Membership organisations play a crucial role in guiding and supporting various industries across the UK. From The Camping and Caravanning Club to the Youth Hostels Association, you’ll find a membership body for almost any sector.
At Refresh, we’ve had the privilege of working with several UK membership organisations, including the Glass and Glazing Federation, CIPHE, The Boys’ Brigade, and Manchester Digital. A strong PR and communications strategy can help these organisations achieve a range of goals, whether it’s attracting new members, proving value to current members, supporting strategic campaigns, or securing valuable funding. In this blog, we’ll explore how PR support can help member organisations grow and thrive.
PR to attract new members
Attracting new members is one of the main goals for many membership organisations. Whether professional associations, clubs, or societies, these organisations rely heavily on their membership base for sustainability, growth, and influence. Bringing in new members can improve financial stability, enhance authority, expand resources, and help fulfil core missions.
In 2023, we began working with youth organisation The Boys’ Brigade to encourage people to join as volunteers or members. We launched a multi-faceted PR campaign focused on owned content and video, highlighting the variety of activities available to members and showcasing how the organisation supports local communities. The campaign engaged more than 12,000 volunteers, and social media engagement soared. You can read the full case study here.
Supporting core campaigns
Membership organisations often run campaigns tailored to their goals and mission, such as raising awareness, driving engagement, advocating for policy changes, or providing resources. PR agencies can play a vital role in promoting these campaigns and building brand awareness.
A great example is our work with Manchester Digital on their Digital Futures campaign, funded by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority. The goal was to inspire more young people in the region to pursue digital careers through engagement with local businesses. Refresh created a campaign combining social media engagement, business outreach, and PR for trade associations, resulting in 250 businesses signing up as Digital Futures Ambassadors. You can read more about the campaign here.
Building membership engagement through PR
For many member organisations, proving value to existing members is essential. Often, PR is used to demonstrate that value, especially when members pay an annual fee.
During the pandemic, for example, we supported The Glass and Glazing Federation (GGF) with their Stay Safe campaign, which helped restore consumer confidence in tradespeople entering homes safely. This PR for membership organisations campaign combined consumer research with safety-led content and generated 148 media placements, including features in Metro and Grand Designs. It provided tangible value to GGF’s members, helping alleviate consumer concerns. You can read more about the campaign here or see some of the resulting coverage here.
We also secure media opportunities that allow both the membership organisation and its members to be featured, adding further value. For instance, we recently secured a Grand Designs feature for the GGF, which included one of its members.
Attracting external funding
Finally, PR and communications professionals can help member organisations secure external funding—whether through grants, sponsorships, partnerships, or philanthropic donations. PR can build brand awareness, generate leads, and support clients in writing successful bids and funding applications.
Crafting compelling proposals that align with grant guidelines is a specialised skill that PR professionals can offer, ensuring organisations can demonstrate their ability to effectively use the funds for meaningful impact.
Effective PR for member organisations
Ultimately, a strong PR strategy can help member organisations achieve their strategic goals. Whether it’s attracting new members, securing funding, or amplifying a key message, PR for membership organisations is essential.
As a MemberWise partner, we are proud to support the sector by providing practical help and PR support to membership and association professionals across the UK and beyond.
If you’re a membership organisation looking for a boost or seeking to stand out with a carefully crafted PR strategy, get in touch.