For any association, the task of building the association’s name into a meaningful brand can be a daunting one. According to marketing and advertising expert Scott Deming, one sure-fire way to establish a brand with meaning is to create a member experience that builds loyalty to your association. Deming, author of the new book, “The Brand Who Cried Wolf,” offers the following suggestions, adapted here for trade associations and membership societies:

Be careful what you promise. If you can’t or don’t deliver on what your association promises, you will fail to create loyalty among your members.

Separate yourself from the pack. The association’s chief executive and everyone on staff should be focused on exceeding members’ expectations. You can start by getting rid of impersonal customer-service techniques, such as automated e-mail replies and difficult-to-navigate voice-mail systems.

Realize that perspective is everything. To really know how things are going at your association, you’ll have to step out of your own shoes and take a walk in those of both your members and employees.

Face the fact that you are probably not as great as you think you are. There’s a human tendency to think we are better than we actually are. The effects can be devastating because when you think your association is already the best, you don’t work as hard to keep making it better.

Know that the easy way isn’t always best. Technology has made communication so much easier. But if you’re not careful, too much of a reliance on technology can take you out of direct contact with your members and, as a result, erode your brand.

“All of these lessons work together to bring us to one critical conclusion: if you want to be successful, you must build a powerful emotional brand,” says Deming. “Brands that don’t deliver on their promises lose customers and generate catastrophic, negative word-of-mouth. But brands that consistently exceed what they promise earn customers for life and generate waves of new customers from positive word-of-mouth.”

What does your organization do to built its brand? Who in the association world do you think does a great job of branding? Leave a comment (including your name, title and organization) below to join the discussion.

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