We aren't always able to control everything that influences us, as much as we wish we could. Sometimes, it's out of our hands - budget constraints, rules and regulations, political situations or even pandemics. But that doesn't mean you can no longer provide anything of value to your members (and potential members) and keep your club's influence ticking along until the next time you can hold an event. Read on to find five different ways to continually engage with your members, other than holding events.

1. Produce relevant digital content

   A consistent digital presence, through social media and email channels, is key to making sure your members know/remember who you are and feel invested enough to commit to future events, membership or merchandise purchases. You might share relevant job opportunities, any community events or initiatives they can partake in (fundraise for a charity!) or interview some of your members, 'Humans Of...' style.
   
   

2. Hold events via video conferencing and livestream

   Where you can't get people in a room, get them online! There is a lot of money to be saved with video conferencing - venue hire fees, catering, photography, and more. Wanted to run a panel with experts of your club's subject matter, but weren't able to? Get those experts to call in to a moderator, and run the panel online. Allow live access to the panel or pre-record and release it as a Facebook Premiere. Reach out to us to discuss sponsorship for Zoom Pro to power video conferencing for your team.
   
   

3. Publish detailed guides and e-books

   Publications are one of the first things that get cut when time is short. Without the time needed to plan and execute events, your entire team has more time to contribute towards written resources that can be distributed digitally. Create blog posts with relevant content on your club's website or social media channels, or mock smaller articles up into an e-book collection using Adobe Indesign, and distribute the PDF. Some examples of content you could produce includes job/careers guides, first year guides, 'what you don't know', past year summaries/reflections, and inside perspectives on running your club.
   
   

4. Sell merchandise, delivered to your members' doors

   While you may not be able to run events, focusing on merchandise is an excellent option that provides your members with some great items, and you with some club clout and some profits, too. You can order merchandise from companies like The Print Bar on an individual basis, and repeat orders delivered to different addresses. This also allows you to customise each item, should you want to. You can use Get to collect money and information from your members for this merch - and contact us to help with ordering it, too.
   
   

5. Provide a useful sponsorship deal

   Reach out to companies that may be able to provide something of value to your members outside of an event. This may include discounted coffee near campus, subsidised online softwares (Netflix, Canva, Spotify) or free movie tickets with a merchandise purchase, for example. Ask what your members need - and more importantly, what they want, and try and find a company that can assist. You can add this deal to your Get digital membership card, so all of your members can access it easily. For more tips on acquiring sponsorships and demonstrating your value to potential sponsors, check out our Sponsorship and Partnerships Guide.