they’re available.
Visibility – Potential members are going to listen and watch before they decide to join. Help your chapters share their value via photos and stories, testimonials and social posts by teaching them how to use these effectively. Help them engage in their community and teach them how to celebrate their own achievements.
→ Reality check: Potential members often observe chapters before they join. Growing chapters create visible evidence of member value. If you create visible evidence of member value, growth will happen.
METRICS THAT MATTER
Begin by throwing out the traditional chapter scorecards that focus on event counts or membership quotas and focus on community health and engagement instead. Look at metrics such as participation rates which reveal relevance by showing how many members engage in at least one activity throughout the year while first-time attendee return rates help determine whether new participants found enough value in their initial experience to come back. Volunteer engagement provides insight into member commitment by tracking both the number of volunteers and the percentage of the membership they represent while member retention rates reflect the overall quality of the member experience, showing how many members choose to renew their membership each year. Finally, prospect activity such as guest attendance, member referrals, and inquiry volume, help you to understand how effectively the organization is attracting and converting potential new members.
5 PRACTICAL ACTIONS YOU CAN TAKE
Here are five practical ways association staff can help chapters shift from reporting activity to improving member experience. (1) Start by having better conversations with your leaders by asking simple, practical questions regarding member experiences, where they are stuck, and what small improvements can be made. (2) Coach volunteers on how to use member stories rather than leaning into their own experiences, and how to use this data in decision making. (3) Share stories to inspire action by celebrating member success stories and chapter wins. (4) Be sure to identify small wins and accomplishments that are worth recognizing. And finally, (5) celebrate chapter health indicators (beyond membership gains) such as volunteer growth, member engagement, and retention improvements.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
✓ Growth is an outcome of exceptional member experiences.
✓ Engagement creates visibility, and visibility drives growth.
✓ Measure what matters, especially participation and retention.
✓ Coach chapter leaders rather than simply auditing them.
✓ Inspire by creating experiences worth talking about and members will become your best recruiters.