MEMBERSHIP

Happy LABOR Day!

For this month's report, we're using title segments from Sergio Leone's 1966 Western to describe our labors and results at managing FP Membership Renewals!

The Good

Membership renewals slowly have been coming in, alongside a very slow trickle of new memberships.

The Bad

Our total memberships count (this is a count of the number of families and entities, not people) is essentially flat since the start of the year. (January was 361, on August 30 we have 368.)

The Ugly

We send renewal notices on a regular basis. Many members are slow to renew, many don't renew at all.

For example, on August 26, we sent out 95 renewal notices to eNewsletter subscribers whose memberships had expired. This was the third renewal notice for most of these people, and after warning them twice, we told them that we were not sending them a September newsletter unless they renew. Although we had a 37.6% open rate (35 out of 95 opened the renewal email notice), zero of them have renewed as of 9/1/13. (Soon we hope to make it harder for them to find the eNewsletter on our website.)

Attached is a copy of the renewal notice that went to these 95 people.

Executive Summary

Things are okay, but we wish they were better. Next month we hope to propose a new plan to promote additional memberships. Please send any suggestions or ideas that you have for membership development.

Your Happily Laboring Membership Chairpersons,

Eddie & Carl

ADDENDUM:

We invite YOU to participate in a subcommittee of our FP Membership Committee, to consider and discuss these issues:

1) Membership Development

2) Membership Dues in relation to Mailing Costs for Paper Newsletters and eNewsletters

3) Evening of Music Announcement and Availability to Non-Members and Members

4) Newsletter Availability for Non-Members and Members

The first meeting is scheduled at Eddie and Robin Roffman's house, 11 Butternut Rd, Randolph, 973-997-1162, on Tuesday, September 10 at 7:30PM.

Any and all FP Board Members and general members, who would like to weigh-in on these issues, are welcome to join this subcommittee.

One more addendum: Over the past 2 days (after Ukefest) 3 new memberships and 2 membership renewals came in via Paypal. This constitutes a MAJOR Spike in membership activitiy! We attribute 'credit' for development of these memberships to Scooter and the Special Concerts Committee.

Thank you and Happy Labor Day.

Eddie and Carl