The membership size of a SACCO can have a direct impact on its long-term sustainability. A SACCO with a large membership is more likely to be stable and have a positive impact on its members.
There are several ways in which a SACCO can increase its membership size. One way is to offer membership to a wider range of people. Another way is to offer quality services to encourage more people to join the SACCO.
In this article, we will discuss some of the ways how your SACCO can increase its membership size. I hope that this article will be of benefit to you and other SACCOs who are looking to increase their membership.
1. Provide financial literacy to members and the public
One of the ways tour SACCO can increase its memberships is by improving member education and awareness, especially on matters of financial literacy and investments. You should provide your SACCO members with information on the benefits of joining and using your services. This can be done through various channels whether online or offline such as social media, email newsletters, brochures, and educational workshops.
2. Offer attractive interest rates
One of the main reasons people join SACCOs is to earn interest on their savings and dividends. Therefore, SACCOs should offer competitive interest rates on savings and loans. This will attract new members and retain existing ones. Give your prospective members more reasons to save and invest with you over other financial services players like banks and insurance companies.
3. Expand the range of financial services offered
Your SACCO should consider expanding the range of financial services you offer.
You should take note that members join SACCOs for different reasons ie access to affordable credit facilities, and a platform to save or invest their income. Therefore come up with a variety of attractive products that your members can benefit from and even refer their family members, friends, or colleagues.
This could include insurance products, investment opportunities, and asset financing. By offering a wider range of services, you can attract new members who are looking for a one-stop shop for their financial needs.
One way for your SACCOs to succeed in this is by using a SACCO management system that makes better use of analytics and clearly shows some of the products doing well as well as those that members are frequently seeking. You can use that data to come up with new products that are relevant to your members and improve on the existing ones.
4. Improve service delivery to members
Prioritize providing excellent customer service to your SACCO members. This includes ensuring that members are served promptly, their queries are resolved quickly, and their needs are met. SACCOs should also make use of technology to improve customer experiences, using available technologies such as core banking systems and mobile platforms.
We are living in an era where people want immediate service delivery and self-service whenever possible. With technologies such as an internet banking platform, members can get any of your services such as ATM blocking, trading shares, etc without having to visit your branches. This offers them more convenience and is cost-effective for your SACCO in terms of operations and service delivery.
5. Establish strategic partnerships
Your SACCO should establish strategic partnerships with other organizations to expand your reach and attract new members. This could include partnerships with local businesses, schools, and community groups. These partnerships can help your SACCO to increase its visibility and build trust within the community.
For example, your SACCO can approach organizations and traders around your locality and then recruit the employees of those organizations and the business owners as members. You can also come up with products that address their various needs to keep them active.
6. Embrace the right technologies
I can’t emphasize this enough. Your SACCO should embrace technology to enhance its operations and services. This includes investing in digital banking platforms, such as mobile banking systems, internet banking, and agency banking system. This will not only improve the efficiency of SACCO operations but also attract new members who prefer to bank digitally.
A core banking system will help you address members’ needs quickly by streamlining and automating your repetitive tasks. Tasks such as loan approvals can be automated by the use of credit scoring methodologies to enable members to access instant loans through mobile banking.
7. Offer loans with better terms
Offer flexible loan repayment terms to your SACCO members. This includes longer repayment periods, flexible repayment schedules, and low-interest rates. This will attract members who are looking for affordable and flexible loan products.
Also, make the loan application processes simple and quicker. Offer members a mobile banking platform that they can access instant loans within 3 minutes. SACCOs that don’t embrace this model will always lose their active members to digital lenders despite their high-interest rates.
8. Make membership onboarding processes easier
Streamline your membership application processes to make it easier for potential members to join. This includes simplifying the application forms, providing online application options, and fast-tracking the approval process. This will make it more convenient for potential members to join the SACCO.
Alternatively, your marketing teams can be given POS devices or access to online platforms that enable them to capture accurate members’ bio-data in real-time even as they go to rural areas to recruit new members.
9. Start a referral program
Establish a referral program to incentivize existing members to refer their friends and family to join the SACCO. This could include offering rewards, such as cash bonuses or interest rate discounts. By doing so, your SACCO can tap into the power of word-of-mouth marketing and attract new members.
10. Take advantage of digital marketing potential
People spend most of their time on various online platforms, especially social media. Those are your potential members and a good number of them need the financial services you are offering.
Create a good online presence for your SACCO with a good website that communicates your value proposition to members, and make use of social media platforms to engage with potential members and address their concerns.
A good online presence builds your credibility because when a member wants to do other due diligence, first they will search for your SACCO online, check on reviews from your existing members, and look at your dividend rates and product offerings. With a good online presence, you will be able to recruit a good number of prospective members at a reduced cost of customer acquisition.
11. Take part in social responsibility programs
Your SACCO can implement social responsibility programs that demonstrate your commitment to the community. This could include supporting local charities, sponsoring community events, and promoting environmental sustainability. By doing so, your SACCO can build trust and goodwill within the community, which can lead to increased memberships.
Conclusion
In conclusion, SACCOs play a critical role in promoting financial inclusion and providing financial services to their members. By implementing the nine tips discussed in this blog post, your SACCO can attract new members, retain existing ones, and ultimately achieve its mission of serving.
