How The Hale Center Maintains their Innovative Edge With WildApricot – Case Study

About the Hale Associates Center:

For 50 years, the Hale Associates Center has been explaining complex ideas in a way people can understand. Founded in 1974 by powerhouse consultant and entrepreneur Judith Hale, the Center specializes in improving performance through certification, credentialing, performance-based curriculum, evaluation, and sustaining initiatives. The Hale Center consults with credentialing agencies on the programs and standards used to qualify people across a range of industries, from helping managers improve efficiency and monitor performance to transforming school systems to meet the needs of the 21st century.

Drawing on decades of subject-matter expertise, The Hale Center designs and validates performance-based certifications for organizations wanting to certify employees, members, customers, suppliers and after-market partners. Judith Hale is also a prolific author and has written several definitive books on certification, including the award-winning Performance-Based Certification, 2nd ED, the popular Performance Consultant’s Fieldbook 2nd ED, Performance-Based Evaluation, Performance-Based Management, and Outsourcing Training and Development.

“In my certification work, we’re known for being innovative,” said Judy Hale. “We have numerous certifications we’ve created for the roofing industry. Well, they don’t get a test with multiple-choice questions; they have to do hands-on assessments. So, we’re known for our performance-based tests.” An organization as innovative and forward-thinking as the Hale Center requires software that is just as innovative and performance-based to match. Judy Hale chose WildApricot on a strong recommendation from a client and has never looked back. From the user-friendly design to easy billing to the benefits of building your own branded website, Judy can’t recommend WildApricot enough.

In this case study, we outline the WildApricot features Judy Hale finds most beneficial to her work at the Hale Center, the benefits that made her choose WildApricot above the competition and her advice to organizations shopping for member management software.

Ease of use

When Judy first started working with WildApricot, something struck her immediately: the software was incredibly easy to use.

“I can go in and make a workshop simple or more complicated. And remember, I’m not a techy,” said Judy. “I’ve been able to learn rather quickly. I’ve been able to design it, get my message across, go back and update it if I need to, schedule and announce it — all through the same platform. So, if it’s easy for me to use, that’s huge. It does what I need it to do. I am not a technological whiz bang, but I really find that your stuff is easy to work with.”

WildApricot’s user-friendly interface has been a huge boon for Judy. As someone who’s been in business for 50 years, she knows better than anyone the ever-changing nature of technology. Learning new tools and software can be obstructive and time-consuming, drawing valuable time and resources away from customers. When software is intuitive and easy to use, it becomes an asset rather than a hindrance, helping provide customer value instead of distracting from it. And despite not being a tech whiz-bang, Judy was able to learn how to operate Wild Apricot quickly and easily because you shouldn’t have to be an IT master for your software to mean business! All in all, Judy can perform most tasks in WildApricot herself — and that’s essential for someone as busy and ambitious as she is.

Communication

Attracting and maintaining a membership is all about communication. An organization’s communication style lets potential members know if that organization will be a good fit for them, while providing current members with consistent and relevant communication is key to engagement and retention — and the Hale Center is all about consistent communication.
“Last month, I had 17 announcements go out.” Judy said. “This month, I already have 10 announcements scheduled, and it’s only the first.” Judy loves that she can schedule and automate announcements ahead of time in WildApricot and not have to worry about them after that. It streamlines the entire communication process and keeps it stress-free.

Judy has also taken advantage of WildApricot’s newsletter capabilities, an essential tool for keeping members in the loop. The ability to brand Hale Center newsletters with templates and customization options has been especially helpful for Judy in maintaining member engagement.

“I’m able to brand the look of my messages, so members know who it’s from,” said Judy. “It helps cue my members in visually on what to expect. Like oh, this one is Wednesdays with Judy, or this one is something different. I think that’s been beneficial for them. Because we’re all so inundated with information, it helps when things can come sort of pre-sorted. And your system allows me to customize all of that.”

When members are used to a specific communication cadence from an organization, they’re more likely to respond and engage in turn. People respond well to routine and familiarity but also to something new and exciting. Judy has perfected templates and schedules for both, and the results speak for themselves.

Website Builder

WildApricot makes it easy to build your brand and boost your online presence with membership website software. While building a website from scratch may seem like a daunting, time-consuming task, WildApricot makes the process not just easy but quick, too! Just ask Judy.

“I don’t want to spend my time engineering a website. I used to have that, but I got rid of it because I didn’t want it. Your platform was recommended because it allows me to have members, to classify them, plus a vehicle that lets me do a newsletter. That’s what I was looking for.”

