From Frustration to Functionality: NMEA’s Transition from YourMembership to Member365
The 8-Week Challenge: Member365 delivers instant relief to the National Marine Educators Association…and more.
“Can you help us switch to your membership software platform right away…just eight weeks before our annual conference and make it look great for our members?” That was the gauntlet the National Marine Educators Association (NMEA) put down for Member365 in 2024.
A quick, confident reply arrived as instant relief: “We will get it done!“
As Jackie Lewis, NMEA’s Executive Administrator explains, their group is a small organization with a mission-critical job of connecting with educators, culminating in an annual conference. And their patience had run out with YourMembership, their legacy software provider, in helping to make that happen.
NMEA’s contacts list includes more than 600 members and 350 newsletter subscribers. But it also includes sixteen “chapter associations”…each working independently with different rules and needs for managing membership. NMEA needed a solution that allowed all of them to register and pay for events and memberships–all in one place–at a fair price.
“What’s the point in paying for a solution that requires you to go find and pay for yet more software somewhere else?” Lewis says.
When Legacy Software Holds You Back
“That proved to be too much for YourMembership,” Lewis says. “They had too many clunky steps, too few solutions and too many fees–and members couldn’t have multiple memberships.”
As a result, those chapter associations couldn’t be brought in under NMEA’s fold. “So each of the chapters had to buy their own membership management software or make do with a spreadsheet and Google docs for forms and hope for the best.”
Too Many Fees, Too Few Solutions
As Lewis asks: “What’s the point in paying for a solution that requires you to go find and pay for yet more software somewhere else?”
It got worse.
The legacy system only allowed for the integration of two places to receive payment.. The result when attempting to assist chapter associations: “Money got commingled such that I’d have to go in manually and disentangle it all.” On top of everything, the online portal for member event registration had issues: “It looked awful.”
Challenge Accepted: Member365 Steps In
Enter Member365. Eight weeks to transition NMEA while they prepared for their annual event? Challenge accepted!
Pain Points Eliminated, Time Reclaimed
“Switching to Member365 took away all of our pain points, which is exactly what I wanted…and needed,” says Lewis.
But delivering on that eight-week challenge was just the start of the new benefits they began enjoying. By adding support to NMEA’s chapter associations, the organization successfully fulfilled a critical area of its strategic plan.
“Just as important,” Lewis notes, “Member365 keeps these chapters viable and active at a budget affordable for small groups…and that just didn’t happen before.” Even the time savings have been noticeable, as she points out: “I’m saving more than half of my time now, including on events and consolidating finances.”
“Switching to Member365 was our best business decision of the year. It proves to our members that we care to give them the very best”
Empowering Small Teams to Do More
The transformation has been empowering. “It’s no longer a scary thought for anyone here to step up and do something now, because we have a simplified process and great customer support in place, thanks to Member365.” No more multiple email lists on spreadsheets, no more scattered payments to disentangle. Just one consolidated solution that works.
“The whole thing now looks great for users: they can update and change what they want. And on my end, Member365 is so powerful and indispensable that it’s become the browser tab that never gets closed on my desktop, says Lewis. “It’s that good.”
Support That’s Actually Supportive
And what about support tickets? Lewis reports that with their previous provider, they hesitated to even open one. “I got so frustrated that I stopped asking for help. Now I ask regularly, because Member365 customer support is so fast and helpful…tickets are a good thing now.”
A Decision That Paid Off
One year has passed since NMEA issued the eight-week challenge. And the results are stellar.
Lewis concludes: “Switching to Member365 was our best business decision of the year. It proves to our members that we care to give them the very best..and on a budget that only looks like we are spending a lot more.”
Ready To Leave Behind Outdated Systems?
Experience the difference with Member365–where streamlined operations and enhanced member engagement are just the beginning.
