Nearly two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, the necessity of technology and digital transformation for membership organizations has never been clearer. From enabling data-driven decisions, supercharging member engagement, to facilitating smooth operations, a variety of new technologies are powering the future of membership management. Per Cuseum tradition, each year, we eagerly anticipate leading global research and advisory firm Gartner’s release of their annual technology trends forecast. This report highlights the developments that the firm expects to “act as force multipliers of digital business and innovation over the next three to five years.”
As associations and societies examine which technologies will propel them forward in the digital era, we are eager to contextualize Gartner’s 2022 predictions for such entities. Read on to explore what 2022’s top technology trends could mean for membership organizations.
1. Data Fabric
According to Gartner, data Fabric provides “flexible, resilient integration of data sources across platforms and business users, making data available everywhere it’s needed regardless of where the data lives.” With this in mind, data fabric architectures may play a pivotal role in helping associations manage memberships, operations, and analytics, ultimately enabling such entities to make data-driven decisions at an organization-wide level.
Many nonprofit institutions and other membership-based organizations that handle large amounts of constituent data already use data fabric for these purposes. These include universities, hospital systems, healthcare companies, foundations, and charities. For example, Blue Cross Blue Shield NC uses data fabric to “make appropriate strategic and financial decisions that go right back to impacting the member in a positive manner.”
For professional and trade associations, one of the biggest challenges to becoming more data-driven is the fact that many organizations “commonly store their data in a number of different silos: in different centralized storage systems, on employees’ computer systems, and also in the cloud.”
Thus, data fabric may become critically important in bringing together data points from dispersed units and chapters within an association to develop more holistic insights about your constituents.
2. Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Every year, the bar for what artificial intelligence can achieve is raised even higher. Trending in 2022 will be Generative AI. In the words of Gartner, Generative AI encompasses “machine learning methods that learn about content or objects from their data, and use it to generate brand-new, completely original, realistic artifacts.”
In sum, generative AI is the technology used to create new content by utilizing existing text, audio files, images, and videos. With generative AI, computers detect the underlying pattern related to the input and produce similar content.
In the world of member engagement, AI has enormous potential that we’re only beginning to tap into. For example, it can power website chatbots; help organizations grain fresh insights to maximize member loyalty; deliver hyper-personalized content and appeals to constituents; and even enable hyper-intelligent fundraising.
Generative AI, in particular, can be used to generate compelling copy and content for member engagement and campaigns – according to marketing experts “generative AI might create hundreds of different versions of the same copy, each highly tailored and targeted for a particular platform, publication, or even individual consumer.”
Generative AI can also be deployed to create original graphics, develop chatbot dialogues, compose customized emails, and so much more!
3. Distributed Enterprises
According to Gartner, “Distributed enterprises reflect a digital-first, remote-first business model to improve employee experiences, digitalize consumer and partner touchpoints, and build out product experiences.” Motivated by the COVID-19 pandemic, this increasingly captures where membership organizations are headed in 2022 and beyond.
On a large scale, associations are offering opportunities for online engagement that are expected to outlive the pandemic. As reported in MGI’s 2021 Membership Marketing Benchmarking Report, in 2020, 85% of associations noted that they increased virtual professional development opportunities for members, while 78% say that they “developed new products and services to assist members and member companies during the pandemic.” Moreover, 56% of associations noted an increase in visits to the member-only section of their websites.
Even beyond the COVID-19 crisis, 59% of associations plan to offer a virtual option for the in-person annual event.
In sum, professional associations are catering to diverse, geographically-dispersed members through digital platforms and channels. With this in mind, we can anticipate that such organizations will continue to evolve as distributed entities in the years to come.
4. Cloud-Native Platforms
Cloud-native platforms are technologies that allow you “to build new application architectures that are resilient, elastic and agile — enabling you to respond to rapid digital change.”
In 2022 and beyond, associations and societies are hoping to reap the many benefits that cloud native platforms offer – particularly an efficient and resilient IT foundation.
Gartner predicts that cloud-native platforms will “serve as the foundation for more than 95% of new digital initiatives by 2025,” which means that cloud-native technologies will play an important role in helping membership organizations power high-performance computing, build a more responsive infrastructure, and enable streamlined, reliable operations.
In the world of membership management, the number of cloud-based operations and engagement platforms is booming. Right now, tools like Hivebrite, MemberClicks, and many more offer a variety of cloud-based services to help associations build virtual communities, streamline member engagement, and deliver member services.
5. Cyber-Security Mesh
In 2022, cybersecurity is continuing to rise as a chief business and consumer concern, and the public is demanding more protection to ensure the integrity of their personal information.
For this reason, Gartner has named “cyber-security mesh” a top trend for the years ahead. This type of technology “enables best-of-breed, stand-alone security solutions to work together to improve overall security while moving control points closer to the assets they’re designed to protect.”
At nonprofit organizations of all kinds, phishing attempts and ransomware attacks are becoming more common. For example, on an average day, Penn State alone blocks more than 20 million hostile cyberattacks from around the world. Major organizations like Save the Children, World Vision, CARE Canada, and Human Rights Watch have all been struck by ransomware attacks in recent years.
Such attacks have deleterious effects on nonprofit organizations. They can damage trust with members; cause unforeseen disruptions to operations; and result in serious financial repercussions – in fact, the average ransomware attack cost $1.85 million in 2021.
Consequently, cybersecurity mesh may become increasingly important for associations to maintain stable operations, protect data, safeguard financial solvency, and establish confidence with constituents.
6. Decision Intelligence
Decision intelligence is “a practical discipline used to improve decision making by explicitly understanding and engineering how decisions are made, and outcomes evaluated, managed and improved by feedback.”
As leaders strive to make the best possible decisions to help their organizations survive and thrive in unprecedented times, decision intelligence can support this process. Indeed, decision intelligence can use data analytics, artificial intelligence, and simulations to help associations save resources, maximize revenue, and mitigate risk. For example, IT and digital product experts at Nagarro note that “in the non-profit sector, organizations dealing with starved resources can bank on decision intelligence for optimal solutions.”
When it comes to retaining and growing membership, decision intelligence can help pinpoint the activities and campaigns that help you achieve your goals.
7. Total Experience
Gartner defines total-experience as “a business strategy that integrates employee experience, customer experience, user experience, and multi-experience across multiple touchpoints to accelerate growth.” This is a particularly valuable approach to help associations to drive employee retention and member loyalty.
As organizations know, member satisfaction is critical to driving recruitment efforts (“word-of-mouth recommendations” are the number 1 most effective member acquisition strategy), and top-notch member services delivered by enthusiastic staff have a critical impact on member fulfillment. With this in mind, total experience recognizes that the sentiments of individual members, member companies, staff, donors, and board members do not exist in discrete realities, but rather form facets of a singular and interrelated experience.
As associations strive to deepen member retention and engagement, total experience strategy may very well play a critical role in the years to come. Such an approach empowers societies to examine the many factors that impact organizational success, membership growth, and stakeholder satisfaction.
It has never been more important for associations to stay on top of the latest technology trends. Motivated by the pandemic, countless membership organizations have already adopted new initiatives like virtual programming and events, digitally-accessible member benefits, digital membership cards, online portals, and so much more in order to offer seamless, cutting-edge, and digitally-connected engagement opportunities. As societies continue to adapt to the pressures of the pandemic, rising constituent demands, and operational inefficiencies, exploring and investing in new solutions will remain imperative. These tech trends may sound futuristic today, but by tomorrow, they could very well be household names!
Looking to learn more about how technology solutions can help you save time and money, streamline operations, and drive member engagement? Schedule a demo with Cuseum.