An Association is usually incorporated as a 501 (c) 6 organization. It works on behalf of its members. The strength of an Association is based on its membership. The larger the membership, the more success the Association will have in producing greater results. A nonprofit or individual should pay a membership to join an Association if there are clear and measurable benefits to being a member.

The most simple measure is, “Will my organization save money or obtain additional funds by the actions of the Association?” Group purchasing is the quickest and easiest way to see results immediately. These actions create more funds by decreasing costs.

Property insurance, health insurance, dental insurance, visioin insurance, utilities, billing services, retirement plans, human resource services, accounting services, consulting services, development services, office supplies, security, bottled water, food, equipment, web services, information technology services, banking services, audit services, construction, and employment assistance programs are just a few examples where group purchasing can decrease costs.

The other part of an Association’s effort is lobbying and clearly educating elected officials. A key role they play is providing a clear voice on the economic impact of their member organizations and the criticial areas of concerns.

So take advantage of Associations where it makes sense. Make sure you never pay more than it costs your local, state or federal government for a service or product.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 3rd, 2007 at 12:01 am and is filed under Mergers, Business Plan, Program Development, Strategic Planning, Investing, Retirement Plans, Corporate Giving, Fundraising, Human Resources, Audit preparation, Billing, Consulting, Bookkeeping, Proposal Development, Research, Grant Writing, Budgeting, Payroll, Budget Development, Employee's benefits. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.