Member retention: Our data suggests budget restraint isn’t always the whole story
Earlier this year, the 2026 Associations Forum Membership and Services Survey reported average new member growth of 12.7 per cent, alongside average attrition of 9 per cent.
At first glance,12.7 per cent growth against 9 per cent attrition looks reasonably positive. But it also shows how hard associations can be working simply to maintain their membership base. An association losing close to one member in ten each year needs a substantial flow of new members just to stand still.
The same survey also found that budget restraint was the leading reason members did not renew. With signs of tightening economic conditions, this is not encouraging news for the year ahead.
So, we decided to look back over our benchmark data to understand what association leaders should focus on to improve their retention.
What our benchmarks data tell us about membership retention
Cost pressure is clearly real, and this is particularly the case in the current environment. Survey Matters' member non-renewal research from 2023 to 2025 indicates that 48% of members did leave because it was too expensive.
Some members are leaving because they can no longer afford the membership, or they are having to cut their expenses. But over the longer term, our own benchmarking data suggests that a larger proportion left for other reasons:
56% cited lack of value
27% pointed to poor benefits or services
14% highlighted lack of suitable CPD
14% indicated the overall experience was poor
While these numbers may shift with the increasing economic pressures members are facing, they highlight what we see repeatedly across the member surveys we conduct for associations. hat value, rather than purely cost, is the key driver of member retention.
Budget restraint is only part of the reason members leave: value is the key driver
When budgets tighten, organisations and individuals obviously have to make choices about what stays and what goes.
Professional memberships inevitably come under scrutiny. But saying a membership was “too expensive” does not necessarily explain why one membership was cancelled while another was retained. It does not explain why two members in identical roles, on identical salaries, made opposite decisions.
As a result, often the more useful question is: was the membership valuable enough to protect when budgets came under pressure?
A member may quite genuinely say they left because of cost. But behind that can sit a much longer assessment of value - whether they used the services, whether the benefits remained relevant and whether the association delivered what they expected when they joined.
People find money for things they have recently judged to be worth it. And our research backs that up - value for money is the strongest statistical predictor of stated intention to renew in our benchmark dataset. This is true across both industry and professional associations.
So, what drives perceptions of value for money?
For industry associations, value is provided by:
Belonging to an association that is respected in the industry
Has strong communication practices
Provides reliable support and customer service
For professional associations, value for money is driven by:
Offers a sense of belonging
Provides sufficient and quality CPD
Keeps members up to date and informed
It is also important to understand the ‘why’ behind member attrition
Most associations are very good at measuring the point at which membership ends. They track renewal rates, lapse rates, reminder emails, payment failures and engagement activity.
All of that is clearly useful, but it tells you more about what happened than why it happened.
But how do you understand what your members actually value. Low engagement can be an early warning sign, but even that needs interpretation. Some members rarely attend an event or open an email but continue to renew because they value professional standing, advocacy or simply knowing support is there when they need it. Others can be highly engaged and still decide not to renew.
Five questions worth asking members who leave
Talking to members tells you the ‘why’ behind the behaviour, and gives you the insight you need to plan retention strategies. Exit research does not need to be complicated. A short, well-designed survey or phone call of lapsed and lapsing members can usually identify the main drivers quickly. And five questions are particularly useful:
1. What did you value most about your membership?
This is the most important question as it identifies where value is genuinely being delivered - and why it wasn’t strong enough to retain the member.
2. What did you expect when you joined, and did we deliver it?
Repeated gaps here can point to a membership proposition or recruitment problem rather than a renewal problem.
3. What else are you using that meets the same need?
Competition may come from another association, an employer-provided service, a commercial provider or a free professional network.
4. Was the decision yours or your employer's?
Employer-funded and self-funded members are different markets, and often have very different reasons for leaving.
5. What would make you consider coming back?
This is often the question that distinguishes a genuine price problem from a value problem.
For many associations, decisions about 2027 membership fees are being made now. This is a difficult time to be doing this, because cost of living pressures are clearly growing. But before changing prices, benefits or renewal strategies, it is worth understanding why members left last time. Because if “budget restraint” or “too expensive” is the answer, there is one more question worth asking:
Why did this membership become one of the things they were prepared to give up?
That is the question good exit or value proposition research can help answer. So, if you would like to discuss member retention, benchmarking or exit research for your association, get in touch.