The Best Non-Dues Revenue Sources For Associations

Why Non-Dues Revenue for Associations is Important

The global pandemic challenged associations, and for many, the main challenge was maintaining and building new non-dues revenue (NDR). The most successful adapted and embraced innovative sources beyond their typical revenue streams which is paying off for them years after COVID. Adapting to catastrophic market forces can pay off for years.

While member dues are certainly a dependable and steady form of revenue for professional associations, a report by the American Society for Association Executives says membership fees make up only 39% of an association’s total revenue. The other 61% of income comprises non-dues revenue, which forward-thinking associations use to grow their organizations.

Table of Contents

• The Two Types of Non-Dues Revenue
• Four Innovative Sources of Non-Dues Revenue for Associations
  • Job Boards
  • Applicant Tracking Systems
  • Learning and Development Opportunities
  • Buyer’s Guide/Online Marketplace
• Why Hiring Is the Best Non-Dues Revenue Opportunity
• More Benefits of a Private Label ATS for Associations
• Offering HiringThing to Your Association's Members

The Two Types of Non-Dues Revenue

There are two types of non-dues revenue associations can use to increase their bottom line: external and internal NDR.

• External sources of NDR come from outside an association’s membership. This can include outside vendors, advertisers, sponsors, or any value-add available to those who don’t have memberships in the organization. An example would be an association job board charging businesses a fee to post their jobs there. 
• Internal NDR is generated by charging members additional fees for professional development opportunities, events, certifications or courses, branded merchandise, etc. An example of internal NDR would be if an association charged members an upcharge for using their association job board. 

Best practices are to create a healthy balance of internal and external NDR. Remember that NDR should always serve a dual purpose: adding value to your members while generating revenue for your organization.

Back to Top

Four Sources of Innovative Non-Dues Revenue for Associations

In addition to ensuring your NDR adds value to your members while generating revenue for your organization, remember to make sure NDR initiatives fit with your organization and brand.

Job Boards

An association-specific (and thus, industry-specific) job board is a perfect NDR addition. Hiring remains one of the top challenges facing businesses—we’re living in a charged recruiting environment and businesses need all the help they can get with hiring. 

Your job board will be a place organizations know their ideal candidates will search for jobs—businesses will pay to list their jobs on your job board in exchange for a pool of highly qualified, motivated candidates. 

Job boards are also an incredible value-add for your members. 

Monetizing Your Job Board

Associations have a couple of options when it comes to monetizing their job boards. You may want to charge a monthly subscription fee (which is also recurring revenue), so that employers can pay a flat fee to post as many jobs as they want. Another option is a “per posting” fee, where employers don’t pay a monthly fee, but one for each job they post. A combination is another option if you want to give employers more choice.  

Many job boards make additional revenue by including “upgrade fees.” An example of this would be a feature-listing fee. This fee gives employers the opportunity to pay additional money to have their listings posted as a “featured” listing or remain on the top of the job listings for an agreed-upon period of time. Social media promotion, newsletter mentions, or cross-posting to other job boards or associations are other add-on options you can utilize when monetizing your job board. 

Back to Top

Applicant Tracking Systems

If you’re going to offer your own job board for members to post job postings, why not offer a full recruiting solution in the form of an applicant tracking system? Applicant tracking systems (ATS) are recruiting software built to automate and streamline the hiring process. 

Applicant tracking systems are a smart investment for associations as they’re:

• What today’s job seekers want.
• Widely used by organizations of all types. 
• Help strengthen businesses’ (aka association members’) recruiting. 
• In high demand.

Savvy associations will strategically use an ATS to generate revenue. We've created a report Applicant Tracking Systems: A Strategic Guide to Revenue Generation for Associations, that goes into more depth on the economics behind this choice. 

