How Office Location Plays a Big Role in Association Member Engagement

When your association decided to lay roots and create a headquarters base, I bet you never thought about the impact it would make on how you interact and engage with members. Did you know that real estate is typically the second highest expense that businesses and organizations have next to staff? That’s right- a lot of money goes into your office space and location, so just as much thought should go into it too.

Whether your association’s headquarters is located in a bustling metropolis or a rural area, there are always ways to get members interested. You want your office to be a hub of activity that members want to learn more about. And most importantly, you want to get the most member engagement and office culture content for your office expenses. While it may not seem like a big deal, there are real ways you can use your office space to engage members and keep them locked into what you’re doing at your “home base”. That’s why we’d like to show you a few ways you can make your office into a marketing opportunity that can connect your audience no matter how near or far they are from you.

1. Spruce things up

Want to use your office space as a place to create content? Then you want to make sure you have the proper setting. Having a bright, friendly, and inviting office space can be great for a variety of reasons. To start, it brightens up your staff’s day and creates a more positive work environment. Keeping things tidy and adding some plants or decorative items can make it feel like less of a stiff office and more of a collaborative work space. Second, it gives you a great backdrop to make content. Members want to feel connected to the association they’re apart of no matter how far away they are. That being said, taking photos of your office space and creating informative videos using this space can really help members get a sense of who and what they’re supporting with their dues fees.

Consider taking office culture photos around your workspace with willing staff members and sharing them on your social media outlets to show members what you’re up to. Take photos at office events and parties highlighting the office space and location you’ve chosen for your headquarters. Create video content in aesthetically pleasing places in office or around town to keep things interesting.

2. Host events in your area

Want to show members how great your location can be? Consider hosting one of your association’s events in a local area to bring members in and introduce them to your neck of the woods!

‍Members look forward to the events and conferences your association hosts. From workshops, summit events, speeches, and so much more, there are so many activities that can be hosted in the area you’re located regardless of your location. In order to do this, you want to find the areas of your city or town that you want to introduce to members. If your area is known for its nature, you may want to host a workshop in one of your parks. If you’re located in a more urban area, you can focus on booking convention centers that are located in thriving neighborhoods of your city. When hosting an event in your area, you want to make sure your promotional materials include fun facts and things to do in your location. Places to stay for travelling guests are great to include in your email campaigns. You can also include local food and entertainment for the off moments when attendees aren’t at your event. Hosting more of your events in your area can help members get a sense of where you reside.

3. Coworking spaces

If you’re an association with no center base, you may find it hard to get your staff together to create a community for members to engage with. This is where coworking spaces can come in handy. With a coworking space, you have the ability to rally up association staff that live in the same community and get them collaborating in person. This is great for associations with a large remote workforce. If you can get employees together to work, you can get them to create a real sense of community that members can latch onto. In order to do this, you may want to consider renting out space or paying for memberships to coworking spaces. Many spaces such as WeWork offer monthly memberships that allow access to office space, WIFI, meeting rooms, and even amenities. They also have really aesthetically pleasing offices- great for taking social media photo content of your staff hard at work!

‍No matter if your association’s home base is in person or online, you can gather your staff in common places and get content that will boost member engagement. Don’t take your association’s location for granted. Use it to increase your brand awareness and member engagement and see how you can benefit.