Re: Ideas for getting new AIS members

[Robert Pries <robertpries@embarqmail.com>]

The idea of a coupon has worked very well for the Daylily society. Despite their problems with the new daylily rust wiping out many members gardens they have not been loosing members for as long as the Iris Society and really only saw about a ten percent decline which apparently is now growing again. AIS has suffered a fifty percent decline and even though its losses went from 7% a year to 3.5% a year Iris society with the change in bulletin format we still need to do more. The board should have several ideas being discussed including a coupon system. Where are the ideas?
 
----- Original Message -----
From: "RON AND SUSAN COSNER" <keighley15@msn.com>
To: aisdiscuss@aisboard.org
Sent: Saturday, July 30, 2011 2:22:12 AM
Subject: RE: [AISdiscuss] Ideas for getting new AIS members

The AOS does a voucher program also with a coupon good at several hybridizers
as well as the AOS store. Thank you and happy gardening

Ron and
Sue Cosner


> Date: Fri, 29 Jul 2011 17:06:11 -0400
> From: robertpries@embarqmail.com
> To: aisdiscuss@aisboard.org
> Subject: Re: [AISdiscuss] Ideas for getting new AIS members
>
> Susan this is really good information. One can feel the enthusiasm that the
Daylily people have for their society. I hope we have some for ours also.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Susan Grigg" <irismom@nc.rr.com>
> To: "AISDiscuss" <AISDiscuss@aisboard.org>
> Sent: Friday, July 29, 2011 4:55:38 PM
> Subject: [AISdiscuss] Ideas for getting new AIS members
>
> Glenn, my husband, gets a digest of the Daylily Forum and he saved the
> messages below for me. Note the mention and use of the $25. voucher that
AHS
> gives to each new member. This is long but worth reading.
>
>
>
> Susan Grigg
>
> AIS Director
>
>
>
>
>
> Date: Wed, 27 Jul 2011 11:44:59 -0700
>
> From: Charlie Dorsey <daylilyroundrobin@YAHOO.COM>
>
> Subject: TEN new AHS members
>
>
>
> I wanted to tell you about the success I had in attracting new members for
> AHS. This was a variation of something Phil Reilly told me about getting
new
> members. Possibly some others might like to try it.
>
>
>
> I told my master gardener's group that they could dig as many daylilies as
> they wanted in a certain area of my field for free. The only catch was that
> they had to fill out a membership form and give me a check made out to AHS
> for $25.00. For that $25.00 I stated that they would get 4 issues of a
great
> daylily magazine and a voucher worth $25.00 off daylilies ordered from some
> daylily vendors. Ten people took me up on the offer. It was so fun to see
> them drive up because they had never seen a 3 acre field full of daylilies.
> They went nuts.
>
> One came back a 2nd day with a friend, check, and membership form.
>
>
>
> I'm sure there are some variations of this that could be attempted. Just
> think if we could get 100 or 1000 of us to do something similar.
>
>
>
> Charlie Dorsey www.TheDaylilyAddict.com
>
> SE Ohio Zone 6
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
>
>
> Date: Wed, 27 Jul 2011 15:35:10 -0400
>
> From: Mary Collier Fisher <mfisher@RICS.BWH.HARVARD.EDU>
>
> Subject: Re: TEN new AHS members/Region 4 Meeting/Trial Memberships
>
>
>
> Mary Collier Fisher here with a beautiful New England summer day - not too
> hot, not too cold, not too humid - but sunny with a breeze and just right.
> Walpole, Massachusetts, AHS Region 4, Zone 5
>
>
>
> Hats off to Charlie for coming up with an absolutely super idea and
carrying
> it off with such superb results. Wow ten new members is fantastic!
>
>
>
> Pat Mercer, our AHS Executive Secretary has been busy processing new
> memberships, renewals and trial memberships that have been pouring
>
> in. Those of you who attended the convention may have heard me
>
> remark that we only needed around 450 members to join or renew between June
> and August to start to increase the number as of AHS members for the first
> time in nine years. As of the last count that Pat sent out as of July 24th
> the number needed had dropped to only
>
> 156. 33 people had decided to try the new trial membership for
>
> this year for only $15 - signing up by this month gets them two issues of
> the fabulous Daylily Journal and full access to the Members only portal -
> www.daylilynetwork.org, and if they renew next year they will get an AHS
> Voucher that essentially pays for the
>
> membership. Seems like a good deal to me.
>
>
>
>
>
> Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 09:11:21 -0700
>
> From: Bill Maryott <bill@DAYLILYGARDEN.NET>
>
> Subject: New Membership Idea
>
>
>
> Bill Maryott Corralitos CA (Marketing Director for the AHS)
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Kyle Billadeau from MN decided he would "invent" a method of getting new
AHS
> members. I think it's just fabulous. I'd like to put out a proposal for
>
> consideration and discussion. Getting new AHS members is everyone's job.
>
> Each of you can do it and we can help. I think Kyle's method is so novel
>
> and good that we need to make up some Promo Packages and provide them free
> of charge to ANYONE willing to follow Kyle's idea here.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> How many of you give presentations and how many would be willing to do
this?
>
> I really like the idea.what about you? Discussion welcome.
>
>
>
>
>
> I'm repeating Kyle's suggestion below:
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Kyle Billadeau, Chaska, MN Zone 4, Region One
>
>
>
> Yes - you can get new AHS memberships, even in the dead of winter, no
> digging required. You can do this at a club meeting or a regional meeting,
> or when you're giving a garden talk.
>
>
>
> Last weekend at our Region One meeting I did this 'song and dance' as I
call
> it, and got 7 trial memberships. At our club meetings in Oct and Feb I did
> the same and got at least half a dozen each time. At our Regional meeting
> last year I think I got 10, which was amazing. Region One by the way led
all
> regions last year in new members.
>
>
>
> Supplies needed:
>
>
>
> 4 recent copies of the Daylily Journal
>
> 2 recent copies of your region's newsletter 6-10 copies of the AHS
> membership form, depending on your group's size 6-10 copies of your
region's
> latest newsletter Same number of envelopes addressed to Pat Mercer with a
> stamp on them!
>
> 1 assistant
>
>
>
> Here's what you do. This is called picking the low-hanging fruit by the
way.
>
>
>
>
>
> Remember that in many cases half the people of a club are not AHS members.
>
> And at a Regional Meeting the non-members are lower - but you also have in
> that group many who've let their membership lapse.
>
>
>
> Stand up at the microphone. Start extolling the virtues of AHS membership
by
> passing the 4 Daylily Journals off to your assistant and have him/her hold
> them up high. Tell the audience you get "Not one, not two, not three - but
> FOUR color Journals per year for your $25." Then hold up your two regional
> newsletters and tell them "With these that's SIX great issues of daylily
> education each year." Then tell them that if they use the $25 voucher they
> get that first year for FREE. And mention other benefits of membership,
such
> as this email robin and the AHS Portal. Finally tell them you have a supply
> of the current regional newsletter and they can have it tonight if they
sign
> up right now.
>
>
>
> Last - hold up the membership forms and the envelopes all nicely clipped
> together. Tell your audience they have no excuse - all they really have to
> do is walk up and give you a check payable to AHS and you will mail it in
> for them.
>
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