How to Stretch Your Association Marketing Budget

As the final quarter of the year approaches, it's time to take a look at your association's marketing budget.Are you on track to end 2014 as planned? Or are you trying to figure out how to make do for the remainder of the year?Here are three ways you can stretch your dollars while still getting fantastic marketing bang for your buck.Market More OnlineCompared to print, television and radio advertising, marketing online can be a budget friendly option. Google ads, Facebook ads, and placing ads on websites potential members frequent are all more wallet friendly alternatives to expensive full page print ads.Another benefit to internet marketing is being able to push your message to a highly targeted group. Internet advertisers allow you to segment your audience based upon demographics such as age, industry, interests, location, and more.Reuse and RecycleRecycling and reusing physical products is the Earth friendly thing to do. But have you ever considered applying this mentality to your association's digital assets?Sales presentations can be shared on SlideShare.net. Depending upon the licensing agreement, stock photos purchased for brochures or your website can make an appearance on social media posts. Notes or presentations from association meetings can be turned into blog posts or articles.


You get the idea. Make use of the information you already have available to you before spending time and money to create new items.Consolidate Your Service ProvidersYour association probably started paying for service providers one as a time, as needed. Does this scenario sound familiar?First, you created a website. Then, as the association grew, you paid for an email service to manage your newsletters and group emails. Next, members wanted to pay for dues online, so a shopping cart service got added. And finally, your association added the ability to RSVP to events via the internet.Now your association is functional, but there are so many different monthly bills to pay it can feel overwhelming.Using a membership management tool can be a real help for your association. Do your research to find a tool that offers all the features you are currently using. Membership management software services usually offer a complete suite of services your association needs at a price less than using multiple providers.Get your marketing budget back on track by using these three money saving tactics. Has your association adopted any of these ideas?