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To order reprints of any article in its original format, visit Scoopreprintsource.com FeatureTech on Parade ASSOCIATIONS NOW, January 2007 Thirteen tech tools that smart associations will adopt--or at least consider--in 2007. By: Scott Briscoe Having a great website and an excellent content management system isn't enough anymore. As what were once considered advanced or cutting-edge technologies become more inexpensive and more commonplace, your members are beginning to expect them. Here's a look at 13 tech tools and applications that smart associations should consider if they want to remain--or become--competitive.
Twenty-five years ago, the only computer you'd find in an office was a calculator. Fifteen years ago, the earliest of early-adopting associations were building websites. It was just over five years ago that text messaging got any sort of traction. The list could keep going backward--cell phones, fax machines … algebra. I mean, really, what did people do at work before there was a computer on their desk? I'm a gen Xer; in my professional life I've always had a computer on my work desk. I ask people who obviously worked at a time when they didn't have computers on their desks, and even they have a hard time answering. "We talked on the phone a lot" is a pretty standard reply. It's fun to think that some clown will be writing a similar lead 20 years from now and wonder what he or she (or it?) will be writing about. But this article isn't about that. And it's not about the last 20 years either. It's about right now, and the lucky 13 things you need to pay attention to if you aren't already. It's not even close to an exhaustive list, nor is it meant to reveal the technologies that will have the greatest impact. It is simply a list, in no particular order, of things to look into. Web usability. You can--and should--use a ton of talent to help with your online presence. Your website has to have modern technology and features; rightly or wrongly, you will be compared to Amazon, eBay, and Google for online experience. As your most public face, your website must also represent your brand. But the most important resource available to you is your members. They're the ones that will test your website's usability. If they can't find what they want to find quickly, everything else is a waste. Any consultant helping you redesign a website should have usability at the top of the list. Content management systems. Implementing a content management system is hard. Trying to satisfy member demands of your website without one is approaching impossible. Almost every association is an information repository, housing everything from technical specifications and research to case studies and best practices. The expectation is that a lot of that information, if not all of it, will be available to your constituents online. Things to think about with your content management system include quality control, as more staff and possibly members will be content creators without the old filters; integration with your association management system--you'll be able to serve members better if you know what content is important to them; and resources transitioned into a content management system (compared to resources and missed opportunity costs of not moving to content management). And web usability is still critical--it's no good creating a content database if your members can't find what they need easily. Single, unified login. It is incredibly offputting when a member who is logged into your site tries to register for a program, purchase a product, or access something and is asked to create another profile. It doesn't need to happen, even when you use different vendors for different parts of your site. Start now to make unified logins a required part of any technology contract. Online conferencing. It's not the same as being there--you'll never be able to re-create the experience of attending an annual conference. But that doesn't mean all value is lost in capturing audio or video of your education sessions. To the contrary, much value is created by not losing this vital content. With the prevalence of broadband and growing user familiarity with downloading audio and video, keeping content from your meetings and educational events alive can add significant value, both to those unable to attend the event and to those who did. VoIP. Any association with a small staff that has not looked into VoIP (voiceover internet protocol) may be leaving money on the table while adding to their frustration and inconvenience levels. And if your small workforce is scattered in different places, all the more reason. Text voting. For several years, associations have been amending their bylaws to allow for online elections. Now, popularized by the television show American Idol, text voting, or voting with a mobile phone using the text-messaging component, is gaining interest. You may think text voting is fine for "elections" where you are encouraged to vote early and vote often, but it wouldn't work in a more controlled electoral environment. Think again. The United Kingdom leads the way, and several municipal elections have had a text voting option. If you haven't begun the process of amending your bylaws to allow for new electoral technologies, it's time to get moving (after seeking appropriate legal counsel, of course). After all, you don't want to wait until you really need it and discover your bylaws or state nonprofit laws forbid it. Fingertip technology. A concept that education maven Elliot Masie is pushing forward is the idea that not only information but real education and training can be at a person's fingertips, too. The idea is that adult learners are looking for quick, targeted skills-based learning--think 30 minutes rather than a weeks-long course. And, of course, it must be easy to understand and navigate. Podcasting. Technologies for hosting podcasts are free or cheap. Technology for creating the audio file can be free for an amateur sound and only a couple hundred bucks for sound that approaches professional quality. That leaves two things to think about: Do you have an audience that is likely to download and listen to a podcast, and do you have a plan that will generate content that is worth listening to? Wonderful world of wiki. Wikis are user-written and -edited websites and seem to be a technology especially well suited to associations with members who join because they want to participate. Consider the world's best-known wiki, Wikipedia. It's like the Encyclopedia Britannica--but with 10,000 volumes, thanks to thousands and thousands of volunteers who write it. Would an A-to-Z encyclopedia of knowledge in your profession or industry be something people would read and participate in? Also consider wikiHow (www.wikihow.com). It bills itself as the world's largest how-to manual. Again, could the members of your profession or industry benefit from a collection of how-to manuals written and edited by their peers? PDAs. Sure, there's a good reason why BlackBerry devices have earned the derisive nickname CrackBerry. If you were at a large family gathering for the holidays, chances are someone was sneaking a peek at a PDA. Neurosis aside, most people who use them swear by them. While email is still the killer app for these devices, it is definitely time to be thinking about designing content and products for them. Remote access. Citrix and Microsoft Terminal applications make it easy to allow remote access to your systems. Chances are at least some, if not most, of your staff have broadband access at home, so offering remote access to your database and fileservers is one way for your organization to show its flexibility. Bad weather? Sick child? The workday no longer has to be a total wash should unexpected circumstances arise. Cell phone tethering. So you've got your BlackBerry/PDA/smart phone and your remote access. To complete the trifecta, connect your phone to your laptop and gain broadband access from almost anywhere (or at least in a lot of places). Bluetooth, infrared wireless, and even the trusty USB cable can all be used to tether a cell phone to a laptop. Many cellular service providers offer broadband plans. Access speeds have a respectable range of 200 to 700 kbps. SharePoint. Intranets never lived up to their promise--until now. SharePoint, or, more properly, the Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007, looks to be the replacement for your internal fileserver. As the name would imply, SharePoint ties together the Microsoft Office suite of products. Sharing and collaborating on Word files or spreadsheets will be seamless and transparent. You can also provide up-to-date information on your association's key metrics--membership numbers, perhaps, or annual meeting attendance. SharePoint can also extend out and be an extranet for your committee structure. So that's your baker's dozen. The inquisitive have probably spotted omissions galore. Send me an email; if I get enough suggestions of things only a bonehead would leave out of such a list, I'll run an update on Acronym, ASAE & The Center's blog. May 2007 be a productive technology year for you and your members. Scott Briscoe is editor-in-chief of Associations Now and a moderator of Acronym (www.asaecenter.org/acronym). Email: sbriscoe@asaecenter.org
More Articles From Associations Now, January 2007
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