Income Crisis Worries Associations

A UXB lies buried in Naylor's newly released annual study, 2016 Association Adviser Communications Benchmarking Report.

The study finds 54% of association execs think their inability to generate non-dues revenue from communications activities is a serious or significant problem, up from 11% only a year ago.

Most trade and professional associations rely on non-dues revenue to operate. 

According to ASAE, 59% of trade associations' revenue is non-dues revenue; and 66% of professional associations' revenue is non-dues revenue.

If Naylor's study is correct, associations may be facing, if not an existential crisis, a financial one.

POSTSCRIPT: It's time for associations to quit sitting on their assets (pun intended):

• Marketing and membership lists can be profitably rented
• Event content can be profitably livestreamed
• Webinars can be profitably packaged from publications
• Event sponsorships can be profitably sold to "nonendemic" sponsors