The Hale Center is big on branding, and a customized website makes it easy to do just that. From logos to color palettes to fonts, WildApricot allows organizations to get creative and make their website truly their own. Customization options also help organizations like the Hale Center reflect their values and company culture, display their history and achievements, and promote assets such as courses, books, or webinars. As the author of several popular books in her field, this is a major plus for Judy, allowing her to advertise and sell her books directly through her website.

WildApricot’s website templates are not only easy to use but also high-quality and highly polished, allowing The Hale Center to convey professionalism and expertise to potential members instantly. Much like WildApricot, the Hale Center’s new website is intuitive, user-friendly, and easy to navigate!

Payment Processing

While Judy offers plenty of free programs and classes through the Hale Center, she also understands the importance of getting paid for the work you do — especially when you have 50 years of experience to back it up. By partnering with Affinipay, WildApricot offers easy, automatic payment processing, invoice generation, and automatic reminders on dues and other payments.

“The Hale Center also accredits programs,” Judy said. “This is where Affinipay comes in, because I can invoice people from all over the world. It allows for so much flexibility. WildApricot allows me to easily charge fees for my work, and that’s exactly what I was looking for.”

With Affinipay, invoicing is not just easy; it’s international. Because the reach of your business shouldn’t be limited by geography, especially in our increasingly digital world. WildApricot allows Judy to connect with and charge customers worldwide, doubling her impact and reaching more members than ever.

The Road to WildApricot

When it comes to members, Judy values quality over quantity. She wants to ensure she’s targeting people with a genuine interest in the work she does rather than simply casting the widest net possible and attracting a large volume of people who only have lukewarm interest.

“I don’t have a goal of having 100,000 members,” Judy said. “I’m a niche player and I want the right members. I want the right group. I don’t need a lot; I need the right ones.”

So, while attracting members was a goal for the Hale Center, it wasn’t about attracting as many as possible. Instead, Judy focuses on creating long-term, value-driven and content-focused relationships with her members. WildApricot aligned perfectly with this goal. Since she started using WildApricot, Judy has reached not just more members, but members whose objectives and interests match her own, who are interested in long-term engagement and who interact with her content consistently.

For Judy, the road to getting where she is now was surprisingly simple.
“I don’t do searches; I don’t have time for that.” Judy said. “I won’t take the time comparing 42 different websites. I’m more interested in word-of-mouth referrals. Someone I trust gives me a recommendation; I check it out.”

Like her strategy for finding members, Judy is all about trust and personal connections. WildApricot came strongly recommended by an associate she trusted, and after signing up for a free demo, she knew it was the one for her. Since she’s busy running her business full-time, she didn’t have the time or the bandwidth to investigate competitors for herself, making the recommendation all the more valuable to her.

Advice from Judy

When shopping for software, you want something streamlined, simple and easily manageable. But don’t just take our word for it.

“I’ve been in business 50 years. You want something that is easy to update and edit,” Judy said. “If you want to try a new twist, you should be able to quickly and easily go in and adapt or modify your messaging. Change should never be costly or burdensome.”

In the past, the Hale Center has encountered clients whose set-ups are expensive and time-consuming — not just to onboard, but every time they want to make a change. Because some organizations choose complicated and highly technical software, every little update is expensive and involved, necessitating a whole team instead of just a few clicks. With WildApricot, Judy can go in herself and make whatever edits she needs to — and she’s not even a techy!

“You want ease of use, and the ability to quickly update or change your theme. To me, it should be a living, agile system. And if you want that, you should go to WildApricot.”

WildApricot has proven an invaluable asset for the Hale Associates Center, providing essential benefits, including ease of use, streamlined communication, an intuitive website builder, and efficient payment processing through Affinipay. Judy Hale’s experience underscores how the platform has not only enhanced the Center’s operations but also allowed it to maintain its innovative edge in the industry.

For Judy, the user-friendly nature of WildApricot has been a game-changer, enabling her to manage workshops, announcements, and newsletters effortlessly, even without extensive technical expertise. The ability to maintain consistent and engaging communication with members has been instrumental in fostering long-term relationships and ensuring high member retention.

Additionally, the customizable website builder has empowered the Hale Center to bolster its online presence and effectively market its offerings, while Affinipay’s seamless payment processing has facilitated global transactions with ease.

WildApricot has been integral to Judy’s success, allowing her to focus on her core mission without getting bogged down by technical complexities. If your organization is seeking a robust, easy-to-use member management solution that enhances communication, simplifies website management, and ensures efficient payment processing, WildApricot might be the perfect fit. To see how WildApricot can transform your organization’s operations, we invite you to set up a demo today and experience its benefits firsthand.