Best Professional Association Management Software
Professional association management software helps trade and professional associations manage their membership, events, certifications, and communications. These systems are purpose-built for organizations that support professionals in specific industries or occupations, offering services such as credentialing, continuing education, networking, and advocacy.
Trade associations, professional societies, affinity associations, advocacy-driven member organizations, cause- or identity-based national associations, and unions often use professional association management software to improve efficiency, communicate with association members, and maintain the association’s finances. Key capabilities include maintaining a comprehensive member database, processing applications and renewals, collecting dues, and facilitating communication about professional programs, events, and announcements.
Unlike systems designed for social or recreational clubs, professional association management software supports more complex organizational structures such as multi-tiered memberships, governance and committee management, certification tracking, and compliance reporting. A professional association management software may integrate with other types of software to incorporate valuable data when completing tasks. These integrations may include web content management systems to provide members with informational content, CRM platforms to store member data, or accounting software to maintain records of financial dues. Others may integrate with nonprofit organization software or fundraising software.
To qualify for inclusion in the Professional Association Management category, a product must:
Featured Professional Association Management Software At A Glance
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iMIS® is designed to meet the unique management needs of associations, unions, regulatory bodies, and non-profits. It has all the features you need to manage your organization efficiently with dashboa
iMIS is a management system used for maintaining an organized member database, managing events, facilitating fundraising and donations, and ensuring database integrity. Users frequently mention the system's robust features, flexibility, and ability to integrate with other systems, which streamline operations and provide a seamless user experience. Users mentioned that system upgrades can take longer than expected, the platform can be complex and difficult to manage without expertise, and customizations can sometimes break with updates.
5,759 Twitter followers
Glue Up is an all-in-one CRM platform designed to help associations, Chambers of Commerce and other member-based organizations build and grow their communities through events, memberships, and various
Glue Up is a community platform that allows users to create subgroups, conduct surveys, create event pages, send targeted emails, and facilitate member interactions. Users like the wide range of features, the user-friendly interface, the quick customer support response, and the potential for member engagement that Glue Up offers. Users mentioned that the website's backend is not very user-friendly, setting up payment accounts and DNS can be a long process, and there is a learning curve to fully understand and utilize all the features.
888 Twitter followers
Novi is the only association management software (AMS) built for associations by associations. What truly sets us apart is our collaborative approach. Customers don’t just use the platform—they help s
GrowthZone is an association management software (AMS) solution designed to support member engagement, education, and ongoing participation for member-based organizations, including associations, cham
1,012 Twitter followers
ReadyMembership: AI-Powered Membership Management Platform for Growth ReadyMembership delivers rapid results and empowers your organisation to accelerate membership growth, boost revenue, and expan
805 Twitter followers
The MemberPress WordPress plugin is an online business-building powerhouse – where SaaS-like speed and ease-of-use meet self-hosted portability and independence. With MemberPress, starting and marke
ClubRunner is the award-winning membership management and communication platform that has impacted hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. Better organize your club, improve your communication, and
636 Twitter followers
YourMembership's Association Management Software (AMS) is designed to help small-staff association leaders like you easily manage membership activities, create and build engagement with members, and i
2,661 Twitter followers
Protech Associates has been helping nonprofit and association leaders “Automate Goodness” for more than 30 years. Our “fully loaded” Association Management System is built on the Microsoft Dynamics 36
442 Twitter followers
MemberClicks provides all-in-one membership management software that includes all the tools membership organizations need to make the most of the web. From online databases and event registrations to
760 Twitter followers
Neon CRM is the nonprofit relationship management platform that empowers small and midsize nonprofits to make and maintain the personal connections that drive real, long-term growth. Instead of juggli
Neon CRM is a software solution designed to manage donors, prospects, events, and volunteers for organizations. Reviewers frequently mention the comprehensive suite of tools, ongoing improvements, and responsive customer service as key benefits of Neon CRM. Users reported that the platform can be unintuitive and confusing to navigate, with specific issues in reporting, event setup, and certain feature limitations.
641 Twitter followers
Product Description – GrowthZone ChamberMaster GrowthZone ChamberMaster is a chamber of commerce management software designed to support the operational, engagement, and revenue needs of local and re
1,012 Twitter followers
ClubExpress provides associations with an Internet platform to manage both front-office and back-office operations. ClubExpress combines the association website with the membership database, secure on
905 Twitter followers
MemberLeap is a comprehensive and flexible membership management solution built around a core database that can enhance your association's daily efficiency. It includes managing members, automating du
376 Twitter followers
GrowthZone's MemberSuite AMS is an association management software (AMS) solution that helps organizations manage complex membership structures, automate administrative workflows, and centralize data
1,012 Twitter followers
Learn More About Professional Association Management Software
What is Association Management Software?
Sometimes managing an organization can feel a lot like herding cats. Nonprofit associations, faith-based organizations, gym management, parent organizations, and more can all benefit from some kind of member management software. Whether that’s to make communication easier among members, collect membership dues, organize an event, or simply maintain a member database, membership management software can streamline any or all of these processes.
