Our motivation for pursuing a TRC stemmed from a desire to increase our bandwidth to sell sponsorships.  We have a small team (2 full-time, including myself, a part-time receptionist and contracted bookkeeper.)  And we were in a never-ending sales mode – selling one event after another, after another to many of the same members over and over again.

We thought a Total Resources Campaign would help us increase sponsorship revenue and hopefully provide more opportunities for more members to participate in our initiatives, programs and events.  All of that happened, but working with Jason provided us with so much more than additional revenue. 

Through the REACH Campaign, we completely reimagined how we engage members and share value of our organization with them, and the results exceeded every expectation. Our first campaign has increased our sales by nearly TRIPLE over our previous sponsorship revenue, while fundamentally changing the way our Chamber does business.

Beyond the revenue, the campaign dramatically increased member engagement. We now have almost 28%of our membership investing in at least one of our initiatives (including event sponsorships, marketing products, and initiatives through our Education Foundation.) Our campaign volunteers recruited 20 new members, pushing us over the elusive 700-member benchmark for the first time in our Chamber’s 40-year history.  37% of our revenue was generated from first-time investors, and almost 40% of our revenue came from new products that were developed by working with Jason on sponsorship development in the months leading up to the campaign.

Perhaps the greatest benefit was our tectonic shift in process and mindset. Rather than simply asking businesses to sponsor events, we recruited dozens of volunteers who had meaningful conversations about members’ goals, and then matched them with customized marketing, networking, workforce development, and community investment opportunities. Our Chamber members (both long-time and new) appreciate having a comprehensive annual strategy instead of responding to multiple sponsorship requests throughout the year.  It’s changed our relationship with our members while providing greater value to them with more lead-time to promote their involvement with our organization.

In addition to that, we now have a small army of campaign volunteers who not only value the Chamber, but can articulate the details of all that we do, far beyond the end of the campaign.

There were challenges to work through, of course, as with any new and innovative endeavor.  But the YGM team was incredible – they provided an exceptional roadmap, outstanding coaching, and a proven process that empowered our volunteers and staff to succeed. They anticipated potential bumps in the road and helped us over, around, and through them. Their partnership was priceless.

The campaign strengthened relationships, created new revenue streams, increased member value, and positioned our Chamber for long-term financial success.  We were looking for a way to increase non-dues revenue while simultaneously improving member engagement and organizational impact. I can confidently say that implementing a YGM Total Resource Campaign was one of the best investments we’ve ever made.