After a year of many challenges, we look forward to a new travel season and the promise it brings.
Chief Executive Officer
Chris Smith
csmith@fmca.com
March 2021
As I write this, we here in Cincinnati are in the midst of a cold, gray winter, so I like thinking ahead to spring, to sunshine and warmer weather, and to the possibilities a new season brings. I’m feeling especially hopeful as I look forward. It seems that we may be experiencing the beginning of the end of the pandemic, with vaccines being administered to people around the globe. The idea that RVers soon will be able to resume traveling freely is encouraging.
RV sales continue to hum along, projected to perhaps set a record in 2021. And with so many new RVers joining the ranks, that also leads to more potential members for FMCA. That’s exciting, of course. As I write this, two major annual RV shows recently concluded — the Florida RV SuperShow in Tampa and the Quartzsite Sports, Vacation, and RV Show in Arizona. Although attendance at both shows was down from prior years, FMCA member volunteers happily greeted attendees at the FMCA booth set up at each of them and welcomed a number of new members. The fact that these shows were able to happen, albeit with special guidelines and precautions in place, also gives hope of a return to normalcy.
FMCA will be hosting its own event for the first time in more than a year as we travel to Perry, Georgia, March 10 through 13, 2021, for “Another Day In Perrydise,” the 102nd FMCA International Convention and RV Expo. We’ll be taking appropriate precautions, and while we won’t be exchanging the usual hugs and handshakes, we are looking forward to gathering once again to celebrate the RV lifestyle.
And, stay tuned; soon we’ll be opening registration for FMCA’s 103rd International Convention and RV Expo — “The Spirit of Wyoming” — set to take place July 7 through 10, 2021, at Cam-Plex Multi-Event Facilities in Gillette.
FMCA’s Member Engagement Committee has been hard at work for the past year looking at ways to foster new membership and membership retention in FMCA, two topics that are important to me as CEO of the association and vital to the association as a whole. They have been invited to share key points of their report in this column. So, read on for their recommendations and consider how you might be able to help in these endeavors.
We have been living in challenging times, and probably all of us have faced struggles of some sort since the start of the pandemic. Some of us have suffered significant losses, and our hearts go out to those who have lost loved ones during this time. If you find yourself in need of comfort or simply someone to lend an ear, FMCA has a team of member volunteers who stand at the ready. FMCA’s three national chaplains — Rev. Jim Hollis, Dane Bailey, and Pastor John Aukema — are on call and available to talk with members any time, 24/7. More information appears in this month’s “Family Matters” column, on page 76, and their contact information also appears below:
CONTACT AN FMCA NATIONAL CHAPLAIN
Chaplains Connection Line: (833) 458-0778
Email: chaplains@fmca.com
Member Engagement Committee Report And Recommendations
The Member Engagement Committee’s activities for 2019-2020 stem from specific assignments to the committee by FMCA national president Jon Walker. Like other FMCA committees, the Member Engagement Committee is made up of selected volunteers. This report summarizes the committee’s activities for the past year. The full report can be found on the Member Engagement page on the FMCA.com website: https://join.fmca.com/member-engagement/.
For the past year, the committee’s activities primarily focused on the following: (1) Volunteer engagement, by creating and implementing a volunteer database of members who have expressed interest in service on national committees; (2) Providing query capability so committee chairs, national officers, and staff easily can identify talented member candidates with interests and skills to serve FMCA as needs arise; (3) The committee, together with several member volunteers and staff, created and implemented a five-course program in a new Volunteer Learning Center that prepares members for service on committees.
The committee also was asked for its input on how to improve member retention. While all of the Key Focus Areas identified in the 2018 member survey have an impact on retention, and are considered to be urgent and important, branding and marketing need to be prioritized. To survive, any business must know its customers and what they want and need. The committee’s recommendations come from members who urge FMCA to undertake a total revitalization, through which the needs of legacy members and newer RVers can be served in ways that will enable FMCA to stop the net loss of members and enable it to grow and prosper.
The committee’s recommendations for 2020-2021 are as follows:
FMCA’s current operating premise is based on the role of chapters to provide a convenient way for socialization and fellowship. That model served FMCA well in past years. However, in recent years, both the number of active chapters and the number of members who have joined chapters has dropped at alarming rates. Only about 18 percent of today’s members belong to a chapter. Since chapters, through the Governing Board, serve as the primary decision-making body in FMCA, that means the remaining 80-plus percent of members lack a voice in selecting national officers and in policymaking. The 2018 survey raised the issue of governance. The Member Engagement Committee recommends the creation of a special committee to make suggestions, recommendations, and, possibly, to propose a new structure that enables full representation of all FMCA members.
Creation of and updating FMCA’s strategic plan should be the number-one priority of the Executive Board and the Governing Board. It has been avoided for almost 20 years since the last approved strategic plan. In order to achieve the objectives of the Key Focus Areas, the Member Engagement Committee recommends both the development of a strategic plan and changing how FMCA creates its strategic plan. Rather than delegate that critical activity to a committee of volunteers with great ideas and no authority or responsibility, it is recommended that a planning team be formed and guided by an independent facilitator such as nonprofit expert Robert C. Harris, certified association executive, known around the world for sharing best practices and promoting sustainability of associations. The planning team would be made up of the entire Executive Board, senior FMCA staff, as well as outside RV industry and other experts. This should be accomplished through necessary agendas and structured activities that enable the creation of a shared consensus of what needs to be done as well as the strategies to be employed. This process also will entail the building of consensus regarding FMCA’s business model and the corresponding roles and responsibilities. This recommended process will result in the creation of a road map to guide FMCA operations into the future.
During a period of record RV sales, it would be reasonable to expect corresponding growth in the number of new FMCA members, but that has not been the case. Market research shows one of the major factors results from an image of FMCA as an organization of owners of high-end motorhomes only and older people who are more lawn-chair oriented than activity focused. FMCA’s branding images also are dated. The committee recommends that high priority be given to the marketing and branding Key Focus Area. It also is recommended that FMCA take steps to identify the segments of RVers whose interests we can best serve, as well as the changes needed to adapt our “value proposition” of benefits and services to meet their needs.
The Member Engagement Committee has conducted workshops almost every week over the past year, and we appreciate the time and effort of committee members and other volunteers who willingly submitted to the task to translate our members’ suggestions into action. The 2019-2020 committee members were: Jerry Ayres, Ken Carpenter, Newton Paskin, and Tony Trimarco. Others making significant contributions included: Jim Fitzpatrick, Kara Helbling-Henry, Jan Hollis, Meganne Johnson-Schrag, Glenda Milner, and Gaye Young. The committee appreciates the support and guidance received from FMCA staff member Dan Ball, who played a significant role in the creation of the volunteer tutorials, as did staff member Doug Uhlenbrock, who both edited and narrated the Volunteer Learning Center videos. Staff member Michael Stegner created the videos, mixing the slides and narration.
Please visit the Member Engagement page on FMCA.com for the committee’s full report.
Key Focus Areas
*Volunteer Engagement
*Profile Data and Analytics
*Embracing the Next Generation
*Branding and Marketing
*Organizational Policies and Procedures
*Communications Strategies
*Area, Chapter, and Committee Revitalization
*Technology
*Programs and Services
Notice Of Annual Membership Meeting
The FMCA Annual Membership Meeting will take place on Saturday, July 10, 2021, at FMCA’s 103rd International Convention and RV Expo in Gillette, Wyoming.