The North American Power Sweeping Association (NAPSA) has recently run several successful membership drives including outreach programs, get a friend to sign up promotions, I-pod drawings, and other methods of trying to reach out to potential new members. With this outreach we've increased the percentage of new membership by 20%. And, to date, this year's paid membership is well over that of this time last year.
Throughout this process we heard from a few current members who were not renewing their membership because it just wasn't in the budget in these hard economic times. Or, some said there is no real value in being a NAPSA member. We talked to a few potential new members who said that the membership was too expensive and they just couldn't justify the cost at this time.
First, if you have a hammer and you never take it out of the toolbox, what's the value? If you have a top-of-the-line parking lot sweeper, but you don't pick up any dirt with it, what's the value? The value of NAPSA membership can be looked at in the same light. NAPSA offers the tools to increase industry education, and to promote networking and professionalism. NAPSA has offered informational webinars and trade show presentations, and will promote even more of these in the future. NAPSA offers discounts to members for trade show and conference attendance and NAPSA is the best source of timely updates regarding government legislation and environmental issues that affect the industry. The recently updated NAPSA website offers a Contractor Locator which allows property owners to search out sweeping contractors (members) in their local areas. The tools are there, but if they aren't used, the value is lost.
Further, how can NAPSA be too expensive? As a business owner in this industry, how can you not take advantage of the supplier discounts offered by the NAPSA? In fact, the supplier discounts easily pay for the membership and more! Here is an example of the discounts offered to our members:
- Member owning under 5 trucks: Dues $295 per year
- Average Manufacturer/Parts Discount: $1,250
- Insurance Discount: $1,000
- NPE Discount: $358
What more can NAPSA do to increase the value of membership? Well, NAPSA will be formalizing the Mentor Program. Each new member will be offered a mentor. The mentor will be someone who uses the same type of equipment and could offer valuable information to a new member and promote the networking value within NAPSA. NAPSA will be offering 6 valuable webinars in the next 12 months. NAPSA is developing a library of informational articles for easy access to the membership. It's so obvious that you can't afford not to be a member, and as always, membership has its privileges!
For more information about joining NAPSA visit www.NAPSAonline.com or contact our office at 269-383-6993.