One of the easiest ways to manage a membership-based organization is to put the power in the members’ hands with some kind of member portal. That may be a mobile app, or a cloud-based software that members can access from a browser on their personal computer. Within that self-service portal, members can submit payments, create member profiles with pertinent contact information, organize an event, send in-app messages, and more. For organizers, these features make tasks such as payment processing, event registration, different membership level creation, and other day-to-day operations much easier by removing much of the manual legwork.
Admin users can also create marketing campaigns, keep an eye on member retention, access the membership database, and more. Ideally, any membership management solution makes it easy to perform myriad tasks related to running a membership organization.
Key Benefits of Association Management Software
- Grow your association’s membership
- Easily track and manage the finances of your association
- Keep members engaged and help retain them
- Automate communications with members
- Optimize the sales and marketing departments of your association
Why Use Association Management Software?
Membership-based associations can be complicated affairs. With so many members to keep track of, membership fees to gather, and non-dues revenue to secure, organizers need tools to help them perform daily tasks and stay organized.
Member management is a huge portion of running any association, so many association management solutions dedicate a large portion of their features to keeping track of members and their contact information. Other crucial details, such credit card information, payment history, and membership level, are all stored in a database for easy access. Organizers can create their own membership program and build in features like email marketing to increase membership renewals and event attendance.
For a business like a gym, these features can be invaluable, making it much easier to track key metrics and see where improvements need to be made. For members, it can also be much easier to interact with the business online, updating information as needed and at their own convenience. Options such as mobile apps allow these tools to be used on the go, which can be ideal if the organization is not a centralized business with a storefront location.
Who Uses Association Management Software?
Membership management software is primarily used by association organizers, owners, and members. An association management solution primarily helps membership organizations perform daily functions as well as plan events, collect membership dues, and communicate with members en masse.
Members may access the tool via a mobile app or member portal to make payments, register for an event, or communicate with other members. Organizers can store member data to easily access contact information, payment history, and membership history to better keep track of all of the members and their membership status.
Kinds of Association Management Software
Association management software can look as different as the various organizations using it. While all membership management software may have very similar basic features, depending on the type of organization the software caters toward, there may be very different additional features.
Nonprofit associations – Nonprofit organizations have a variety of needs that differ from for-profit businesses. For instance, nonprofits need additional fundraising tools to help raise money outside of membership fees. Donation management tools are also important. Nonprofits may also want to be able to set up different membership tiers so they can maximize income. If memberships must be renewed annually or monthly, nonprofits will also need tools that keep track of expiring memberships and have marketing features to encourage these members to renew their memberships.
Membership-based businesses – Businesses that rely on memberships, such as gyms and monthly subscription services, need tools to help them maintain revenue streams and build their businesses. Membership databases are crucial, as are payment gateways and marketing tools. A member portal can be extremely helpful, allowing members themselves to update pertinent information and submit payment information.
Clubs and other associations – More informal clubs and other associations may want a more pared-down solution that focuses more on keeping track of members and scheduling events or sending mass communications. A PTO, for example, may want a means to easily send out mass messages to parents if there is an emergency or as a reminder of a school event. An intramural sports team may want to use the contact features to schedule games or tournaments, and event registration tools make it easy to register teams and individual players.
Association Management Software Features
Association management solutions focus on maintaining membership-based businesses and nonprofits. Therefore, the associated features are primarily geared toward maintaining a membership base and securing membership dues.
Member database – Members are the backbone of any association, so it’s important to be able to store information about them. Contact information, payment information, membership history, and dues or fees owed are all relevant data to organizers. Paper records are difficult to organize and often lead to lost information, while digital records are easy to search and update. A database can also be used for targeted marketing campaigns and membership renewal campaigns.
Member portal – Some association management platforms offer member portals that allow members to access the tool and make changes to their profiles or pay fees. This is convenient for all users, since organizers don’t need to act as a mediary and members can make changes at their leisure. A member portal may also be accessed by a mobile app, making it easy to receive updates and change information on the go.
Mass communication – One of the major advantages of association management software is the ability to easily communicate with all or some members at once. Association management platforms may allow organizers to send mass emails or texts, making it easy to make announcements or advertise events. Even without a tool to create mass communication, all the required information is stored digitally, making it easy to retrieve and use.
Event registration – Some association management platforms include some basic event planning and registration features to make it easy to plan fundraising events, sports tournaments, and other activities for the membership base. By having event registration features and a membership database in the same platform, it becomes much easier to send invitations and track attendance. With a client portal, members can easily register themselves for events they wish to attend.
Payment gateway — To make it easy for both members and organizers to pay fees and dues, many association management platforms will include a payment gateway. This allows members to pay fees with a credit card at their convenience, or enables organizers to process payments for membership fees or dues onsite. It may even be possible to store credit card information on file, making it much easier to make payments on time and reliably.
Marketing tools – Some association management platforms include marketing tools that leverage information stored in the member database. Organizers might be able to send out email marketing using the mass communication tools and stored contact information. Built-in marketing tools make it easy to leverage the member data stored in the database into targeted marketing campaigns.