Applicant Tracking Systems are a Growing Market

Applicant tracking systems are an in-demand solution businesses will pay to use. According to Reports and Data, the ATS market is expected to reach $2.22 billion by 2027. While the market is growing, it hasn’t hit peak saturation yet. While almost all large organizations and Fortune 500 companies are currently using applicant tracking systems, only 35% of SMB have adopted ATS use—65% of that market is still up for grabs. 

Additionally, an HR.com study found 57% of recruiters at large organizations aren’t satisfied with their applicant tracking system. Many ATS users are in the market for a stronger hiring solution. 

Monetizing Your ATS

Like job boards, applicant tracking systems can be monetized with subscription-based pricing that sets clear expectations around monthly packages. You can also do usage-based pricing for applicant tracking systems—users pay for what they use. Location-based pricing is ideal for franchises or multi-location businesses that offer a fixed operating cost at each location. 

HiringThing offers an ATS monetization model called Flex Pricing. With Flex Pricing, all your members automatically get access to your ATS—it’s just a matter of them deciding to utilize it. This subscription-based plan is designed so that your members can quickly scale up or down to meet their recruiting needs and only pay for what’s being used. Read here how one of our customers used Flex Pricing, also known as the QuickStart program, to grow ATS usage and drive revenue.

Private Labeling Your Applicant Tracking System Takes Hiring Solutions to the Next Level

Private-label software is purchased by a company from a SaaS provider and customized with robust, user-friendly solutions, including tailored workflows and single-sign-on capabilities. Associations that partner with a private label SaaS provider work with the provider to meet their specific recruiting needs. The strength of private labeling is that consumers who buy or use the end product are not aware it was developed by the private-label provider, strengthening the brand of the purchasing partner. Competitive private label applicant tracking systems can be purchased, customized, and launched almost immediately, making them an excellent choice for organizations looking to launch their in-demand product quickly. 

Check out our post What is a Private Label Applicant Tracking System? for a deeper look at the benefits of a private label solution.

Back to Top

Learning and Development Opportunities

The 2021 Member Marketing Benchmarking Report highlights the products and services that increase association member engagement and participation. Associations overwhelmingly found that learning and development opportunities drove member engagement over the last year—83% of associations report having higher participation in their webinars, compared to 53% the year prior, and 57% of associations report seeing increased attendance at professional development meetings. 

Association members are more engaged than ever in learning and development opportunities, making them a great NDR opportunity. Learning and development solutions can include:

• Webinars
• Synchronous and Asynchronous Online Courses
• Networking Events
• Conferences
• Speaking Engagements 
• Certification Opportunities
• Self-Learning Modules
• Guides
• Accreditation Opportunities 

Monetizing Learning and Development Opportunities

Learning and development is a great value-add for association members, but we’d caution against charging members for every professional development opportunity—some learning should be included with membership dues. However, there are still innovative ways to make learning and development a significant source of NDR:

• Upsell Premium Content: Offer premium content in the form of add-ons for certain learning and development opportunities, while membership includes the foundational solution. An example would be offering a webinar to all your members but upselling a Q&A session with experts afterward. 
• Product Bundles: Selling multiple learning and development solutions for one fixed price is an effective way for organizations to increase their revenue while letting members feel like they’ve got a great deal (which they have!). 
• Sell Professional Development Opportunities to Non-Members: You may want to open your learning and development solutions to those outside your member base. This is an opportunity to monetize your solutions while simultaneously showing value to potential new members. Selling to non-members also allows you to package some of your learning solutions as “member exclusive,” which increases the membership value. 

Buyer's Guide or Marketplace

Did you know that as of 2021, there were approximately 15,000 SaaS solutions in the United States? Your members are undoubtedly looking for the best professional solutions to help them, but shopping around for those can be overwhelming.

You can help your members by creating a buyer’s guide—vetted recommendations by you, the industry experts, to help make the buying process easier. Take this a step further by offering a marketplace where your members can find expertly curated SaaS solutions and other products that solve their professional challenges.

Monetizing Your Buyer's Guide/Marketplace

For a buyer’s guide, you can charge members or nonmembers a fee to use or purchase it. You can also use sponsorship opportunities for organizations whose products are featured in the guide to grow revenue. 

