In life, “What’s In It For Me?”, or WIIFM as it is often known, is a constant questions. Salespeople are always looking for the solution their product will provide to their customer. Likewise, community organisations need to look at prospective members to determine what it is that the organisation can offer the person.
Some prospective members come to a community organisation already knowing WIIFM, but others may just be exploring their options. This is where your Membership manager, or even other members need to be aware of finding the connection between the community organisation and the individual.
For some it might simply be the opportunity to serve their community. There is great value in giving of time and money. People feel good about themselves when they do this so it can be very much a benefit to them. For others, it might be the opportunity to develop new skills, social connections or be involved with likeminded people.
The important thing is to make sure there is a match between the organisation’s objectives and the prospective member. WIIFM goes both ways. Both the prospective member and the organisation have to gain some benefit from the relationship.