Member Benefits: Everything You Need to Know
- Christina Loukissa
- Mar 19
- 5 min read
Essential Insights into Member Benefits
What are member benefits? They are exclusive products and services offered to members that transform a standard subscription into a high-value, indispensable relationship.
Exploring various types of member benefits, such as sustainable offers and wellbeing hubs, is crucial for organisations aiming to support members both professionally and personally.
Implementing creative member benefits ideas, like free financial webinars and virtual communities, directly impacts retention by proving value during challenging economic times.
What are member benefits? At their core, they are exclusive perks that transform a simple subscription into a high-value community experience. Understanding the different types of member benefits—from health hubs to shopping discounts—is essential for any organisation looking to improve retention and engagement. This guide explores innovative member benefits ideas that go beyond traditional perks, helping you build a proposition that resonates with your audience. Discover how to foster a loyal community that provides real value to your members every single day.
What are member benefits?
Member benefits are exclusive services and products that bolster your membership proposition, supporting key activities like attracting new recruits and retaining existing members. With over 8,000 membership organisations in the UK, getting the right mix is vital. Whether you represent golfers or accountants, the goal is to provide a package that justifies the membership fee and keeps members engaged long-term.
Getting the right mix of membership proposition and benefits will support membership organisations across the majority activities including;
Attracting new members
Retain existing members
Support in engaging with existing members
What Are the Most Effective Types of Member Benefits?
The most effective types of member benefits include sustainable offers, health and wellbeing information, and tangible shopping discounts that help members save on everyday costs.
By providing a mix of financial savings and lifestyle support, organisations can address the diverse needs of their community. Here is a breakdown of the most impactful categories:
Sustainable offers
According to the Office for National Statistics Opinions and Lifestyle Survey, 75% of adults in Great Britain said that they were worried about the impact of climate change.
We are all on our own journeys of sustainability and the term itself will mean different things to different membership groups, but it has never been more important to engage with your members on this. Collectively as an organisation, we have developed a Sustainability Hub for our clients to use as a member facing platform with not only sustainable offer but also articles, tools and tips across home heating to eating to help members become more sustainable in their day-to-day lives.
Exclusive health and wellbeing information
Health and wellbeing benefits are now an essential element to any membership organisation’s member proposition. We launched a health and wellbeing hub for our clients’ members back in January 2020, and since then there have been over 135,000 users of the Hub.
A benefits programme filled with wellbeing content, perks and advice can boost your organisation’s engagement levels, as well as reflecting company values. In present times, it has never been more important to show support to members when they are experiencing hardships, both mentally and financially. Members who feel satisfied with the support they are receiving are more likely to renew their membership, therefore resulting in growth of the organisation.
Discounts on shopping, travel and experiences
Providing access to shopping discounts allows members and their families to save money on their everyday spend, including groceries, clothing and other house hold items. If your members are making a significant saving on everyday costs (possibly saving the cost of their membership fee), this is a major reason for them to renew their membership.
As well as everyday savings, some organisations provide offers to members on more luxe purchases such as holidays, tech products and experiences. As a result of these savings, members are saving money, therefore giving them the flexibility to save for their future or other expenses they may have.
How Can Innovative Member Benefits Ideas Foster a Virtual Community?
Creative member benefits ideas, such as hosting financial webinars and building virtual community sites, foster deep professional connections and provide support that members often cannot afford elsewhere.
Moving beyond simple discounts, these interactive platforms allow your organisation to stay relevant in the daily lives of your members. Here is how to implement these ideas effectively.
Scheme sites and a virtual community
A membership site that is easy to navigate provides an opportunity to build a strong online network where your members can talk amongst themselves in forums, activity walls, or with direct member messaging. It also gives you a chance to use your community to vet other content ideas, test out new content, get feedback, and much more.
Webinars and events
As an organisation that wants to retain members, nurturing your member audience and encouraging them to grow professionally is something that is very important. Supporting members and giving them knowledge and confidence in their own field as well as supporting on other diverse topics such as current affairs, retirement planning, planning for changing interest rates, healthy recipe ideas and more.
Now that we are able to meet face-to-face why not boost your membership communities with regional or national networking events and conferences. Although online networking has grown during the pandemic-years, it is essential to provide space for your members to connect and build relationships in their industry, building their own careers and supporting younger members too.
This year, we have provided free financial advice webinars to members during the current cost of living crisis. Topics include Retirement and pensions, financial planning and the mortgage market. Providing support on such huge life events and allowing members to receive professional advice they may not be able to afford elsewhere is a great way of building a relationship with your member audience.
Frequently Asked Questions About Membership Perks
What are member benefits?
They are a collection of exclusive offers, services, and educational resources provided by an organisation to its members, usually included within the annual membership fee.
What are some creative member benefits ideas?
Effective member benefits ideas include sustainability hubs with green tips, free legal or financial webinars, regional networking conferences, and dedicated "member-only" virtual forums for peer-to-peer support.
How many types of member benefits should an organisation offer?
A successful proposition should mix several types of member benefits, ideally combining financial savings (discounts), professional growth (webinars), and personal support (wellbeing hubs) to cover all member needs.
About author
Christina Loukissa is the Growth Marketing Lead at Parliament Hill, where she helps membership organisations grow, retain, and energise their communities through targeted perks and benefits strategies.
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