Similarly, you can charge members or nonmembers a fee to use your marketplace and charge vendors for sponsorships, featured listings, or marketplace inclusion.

Back to Top

Why Hiring Is the Best Non-Dues Revenue Opportunity

Of all the NDR sources above, hiring support stands out. Every business that belongs to your association needs to hire, and an applicant tracking system, especially a private label ATS branded as your own, helps members solve their top challenge while generating recurring revenue for your association.

Enhanced Member Value

39% of associations indicate that “lack of value” is a top reason for members not renewing memberships. While numerous association offerings may not resonate with members, all businesses that belong to an association would benefit from hiring support. Hiring has been the top challenge for businesses of all industries over the past few years—55% of associations that offer some career or hiring services reported an increase in the use of those services in 2022. 

An ATS not only brings in non-dues revenue but also elevates the value proposition for members. Such an offering fosters loyalty and engagement among members, leading to higher retention rates and a larger dues-paying member base. 

Hiring is the Top Challenge Today's Businesses Face

We mentioned it in the previous section, but it bears repeating (and is backed up with stats!) how much businesses need hiring support. 

• Recruiting and retaining top talent is the top problem facing 52% of small businesses.
• The PwC HR Tech Survey found the two biggest HR tech challenges facing businesses today are finding good HR insights/analytics and recruiting (and retention) solutions.
• 74% of organizations felt their recruiting strategies underperformed in 2022.
• 89% of C-Suite executives and 83% of HR leaders say HR tech enables them to be more flexible and responsive to the constantly shifting world of work.

Applicant Tracking Systems Have Proven Results 

We’re biased about applicant tracking systems, but the data doesn’t lie. 

• 94% of ATS users said applicant tracking systems positively impacted their hiring.
• 78% of companies using an ATS say it makes recruiting easier. 
• 86% of ATS users say the software has helped them hire faster.
• 78% of ATS users say it has improved the quality of their hires.

An ATS can help your members:

• Save time and money.
• Increase applicant traffic.
• Provide a better candidate experience (crucial in today’s hiring climate).
• Build their employer brand. 
• Reduce employee turnover. 

The most crucial driver of non-dues revenue should be what benefits your members. Ask them what would make their life easier. Poll them and ask if an applicant tracking system is something they’d be interested in, using the stats provided to let them know how you can provide them with a dynamic recruiting solution.

Data-Driven Insights

Modern applicant tracking systems have advanced analytic capabilities that provide valuable insights into the job market trends, member behavior, and skills demand. Associations can leverage this to provide additional value to customers by offering customized reports to members.

Utilizing the data collected, associations can position themselves as hiring thought leaders for the industries they serve, attracting subscriptions and partnerships that contribute to the non-dues revenue pool. 

More Benefits of a Private Label ATS for Associations

Beyond new revenue and added member value, partnering with a white or private label ATS provider brings a number of other advantages to your association.

Built-In Support

When you enter into a white label partnership, you get the added benefit of the professional support of their team, which could include everything from customer service to marketing to engineering.

How does this benefit your association? It allows you to give your members a great ATS experience, further enhancing the value of this tool and the value of their membership in your association. It can also help drive the adoption of your ATS and thus your NDR. 

Established Connections

57% of association members join to strengthen their network, so you’re undoubtedly familiar with the power of a professional network and how long it can take to build (your members are joining you to help circumvent the often long network building process). 

Partnering with a private label provider means entering a partnership with an entirely new network of connections for your members. Competitive private label applicant tracking systems will already have strong relationships with crucial job boards members can use to post and attract new talent. They’ll also have a prebuilt network of third-party integrations, ranging from background check providers to skill assessments that will add value to your members' recruiting experiences. 

Quick Go to Market

Because a white label ATS is already developed by the provider, and you have that partner support to back you up, associations can roll out their new solution quickly and efficiently. A competitive white label ATS provider can work with an association to offer their members new solutions within weeks or even days of a partnership start date.

