Reply To: Our Euroelection campaign
Maybe hold off until we know the cost of a new member from this campaign.
See how many from the enquiries/3 free issues progress to actual membership
I’m no expert but wouldn’t the professionals differentiate between money spent on brand recognition and expenditure that resulted in increased sales.
500 rise in the regular online readership of the Standard would be judged very modest.
But 500 new members….well that is very different…But realistically a tenth of that, 50 members, concentrated in the SE would be the start of the reversal of our fortunes that would snow-ball. 5 members in one branch isn’t to be sneezed at either
The strategy can be applied to the regions, centred on where we already have a core membership to reap the benefit but more importantly contribute positively to retaining new members.
We have to be offering something that encourages long-lasting membership, not the usual revolving door of the Left … political activities where we engage in political action because that is why people join a political party to say the very obvious…to make a personal individual contribution to something they think is worthwhile. They seek a vehicle for their own ideas and ideals, an outlet for their views.
Education is one thing…being able to express that increased knowledge is quite another.
I think this is one reason why very often radicals drift into reformism…they practice their theory…We also must find ways to make our theory concrete and provide a measure of success and accomplishment.
In a little way, that is by giving an identity … when a member says he is in the Party and the response is one that …”Oh, the Socialist Party, i’ve heard of them” then a useful conversation begins… and not as present, simply a blank stare as if we have just revealed our membership to an esoteric cult that nobody knows anything about.
Just a few of my thoughts…