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The Bank Insurance & Securities Association (BISA) is a financial services industry association dedicated to serving those responsible for the marketing, sales, and distribution of securities, insurance, and other financial products and advisory services through the bank channel. Each year, BISA hosts its annual in-person convention, but due to the health and safety concerns related to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the board of directors made the difficult decision to cancel the 2021 convention. The potential financial exposure of this decision was significant – hotel cancellation penalties were nearly $600,000 and the collective membership dues tied directly to the convention benefits, if refunded, were roughly $800,000 for a total financial risk of $1.4 million. Outside of the financial exposure, there was concern that member engagement would decline in the absence of the networking and programming opportunities provided by an in-person convention.
Focusing on the risk of declining membership engagement as a result of a convention cancellation, the Smithbucklin staff supporting BISA developed a Membership Convention Replacement Value Task Force, with the objective to create a list of recommendations of new benefits and programs for BISA to offer members in lieu providing a refund. The task force was comprised of key stakeholders, including board members and members of the BISA Steering Committee (top sponsor members). The task force quickly developed a list of recommendations that were approved by board officers and executed by the BISA staff. One key recommendation involved a segment of members whose benefits were especially linked to the convention – these members were offered the opportunity to upgrade their membership for the remainder of 2021, which allowed them additional networking opportunities and the ability to engage with BISA committees and leadership.
The task force recommendations were highly effective – of the $800,000 potentially at risk for member refunds, BISA retained 97% with only $26,000 refunded. Members who accepted the upgrade have since decided to renew at the higher membership level, not only generating more dues revenue for 2022 but also deepening engagement with BISA. Additionally, BISA launched new, discussion-focused programming to facilitate conversation and sharing of best practices – both of which are key for a membership that values networking. The new program has been well-received and is poised to be self-sustaining into 2022 and beyond, generating additional networking and intelligence for members. The pandemic has forced BISA to innovate in creating new year-round programming and value for its clients – BISA attributes the success of these efforts to an energetic and creative staff and engaged key client stakeholders.