The American Society of Transplantation (AST) holds an annual members-only “town hall” business meeting to review the society's direction, financials, accomplishments, and upcoming initiatives. Typically, this meeting occurs during the annual American Transplant Conference (ATC). Historically, the AST Town Hall had very low attendance. In 2015, the board wanted to increase attendance to ensure that a larger percentage of the membership would learn about AST activities and be able to better engage with the society.
“In past years, the AST Town Hall was primarily promoted through a few email blasts to the entire membership,” said Cate Girone, AST Director of Communications. “For the 2015 Town Hall, we developed a plan to target different segments of the membership.”
The executive committees of each AST Community of Practice (COP) were personally invited to attend through phone calls from their AST staff liaisons. These leaders were then asked to encourage their COP members to come as well.
Additionally, the board introduced a new program in 2015 where members who had been in AST for at least five years, and who made significant contributions to the field of transplantation throughout their careers, could apply to be recognized as a Fellow of the AST (FAST). The first class of FAST inductees were invited to the Town Hall to be recognized. Award and grant recipients were also personally invited to the meeting.
In addition, the AST Town Hall meeting was promoted through an email blast and on AST social channels. In the past, the messaging was board-centric (come because we have things to tell you). In 2015, the messaging developed was more member-centric (here's what you will learn and how it will benefit you).
“People really responded to two things: the personal invitations and the FAST inductee recognition,” said Girone. “Email and social media are great tools, but sometimes your members may want you to pick up the phone and give them a call. Similarly, you can thank your members for their contributions one-on-one throughout the year, but it’s also nice to honor them in a public venue so they can be recognized in front of their peers.”
The initiatives resulted in higher attendance than in any previous years. People filled the available seating and were standing around the sides and back to hear the business meeting topics presented.
“We knew our initiatives were a success when we encountered an unanticipated problem: we almost had too many members show up at a too-small venue,” said Girone. “Because of the event’s popularity, we will be better prepared with a larger space next year.”
