When it comes to communication how does your association measure up? Take this short quiz and find out.

How often do you update your website?

• a) Weekly.
• b) Monthly.
• c) Yearly.
• d) We don’t have a website.

How would you describe your website?

• a) Our website reflects the professionalism and vitality of our organisation and is the first place our members and the wider community turn to for news and information about our industry.
• b) Our website is quite good in terms of content but the design is a bit dated and I am not sure many people actually use it.
• c) Our website could be better. It’s not very easy to navigate, the content is average and not that many people visit the site.
• d) We’re quite small, so I’m not sure we really need a website.

What is in your print or e-newsletter?

• a) Extensive industry news, past events, upcoming events, updates on our advocacy efforts and details of new member benefits.
• b) Some industry news and general information on events.
• c) Some information about what’s been happening in the office and the industry.
• d) Newsletter? What newsletter?

What is the most talked about event on your association’s social calendar?

• a) We have quite a few events but probably most talked about would be our annual Conference and Exhibition.
• b) Our monthly networking functions.
• c) Biannual members’ lunch.
• d) AGM.

How does your association promote your industry?

• a) Hosting major industry events, having an association-endorsed industry journal, and regular media releases.
• b) Involvement in some industry events and some media releases.
• c) We’ve done some research into market trends, which we haven’t done anything with yet.
• d) Isn’t that up to our members?

What is the biggest constraint on your association’s communication?

• a) Time! We can only get so much done.
• b) Lack of coherent vision – we’re just not sure what we want to say.
• c) Skill! We’d like to do more online, but don’t have the skills or expertise.
• d) We don’t have a permanent secretariat, so it’s all a bit hard.

How effectively do you use your database of contacts?

• a) We have an up-to-date database with contact details of current and prospective members. We also record areas of interest to our contacts which allows us to target our communications.
• b) We record the contact details of members and lapsed members but we don’t do a lot of list building of prospective members or record a lot of information about our current members’ interests.
• c) Our database is pretty old and it hasn’t been updated for awhile. We know a lot of the details are wrong based on the amount of returns we get from mail-outs.
• d) We’ve got an Excel spreadsheet where we record member contact details.

Do you have an integrated marketing and communications strategy?

• a) Whether in print, online or at tradeshows, our communications reflect the values and mission of our organisation to ensure we reach new and existing members.
• b) Our involvement in major industry events highlights our industry leadership, but our use of print could be more effective.
• c) The image created across our print and online presence is varied – it’s not integrated.
• d) Do we really need to integrate things? Sounds difficult and time consuming.

How do you plan your communication?

• a) We have a co-ordinated communications schedule that outlines the direction we want to take over the coming year, across a range of media, our industry journal and presence at industry events.
• b) We know which dates we are going to send information, which we have ready in advance.
• c) We assess our communication on a week-to-week basis.
• d) We do some planning for what to write in our emails.

What is the main goal of your communications?

• a) Make our association a key, trusted voice in the industry.
• b) Engage new and existing clients more effectively.
• c) Make our association a household name.
• d) We don’t really have set goals.

ANSWERS

How did you go? 

The more A answers you scored, the better!

Circle any B, C and D answers you scored and make them communications priority areas to work on this year.