Revisiting Your Association’s Mission Statement: 3 Fresh Tips

When was the last time you took a good look at your association’s mission statement? If it’s been a while, it may be time to update things and freshen up what audiences see when they visit your website. When you really think about it, your association runs on one word:

Why. Why do you do the things you do? Why should members care enough to join and support your association? Why do you even exist as an organization? These questions and more can all be answered with the right mission statement. But if your mission statement hasn’t been updated since you first became an organization, there may be a lot of things that are outdated, confusing, and just plain incorrect.

‍Your association is a living, breathing organization that changes over time- and therefore your mission statement should transform with it. Sprucing up the way you present your mission to audiences is a must if you want to attract brand new members to your association. So, we’d like to show you a great way to review, revise, and reintroduce your mission statement to the world. Let’s talk about some easy tips any association can use to freshen things up.

Who are you?

So, who are you? It may seem like an easy question, but if you haven’t reflected on your association in a while, this question could make you feel slightly uncomfortable. Summarizing your association up in one sentence seems like an impossible task. You do so much for members and have so many complex tasks intertwined in the work you do - how can you possibly simplify this for those curious to learn more about you? A key tip is to think of one dynamic sentence that best describes the most important part of your association.

For example, if your industry deals with a local community, you may want to highlight that in your very first sentence. After all, it’s the community that’s going to be paying the most attention to your association, so you’ll want to pull them in by being inclusive. Or, if you’re an association that strives to make an impact on the world- be it environmental, political, or anything else - you may want to lead with that as your pull.

If you’re working to make a positive change that people can get behind, it should always be at the forefront of your association’s mission statement. By really focusing in on your top priorities as an association, you can begin to figure out how to define yourself in as little words as possible before delving into the ‘meat’ of your mission statement.

What do you provide?

A good question to ask yourself when you start to develop a better sense of your association’s mission is: What do you offer that no one else does? Think about what makes your association truly unique- the things that would vanish if you no longer existed as an organization. This is the core to your association’s identity and what keeps audiences interested in the work that you do, so never take these key things for granted when writing up a mission statement. Depending on your association’s industry, your unique traits will vary. However, that does not mean they’re any less important than others. Comparing your association’s uniqueness to another will discourage you from writing about how great your organization is, so try to keep away from wandering into others’ territory. List out all of the things you provide to your members, to your surrounding community, and to audiences everywhere. Hitting all three of these categories will help people understand you on both a local and a national level, so don’t sell yourself short!

What changes have you made?

‍Has your association made some major changes since the last time you wrote your mission statement? If so, they should always be mentioned. Evolving your association’s mission statement over time shows that you’re growing with the times and with your ever changing member needs. If your association’s mission statement stayed consistent, it could actually alert members that you haven’t made changes whatsoever, which could deter them from supporting your association. If your association has changed directions, you may want to give audiences a slight heads up. Putting in a sentence that mentions your past mission and transitions into your current one can settle any confusion readers may have if they’re catching up to what your organization has been doing over the past few months/years.

‍Making these amendments to your association’s mission statement can keep everyone up to date with any major shifts you’ve made since the last time they checked in. Freshening up your mission statement can keep things exciting and innovative for your association’s audience. By using our tips, you’ll be sure to stay on top of keeping things current at your organization.