It’s Annual Meeting time here at ASAE, and the Associations Now team is geared up to get to Nashville and have some face time with the many members we talk to, exchange email with, write about, and collaborate with throughout the year. It may be a cliché, but it’s true: This magazine, our daily blogs and news coverage on AssociationsNow.com, and the personalized Associations Now Plus newsletter would not be possible without your help.

In Annual Meeting month, it’s a fitting coincidence that this issue is full of features contributed by members. As the business magazine of association management, Associations Now is largely written by staff and freelance journalists, but occasionally we have opportunities to feature contributed articles. This month, we’re happy to have four of those. And, lucky for you, the authors will be sharing their wisdom at Annual as well.

Two pieces deal with high-level business strategy. Jay Younger, FASAE, Patrick Glaser, and Shelley Sanner, CAE, explain how to better understand your customers and your competitive position, while Jeff De Cagna, FASAE, tells the story of the rise and fall of the once-ubiquitous BlackBerry—and describes its maker’s mistakes that associations should take pains to avoid.

Two other features detail new ways of thinking about traditional association subjects. Sheri Jacobs, FASAE, CAE, urges associations to master the art of delivering membership value by ditching demographics and focusing on why different people join. And Shelly Alcorn, CAE, tells how associations can take their core competency in education and position themselves to meet a growing demand for lifelong learning.

To hear more from our authors on these and other topics, sit in on their sessions at Annual. You’ll find a full, searchable schedule at www.asaeannualmeeting.org. See you in Nashville!

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