When an association approaches us about research, the conversation often starts with an intention to conduct a member survey. It may be time to repeat the last study, seek feedback before a strategic planning session or investigate a concern about membership.
Each is a reasonable starting point. But before developing questions, it is worth establishing the decision the research will inform and how the findings will be used.
“Understanding member needs” is a broad objective. Deciding where to invest over the next three years, whether to change the membership offer or what position to take on a policy issue gives research a clearer purpose. It helps determine whose perspectives are needed, what evidence to collect and how to assess the results.
For association boards and management, these three areas involve substantial choices. Research can help clarify the options and the consequences of choosing between them.
1. What should we prioritise in our strategy?
Associations face competing demands for their attention and resources. Members want support with immediate challenges, while boards and management must also consider emerging needs and the organisation’s capacity to respond.
Research can establish which challenges are widespread, how they affect different groups and where members expect the association to play a role. It can also identify where members already have adequate support from employers, commercial providers or other organisations.
Those distinctions matter. An issue can be important to members without necessarily being something the association is best placed to address. Equally, an emerging need may warrant attention before it appears prominently in requests for assistance.
Consider an association deciding how much to invest in supporting members’ use of AI. A survey asking whether members want AI training may establish interest but provides limited direction. Understanding how their work is changing, where they lack confidence, what support they already receive and what they expect from the association gives the board more to work with.
The appropriate response might involve professional guidance, standards or access to specialist advice. Research helps establish which contribution would be useful before resources are committed.
The strategic decision is where the association should concentrate its effort. Member evidence informs that choice alongside its purpose, capabilities and financial position.
2. Does our membership offer still meet the needs of our members?
An association may have stable membership numbers while struggling to attract particular groups. It may be losing members despite delivering valuable services or questioning whether its categories and fees still reflect the people and organisations it serves.
Before changing the offer, it needs to understand what is behind those patterns.
Research should examine why people join, what sustains their membership and what leads them to leave. Former and prospective members can provide perspectives that existing members alone cannot. Differences by career stage, business size or membership category may also reveal problems hidden within an overall result.
For example, an association considering a lower-priced membership for smaller businesses needs to understand whether price is the main barrier. The existing offer may be designed around larger employers, or smaller businesses may not recognise how the association’s work benefits them. Each explanation suggests a different response.
Research also needs to account for collective benefits. Advocacy, professional recognition and standards may contribute to membership value even when members rarely attend events or use services. Usage figures alone cannot establish what should be retained or removed.
Testing possible changes helps the association assess the appeal of different benefits, membership arrangements and prices. Combined with financial modelling, this provides a basis for deciding whether a revised offer could improve recruitment and retention while sustaining the organisation’s work.
3. What position should we take on behalf of members?
Associations also need to decide which issues to pursue and what outcomes to seek. Member concerns are an important starting point, but the strength with which an issue is raised does not establish how widely it is experienced or what should change.
Research can examine the scale of a problem, its causes and its consequences across the membership. It can also reveal differences that an association needs to consider before adopting a position.
Workforce shortages provide an example. Recruitment difficulties might reflect insufficient training places, poor retention, geographic distribution or working conditions. Establishing why vacancies persist helps the association determine which responses to advocate.
Where a proposed change would benefit some members and disadvantage others, research can make those consequences clearer. It provides a basis for explaining the association’s position, including where agreement across the membership is unlikely.
Give your research a clear purpose
Before commissioning research, agree what it needs to inform, who will use the findings and when they will be needed. Review existing evidence, then identify what remains unknown.
Some research appropriately monitors trends or establishes a baseline for future decisions. It still needs a clear intended use.
At Survey Matters, working through that purpose is part of designing the research. It helps ensure the findings give your board and management evidence they can use to assess their options and decide what to do next.