Decreased Member Churn

Membership churn is a persistent problem; 45% of associations reported a decrease in membership renewal in 2021. Retaining customers is the best way to ensure associations continue to grow and prosper. As discussed above, members often cite a lack of value as the main reason for their churn. 

Adding value to your members’ professional lives does wonders for keeping them around. However, many associations also struggle with communicating their value to members. This is where the partnership that comes with a white label ATS is key. The team at the white label provider can help with messaging, positioning, and ensuring your customers not only have a valuable new tool but are aware of its existence and value. 

Offering HiringThing to Your Association's Members

Many association members, especially small and medium-sized businesses, lack the resources to invest in expensive recruitment tools or hire dedicated HR teams. HiringThing gives associations a way to offer an all-in-one hiring solution as a member benefit.

Benefits for the Association

1. An Incredible Member Benefit at No Cost:
One of the most compelling reasons to consider HiringThing for your association is that it offers substantial value to your members without costing the association a dime. This platform is a valuable addition to your membership benefits, enhancing the overall appeal of joining or renewing membership with your association. In a competitive landscape, where associations constantly strive to differentiate themselves, offering a robust hiring solution can be a game-changer.

2. Potential for a New Revenue Stream:
In addition to offering a valuable service to your members, HiringThing also provides an opportunity for your association to generate revenue. The platform offers a 15% revenue share on plans once members upgrade past the first free job posting. This revenue can be reinvested into the association, supporting other initiatives, events, or member services, without the need to raise membership dues. It’s a win-win situation where your association and its members benefit financially.

3. Fully-Supported Offering:
Implementing new technology can be daunting, but HiringThing comes with full support to ensure smooth integration and usage by your members. The platform includes webinar launches to introduce the tool to members, meet ‘n greet virtual lunches for networking and Q&A, email nurturing to keep members engaged, and live chat in-app support to assist with any issues they may encounter. This level of support ensures that your members not only have access to the platform but are also fully equipped to use it effectively.

Benefits for Association Members

1. Free, Award-Winning Recruiting Account:
Every association member receives access to a free recruiting account, which is already an award-winning platform known for its ease of use and effectiveness. This account allows members to dip their toes into the platform without any initial investment, giving them a risk-free opportunity to explore its features and see the value it brings.

2. Free Job Posting Each Month:
A standout feature of HiringThing is the ability for members to post their first job for free each month. This is particularly beneficial for small businesses or organizations that have limited hiring needs but still want to attract high-quality candidates. The ability to post a job for free lowers the barrier to entry, making it accessible for all members regardless of their budget.

3. Full-Featured Recruiting Platform:
HiringThing is not just about job postings; it’s a comprehensive recruiting platform that includes a wide array of features designed to streamline the entire hiring process. Members can create connected career pages to showcase their brand, schedule interviews effortlessly, use messaging templates to communicate with candidates, and even manage electronic onboarding for new hires. These features ensure that members can manage their recruitment processes efficiently and effectively.

4. Flexible, Affordable Plans:
As your members’ recruitment needs grow, the HiringThing ATS offers flexible and affordable plans that scale with their business. Whether they are hiring for one position or managing multiple openings across various departments, HiringThing provides the tools necessary to handle these tasks without breaking the bank. The scalability of the platform ensures that it remains a valuable resource as your members’ organizations expand.

Remember to Lead With Value

Savvy organizations are always figuring out how they can add more value for their members. Lead with value when you’re coming up with ideas with both internal and external NDR. There’s always a market for solutions that add value to customers’ lives. 

About HiringThing

HiringThing is a modern recruiting and employee onboarding platform as a service that creates seamless talent experiences. Our white label solutions and open API enable HR technology and service providers to offer hiring and onboarding to their clients. Approachable and adaptable, the Hiringthing HR platform empowers anyone, anywhere to build their dream team.