Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/549063
I DA U N I V E R S A L J u l y -Au g u s t 2 0 1 5 4 EDITOR'S NOTES Nancy Estes, MBA, CAE Executive Director/Editor S uccessful business owners share many qualities, from knowing their business to ensuring they have suffi cient capital to carefully monitoring those funds and spending them wisely. But success, I believe, involves more than writing a business plan and implementing it wisely. It typically requires a higher education that comes, not from a university, but from the shared wisdom available from the one group that can teach a new business owner more than any article or book. is group off ers the best opportunity for networking and information and can produce inspiration and affi rmation unavailable anywhere else. is group is the business owner's trade association. ere are approximately 86,054 trade and professional associations in the United States alone. I believe trade associations are great resources for informa- tion, networking and inspira- tion for two reasons. First, as a member of two trade associations, I know that without this experi- ence, my business would not have survived. Second, as president of an association management company, I see which businesses thrive that join the associa- tions I manage, and which ones never understand the benefi ts of membership and become one of those statistics you read about— part of the 50 percent of all businesses that fail. The 7 Reasons to Join Need reasons why you should make the investment to join? Here are seven. Reason #1: Information Most people join trade associ- ations for one simple reason: information. ey can learn about key industry trends, new legislation or regulations. ey can learn about vendors. ey can get industry statistics and under- stand the trends they represent. Everybody gets this one. How does information come to the owners? O en, in newsletters, magazines or emails. Occasionally, from presentations at conferences, but sometimes the best information comes from conversation with a colleague in the hallway outside the room where you heard the presentation. Why go it alone if you don't have to? Reason #2: Inspiration Where do most good ideas originate? For a lot of us, that long, hot shower off ers the quality relaxation time we need to get the brain to dream, to think beyond the usual and ordinary and to consider the unusual and special. Where else can you fi nd time away from the offi ce that allows you to think about your business' future and enjoy the company of those facing similar challenges and problems? A trade association committee meeting or confer- ence can be an excellent place to fi nd inspiration. You're away from the offi ce, the phone and the computer (and if you're smart, you're not looking at your mobile phone every fi ve minutes). You hear about an approach or process that you know you can emulate easily and quickly – and perhaps inexpensively. For me, another person's idea is usually a springboard to one of my own. Put me in a situation where I'm just focusing on my industry and my business, and the proverbial creative juices start bubbling. Freedom from distrac- tions allows that "aha" moment to occur. And it's not always some big idea that will make you a million. Sometimes it's a small idea that solves a nagging problem – the one that keeps you at the offi ce late too many nights and prevents you from focusing more time looking for a moment of real inspiration. Reason #3: Support As an association member, you have ready access to dozens or hundreds of individuals and organizations that serve as unpaid consultants off ering support in big and small ways, all of which help you succeed. Your colleagues can serve as a sounding board or, if things aren't going well, a shoulder to cry on. (Hey, it happens.) Reason #4: Referrals and Other New Business Opportunities Finding customers can be diffi cult for many business owners. A trade association's educational programs off er informal and formal ways of bringing owners and buyers together. Here are three scenarios, based on my own experiences: Continued on page 57 7 Reasons Why Businesses Should Join their Industry Trade Association to Succeed By Robert E. McLean, CAE