MAAA Wingspan - Quarterly Magazine

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WING SPAN FEBRUARY
MAAA’S FOCUS FOR 2017 IS TO HELP CLUBS GROW AND PROSPER
growing our membership for our
sport to soar higher in 2017
MAAA Clubs are about fun flying,
camaraderie and community. As
the backbone of support for local
clubs, the MAAA’s focus for 2017 is in
helping clubs to grow as well as giving
your members the best experience,
ensuring they get more from their
membership and continue to fly with
your club for longer. There aremany
benefits to attracting newmembers,
one being that it can help you fund
more club facilities. The MAAA are
always looking at ways to support our
clubs and this year we’ll be launching
a “Have a Go Flying Day” program in
March.
With MAAA’s 75 year heritage, there is
a large ‘collective knowledge’ across
our clubs on how to attract, welcome
and nurturemembers young and old,
as well as creating a strong sense
of community and camaraderie
around our sport. So in 2017, we will
be looking for and sharing success
stories fromour clubs on what works
best for them. If you’ve got a great
club story or even a great member
story email us at
In the 2016 Annual Member Survey
members and club executives shared
their experience and suggestions
on how to attract newmembers and
encourage them to stay longer. We
have taken on that feedback and have
shared some of your great ideas in
this article.
Extendawarmand
friendlywelcome
Members unanimously said the best
experience a newmember could get
is a warmand friendly welcome. Here
are some of the suggestions members
made:
• Give your newmembers a warm,
friendly welcome
• Make sure all members get a
consistent experience
• Give theman induction around
the club
• Assign themwith a flying buddy
• Understand their interest in
model flying
• Look at ways you can help them
develop their skills
• Give them some tips to get them
off the ground safely
• Run a social event for all
members and their families.
Making a good first impression is key.
Think back to when you first started
with your club. What was important to
you? What did your club do well? What
could have been improved? What do
you see other clubs do well? How can
you bring these learnings into your
club?
By making sure all newmembers
are greeted by a trained club official,
allows them to learn the ropes,
ask questions and find their feet a
lot quicker- as it can be daunting
at first turning your passion into a