Membership Committee Duties

Many chapters have a standing Membership Committee, or appoint a membership chair whose duties include growing and tracking the membership of the chapter. The membership committee performs a key role by helping current members resolve membership issues, maintaining member’s contact information, and communicating changes or issues with members to TU staff. Using the roster and membership changes reports found in the Leaders Only Tools section of the tu.org website, the membership committee tracks membership numbers, welcomes new members, and follows-up with members who have not renewed.

When Starting a Membership Committee or Taking Over as Membership Chair

• Receive and review records from past membership chair including the position description. Ask the past chair for lessons learned and a full review of the prior year’s duties, activities and goals.
• Review the Membership Memo
• Watch this video highlighting committee resources and tactics.
• Review the Membership Recruitment & Engagement Resources
• Discuss the membership goals with your board to gain a better understanding of expectations and your new role.
• Ensure your chapter president enters you as the membership chair, or as a secondary membership chair if a committee is formed, in the Leaders Only Tools section of tu.org (so that you have access to the rosters, membership changes report, etc…)
• Get into the Leaders Only Tools section and explore. Reach out to your Volunteer Operations Staff if you have any questions.
• Explore the Leaders Forum discussions by role related keyword searches (e.g. lapsed memberships, member recruitment, and roster management).

Ongoing Tasks of a Membership Committee or Chair

• With the chapter board, set membership growth goals for the chapter and develop plans for recruiting new members and retaining existing members
• Report on status of chapter membership against these goals at each chapter board meeting including: total membership, change from last meeting, new members, etc. This information is available from the membership changes report in the Leaders Only Tools section
• Train and inspire your leadership team to promote community and inclusion in event promotions by including pertinent details (e.g. full street address, event times, welcoming language) and at events by identifying greeters, capturing contact information via a contact sheet and encouraging interaction with new attendees.
• Ensure that the chapter has current TU membership applications/ brochures in stock and properly coded with chapter’s 3-digit number to recruit new members – train and encourage all board members to use the special page www.tu.org/intro to recruit new members online. All new members recruited by a chapter volunteer earn the chapter a $15 rebate at the end of the year
• Welcome new members to chapter by letter, e-mail or phone, and encourage their involvement. This New Member Welcome Letter template is a good start for developing your unique new member welcome message. You can find additional examples in the Leaders Forum.
• Remind and encourage lapsed members to renew. Often mailed correspondence that is personalized to the member and signed by the chapter president with a handwritten note is successful.  Learn how other chapters are finding success with renewals in the Leaders Forum.
• Assist chapter members with TU membership questions, updating membership contact information and other problems
• Ongoing quality control of the chapter roster so current membership has accurate contact information.  Learn how other chapters are finding success maintaining a high level of roster accuracy in the Leaders Forum.