By Thomas Howard, MemberClicks President and CEO

Associations are all about people and the causes important to them. The vast majority of these groups are run by small teams of mission-minded individuals who tirelessly promote the causes they love.

Everywhere across America, small staff associations represent the diverse passions of this country. There’s the Denver Coach Foundation. The Northwest Polygraph Examiners Association. The Southern Snow Seekers. The San Diego Recruiters Roundtable. The Minnesota Paralegal Association. The National Recycling Coalition. The National Storytelling Network. The New England Science Writers. The list goes on and on and on.

These are the associations that define the very identity of America. But unlike their larger counterparts, they face significant challenges with respect to budget, time, technology and manpower.

That’s why we take what we do at MemberClicks so seriously. It’s why we do what we do. We’re not just a business. We also define ourselves by our mission to champion small-staff associations and help them overcome their obstacles.

Unlike other companies who are widening their scopes and entering the small staff association space, “small staff” isn’t just a trendy buzzword or new market opportunity to us. We live and breathe it each and every day, and have since 1998.

We have a first-hand understanding of the challenges they face. We understand that a one-size-fits-all approach to membership software doesn’t work in their unique world. We realize the magnitude of our responsibility to help them focus on their missions instead getting caught up in the details of technology.

Technology allows small staff associations to expand their reaches and grow their causes. If we do our job and do it well — if we can play even a small role in advancing the causes of the vital small staff associations we serve — we consider ourselves successful.