--- title: "Membership Hack: Member Awareness Day" id: "41628" type: "post" slug: "membership-hack-member-awareness-day" published_at: "2018-02-23T21:14:05+00:00" modified_at: "2018-02-23T21:14:05+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/02/23/membership-hack-member-awareness-day/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/02/23/membership-hack-member-awareness-day.md" excerpt: "To empower members and help raise public awareness of the profession, the National Society of Genetic Counselors created a one-day campaign that got community members involved." taxonomy_category: - "Membership" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "community data" - "HIV awareness" - "Membership" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Membership Hack: Member Awareness Day **How to hack it?**On November 9 last year, the National Society of Genetic Counselors celebrated its first-ever [Genetic Counselors Awareness Day (opens in a new tab)](https://www.nsgc.org/page/genetic-counselor-awareness-day) to promote the profession in local communities across the United States. NSGC members were encouraged to spread the word near and far, armed with [flyers (opens in a new tab)](https://www.nsgc.org/d/do/7987) , buttons, and even [temporary tattoos (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/Katencstate/status/922602071395794944) . “We wanted members to have a day to tell their story, explain their job, and show the impact of the profession,” says Executive Director Meghan Carey. **Why does it work?**Taking a day to raise awareness about what your members do is a fun and creative exercise. On Genetic Counselors Awareness Day, hospitals hosted speaker events, members hosted movie screenings about the profession, and one member even went as far to obtain billboard space for NSGC. “We knew our members would get behind it because they are very enthusiastic about the profession,” Carey says. “We were amazed by the uptake.” > So, one of our Columbus Genetic Counselors, Betsy Schmalz, somehow got this put on multiple billboards in Columbus, Ohio today! Pretty cool. [@GeneticCouns (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/GeneticCouns?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > [#IAmAGeneticCounselor (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/IAmAGeneticCounselor?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > [pic.twitter.com/aelm0FyL50 (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/aelm0FyL50) > > — Heather Hampel (@HHampel1) [November 9, 2017 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/HHampel1/status/928715819034533888?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **What’s the bonus?**The Genetic Counselors Awareness Day effort included a Facebook feature [telling the stories of individual members (opens in a new tab)](https://www.facebook.com/GeneticCounselors/photos/rpp.134360626651167/1526774134076469/?type=3&theater) , similar to [Humans of New York (opens in a new tab)](https://www.facebook.com/humansofnewyork/) . That’s evergreen content that Carey says had high member-engagement value well beyond the one-day event. (sorbetto/DigitalVision Vectors) [Tim Ebner](https://associationsnow.com/author/tim-ebner/) Tim Ebner is communications director and press secretary at the American Forest & Paper Association in Washington, DC. He is a member of ASAE’s Communication Professionals Advisory Council and a former Associations Now senior editor. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/tim-ebner/) Tags: [#community data](https://associationsnow.com/tag/community-data/) [#HIV awareness](https://associationsnow.com/tag/hiv-awareness/) [#Membership](https://associationsnow.com/tag/membership/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [TemplateMembers onlyMember Onboarding ToolkitNovember 5, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/11/05/member-onboarding-toolkit/) - [VideoCommunity Voices: Pat BlakeSeptember 15, 2021](https://associationsnow.com/2021/09/15/community-voices-pat-blake/) - [VideoCommunity Voices: Sharon NewportSeptember 15, 2021](https://associationsnow.com/2021/09/15/community-voices-sharon-newport/) - [VideoCommunity Voices: Silvia QuevedoSeptember 15, 2021](https://associationsnow.com/2021/09/15/community-voices-silvia-quevedo/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2018%2F02%2F23%2Fmembership-hack-member-awareness-day%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !