A ‘responsible and supportive’ Budget from a ‘responsible and supportive’ Government is how Bill English described Budget 2015. BDO would agree with that, though as always with a budget there are clear winners and losers and a couple of surprises too. Read on for BDO New Zealand's Budget 2015 Highlights including what the announcements were and how it could affect you. Key changes included are research and development, tax compliance funding, boarder clearance levy and KiwiSaver changes.

Access the document here: https://www.bdo.co.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/141570/BDO-2015-Budget-Highlights.pdf

The Government's plan for a border clearance levy on passengers flying in or out of the country will irritate travellers, a tourism sector leader says.

The Tourism Industry Association, that represents industry members including Air New Zealand and Christchurch and Auckland airports, will submit on the levy plan that "will be an irritation for some", TIA chief executive Chris Roberts.

"We're disappointed to see this happen."

The levy is expected to take effect from  January 1, and will be around $16 for arriving passengers and around $6 for departing passengers – although the exact amounts will be subject to public consultation.

There is already an existing charge on travellers. The levy, when combined with existing charges will be around $36 for a return journey.

Roberts said the levy had been a total "surprise". TIA would likely make a submission about the process.

The idea that the Government would introduce a levy flew in the face of lobbying it had previously made against a similar tax in the United Kingdom. The New Zealand Government was worried it would discourage travellers.

There was also the potential danger with such a levy that it could easily be raised if the Government had a shortfall in its overall tax take, Roberts said.

The new border clearance levy will help the Government to protect New Zealand from imported pests, diseases, illegal drugs and contraband. "In the past, these costs have been met by taxpayers. The Government considers it is fairer for the costs to fall on passengers travelling internationally," Primary Industries Minister Nathan said.

Roberts said international passengers to New Zealand already paid taxes, such as GST that helped pay towards costs associated with their stay here. "International visitors are spending $10.3 billion a year in our economy and that includes $700 million a year in GST, collected by the Government.

However the TIA did not expect the would have a significant impact on visitor arrival numbers "at least in the short term", given that New Zealand was such a hot destination right now, he said.

Visitor arrivals to New Zealand numbered 2.96 million in the 12 months to April 30, which is the highest-ever annual total, Statistics New Zealand said on Thursday. This total was 7 per cent higher than the April 2014 year.

Tourism New Zealand chief executive Kevin Bowler said the numbers, driven in part by China and United States arrivals, continued a positive outlook for the tourism industry.

He was not going to oppose the introduction of a border levy and did not expect it to have an impact on arrival numbers.

However, "at the end of the day, we're probably in the camp that says anything you can do to make travel cheaper and more affordable for people is a positive thing ... (but) my feeling is it is not going to make a big difference." 

Roberts noted that from early June, the public and industry will get the chance to provide feedback on the design, introduction and level of the levy.

Wagner said the move brought New Zealand in line with many other countries that recover costs from passengers, including Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom and China.

This announcement is part of a range of measures in Budget 2015 to improve security and services at the border, involving immigration, customs and biosecurity.

- Sourced from Stuff

By Dawn Picken, Sourced from NZ Herald

If you reach Candy Yan's office answer phone, you'll hear a first greeting in English and a second in Chinese. "Ni hao ..."

Her ANZ business card is written in English on one side and Chinese on the other.

Mrs Yan, a personal banker at ANZ in Tauranga, is also president of the Bay of Plenty Chinese Business and Commerce Association, a new group designed to help members of the Chinese community start and grow businesses in this region.

The Chinese business group wants to promote New Zealand investment as well as boost Kiwi business in China. Mrs Yan says they're also working to connect Tauranga with other areas of the country. She says she's helped four or five businesses relocate in the past few months.

"I've got customers from China investigating where to come to invest money in a business; they're choosing Tauranga now instead of Auckland."

Mrs Yan says she moved to Tauranga from China in 2002, drawn by the Bay's small-town feel and lack of skyscrapers.

"If I want to go to a big city, I should stay in China," she says.

More people from China are choosing the Bay of Plenty as a place to live, play and do business. Census data shows the Chinese population in the Western Bay of Plenty and Tauranga has grown from half a per cent during the 2001 census, to nearly 1 per cent during the 2013 census. Numbers of Chinese have doubled.

Members of the association met earlier this week at 88 Devonport Chinese restaurant to share yum cha (a mixture of small dishes), swap stories and talk about promoting an upcoming martial arts performance.

Mrs Yan says the group started earlier this year with about 20 members and has since grown to more than 50.

Mrs Yan says the organisation's goal is to support the growing local Chinese business community and foster closer economic relations with China. It's something she's already doing as a personal banker at ANZ. Mrs Yan says she wants to smooth the integration process.

"With new migration and the language problem, it's hard for them to find everything properly. We had quite a few stories of people who come and are introduced and are starting to settle very quickly."

Group vice-president Charlie Song says he moved to the Bay four years ago after living in Wellington for nine years. "It was mainly due to the weather. The weather here is fantastic. We like to live close to the harbour and sea; there's lots of water activities you can do, especially surfing and walking the beaches."

Mr Song works as an accountant with Manning Warner Browne in Tauranga. He says his employer helps provide services to the Chinese community. In addition, he says Mrs Yan's bank provides free meeting facilities for seminars. Other businesses offer discounted rates for group members. "It's a great opportunity to help them [migrants] settle here and attract investment from other regions or overseas. The association becomes a central hub for those people coming from out of town who have access to professional services."

Board member Victoria Han has lived in the Bay eight years and says she works with a mix of clients in her real estate job with Ray White.

"When the Chinese come, they grab me. Most clients speak English, but prefer to deal with people in their own language, especially when dealing with property," she says.

Mrs Yan says the group plans to launch a website and is looking to secure funding to set up an English-language school.

"There are a lot of English schools, but it's not working for their level. Their English hasn't improved after a few months or even years. We've all been through this and we know the best way to help them,"

Mrs Yan says language is the main challenge for Chinese migrants.

"It's hard for them to get around, and policies are very different to Chinese local law." The Chinese business group promotes member lawyers, accountants, real estate agents and bankers. Other Chinese-owned local businesses include website builders, Asian supermarkets, travel agents, a motel, an optometrist, auto mechanic, photographer, exporters and an acupuncturist. "It's a lot more than just takeaways and restaurants," says Mrs Yan.

Group members say work-life balance is a major reason they moved to New Zealand. Mr Song says his friends in China work more than 50 hours each week with no holidays or weekends off.

"If they're lucky, they take a day-and-a-half off a month. It's an invaluable lifestyle in New Zealand and the quality of the work-life balance I don't think you can achieve overseas."

Mr Song says Chinese doing business in the Bay must be mindful of cultural differences such as meeting styles. He says businesspeople in China have historically connected through multiple meetings, "and eating and drinking a lot".

"If you do business in Tauranga or New Zealand, most occasions you meet in the boardroom or for coffee. In China, we go for yum cha or lunch or dinner or to a pub to drink a bottle of beer."

Mr Song says new Chinese migrants often lack confidence at first in their language skills, but once they settle in, they find, "Kiwi people are fantastic and easy to deal with. There's a language barrier and cultural differences, but once we understand each other, we're fine. We have partnerships for a long time and successful businesses."

Tauranga Chamber of Commerce acting chief executive Toni Palmer says groups such as the association are important in helping immigrants adapt to the business environment. She says: "The chamber fully supports building business capability and accepts there are language and cultural barriers to address first.

"We look forward to working co-operatively in the future with these groups as the chamber has many resources and network contacts that can be tapped into to assist these business groups to grow and integrate into the wider Tauranga business community."

There needs to be a shake-up in the charity sector to ensure greater transparency and remove the tax advantages enjoyed by for-profit arms of large charity groups, public policy think-tank The New Zealand Initiative says.

The organisation's latest report, Giving Charities a Helping Hand, analysed over a decade of regulatory change in the sector.

Read the full report here

 It found the rules were stacked against smaller operators while allowing commercial arms of large charities to claim income tax exemptions with little oversight.

"With about $16 billion flowing into charities a year, it is absolutely necessary to have effective regulation in place to maintain the public's trust in the sector," report author Jason Krupp said.

"Unfortunately we appear to have set the regulatory bar too high in some places, with many legitimate charities struggling to attain or retain registered charity status, which threatens the vital work they do in communities."

Under the Charities Act (2005), charities had little insight or say into how the Department of Internal Affairs assessed whether their purpose was charitable, the report said.

It also noted that appeals to the regulator's decision could only be made to the High Court, which was a costly option that many groups would not be able to afford.

At the same time, longstanding rules allowed the for-profit arms of charities to retain earnings within the business tax free, with little oversight by the regulator into how much of this money was distributed to charities, and what these charities did with the funds once it was distributed to them.

"What the rules do is create a situation where commercial groups like Ngai Tahu and Sanitarium, both of which operate under registered charitable status, pay no income tax on any profits retained within the business, potentially giving them a significant 

advantage over taxpaying competitors," Mr Krupp said.

With an estimated 700 limited liability companies on the Charities Register that generate over $372 million in tax-exempt profits a year, the report calculated the Government foregos about $104 million in fiscal revenue.

"We are not suggesting that registered charities should not be allowed to have for-profit arms, just that these businesses should compete with private firms on an equal footing," Mr Krupp said.

Labour Party voluntary and community sector spokeswoman Louisa Wall said it was unacceptable that the big corporate-based charities claimed millions in annual income tax exemptions, while small community-based and operated non-profit organisations struggled to gain official charity status.

"[The report] is proof that our current charity system in New Zealand has been corporatised," she said.

The degree of separation from the communities in need and those providing important charitable work meant communities throughout New Zealand were missing out, Ms Wall said.

Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Jo Goodhew said Charities Services worked closely with organisations to advise them on registration requirements.

"Most applications for registration are approved. Only 11 per cent of applications have been declined since 1 July 2012," Ms Goodhew said.

"However, as charitable status brings many tax and other public benefits, charities law has to be applied consistently regardless of the size of the charitable organisation."

A charity could not be a for-profit entity, she said. Charities must continue to fulfil only charitable aims, and all their activities must remain charitable.

"Any profits or income generated by charities must only be applied to their charitable aims. The public can view this information in the yearly Annual Returns which are published online on the Charities Register."

The sector was monitored and regulated to ensure the public's trust and confidence remained well-placed and a number of initiatives taken by government over recent years have focused on this goal, Ms Goodhew said.

Fundraising Institute of New Zealand James Austin said it was a "well researched, helpful and very clear paper", which was worthy of discussion.

"If it generates a debate on where we can enhance and review the current charity sector acts, we can only support the general tenure of what's going on there."

It was a good time to have a thorough review of the sector that included the definition of charities, he said.

Report recommendations:

• The Government rebalance the regulatory landscape by fulfilling a 2010 commitment to review the Charities Act and the definition of charitable purpose
• Charities must be allowed to challenge the regulator's decision on charitable status at far lower level than the High Court, such as the District Court
• The Government must tax for-profit businesses owned by charities in the same way that private firms are taxed, while allowing unlimited deductions on distributions made to relevant charities

- NZ Herald, Rebecca Quilliam

Written by Alan Wood, Stuff

International visitor spending is projected to increase 48 per cent to $11.1 billion by 2021, according to new Government forecasts.

Tourism leaders are confident that industry forecasts of 6 per cent annual growth through to 2025 are on target following the release of the new forecasts by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) on Monday. MBIE released the new information at the annual Trenz gathering of the country's tourism operators and international tourism buyers.

Tourism Industry Association chief executive Chris Roberts said the MBIE spending forecasts equated to about 5.8 per cent of extra international spending each year, which was within reach of the industry's own 6 per cent target. "It really gives us confidence we are on target, and it is realistic to keep aiming for 6 per cent growth year on year out to 2025," Roberts said.

The higher expectations are driven by both higher visitor numbers and higher spending by those visitors. In 2014 about 2.9 million international visitors flew into New Zealand and those numbers could grow to 3.75 million by 2021.

Combining the spending of international and domestic tourists, the New Zealand tourism industry was worth about $23.7 billion. Last year the industry released a Tourism 2025 strategy to grow that total to $41b by 2025. To achieve that level of growth visitor spending will need to enjoy 6 per cent compound annual growth.

MBIE general manager of institutions and system performance Michael Bird said international visitor arrivals are expected to increase four per cent a year for the next six years. This will see 3.8 million visitors arriving in New Zealand by 2021. Most of this is expected to come from holidaymakers and those visiting friends and relatives.

"Australia is New Zealand's largest visitor market, providing more than 1.2 million visitors in 2014. The forecasts show this market will continue to be healthy and looks set to grow by three per cent a year to 2021," Bird said.

In 2014 Australians spent $2.054 billion or 28 per cent of all international visitor spending in New Zealand. That is expected to leap to $2.296b in 2021 when 1.535 million Australians are expected. "Another key market for New Zealand is China, and we expect the annual growth rate for Chinese visitors to outstrip all other traditional markets."

Chinese spent $1.037b in 2014 with that number expected to jump to $2.612b in 2021 when 571,000 Chinese are expected in New Zealand. Even with any significant slow down of growth in China, Chinese visitors to New Zealand would remain important to New Zealand, Bird said. This year's tourism forecasts, which are partly based on modelling from NZIER, include emerging markets India and Indonesia for the first time.

Indian tourists are forecast to grow by 12 per cent a year, and reach 82,000 visitors in 2021. Indonesian tourists are forecast to grow by 13 per cent and reach 35,000 in 2021.

Sourced directly from the Fifth Estate. Written by Willow Aliento on 13 May 2015

Aside from a few crumbs, the upsides of the budget for property, sustainability, science, engineering and the global environment are very few indeed. Many industry groups, professional associations and political parties have been quick to express their disappointment.

Green Building Council of Australia

The Green Building Council of Australia described it as a budget of “missed opportunities”, with no plan for city infrastructure and no additional funding to tackle climate change or sustainable building upgrades.

“While the Abbott Government has maintained its commitment to the Emissions Reduction Fund, which remains at $2.55 billion over four years, no additional funds have been allocated to ensure Australia meets its greenhouse gas reduction targets by 2020,” GBCA chief executive Romilly Madew said.

“Despite the building sector having the greatest potential for delivering emissions cuts at the least cost, most building owners aren’t able to access the ERF. And now there is no money in the budget to support building upgrades that reduce emissions, while improving the health, wellbeing and productivity of occupants.

“Australia needs a coordinated, economy-wide approach to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, increasing urbanisation and adapting to a changing climate – and this is missing from the budget.”

The GBCA said it was pleased to see $6.1 million for the Climate Change Authority, bust was disappointed that infrastructure funding was focused on roads and freight “rather than on the 21st century infrastructure Australia needs to make our cities more efficient and sustainable”.

“This lack of funding ignores the fact that 85 per cent of Australians live in our cities – and that our cities are the engine rooms of our national productivity and prosperity.”

Urban Development Institute of Australia

The Urban Development Institute of Australia said the budget was light on structural reforms to increase productivity and boost the standard of living. UDIA national vice president Michael Corcoran said investment in new housing and productivity enhancing infrastructure in our major cities was central to Australia’s future prosperity.

“The unwinding of the mining boom is placing a heavy toll on government finances and the broader economy, and that’s clearly reflected in the 2015-16 budget,” he said.

“Development and new housing construction is currently doing much of the heavy lifting in the Australian economy, and with most of Australia’s capital cities still suffering from a chronic housing shortage, it’s an area that still has plenty of room to grow.”

Barriers to new construction UDIA identified were inadequate investment in urban infrastructure, “red tape” and “inefficient” taxes and charges on new housing.

Consult Australia

Consult Australia chief executive Megan Motto described it as “a mixed budget all up, but one that will boost confidence and immediate investment by small business”.

But the picture on infrastructure funding announcements was not so rosy. “There is little new money for infrastructure. The Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility may generate up to $5 billion of new investment in partnership with the private sector, but more substantial seed funding and a broader remit for this fund would multiply the benefits,” Ms Motto said.

“The government’s commitment to maintain $3 billion as a contingent liability in the budget for East West Link underscores the long-term fall-out of bad infrastructure decision making. We cannot simply stuff this money under the mattress; it must be used with urgency to substantiate the vacuum created with the cancellation of East West Link.”

Master Builders Association

The MBA said the government had delivered on its pre-budget request for short-term tax measures to boost building activity. “There are more than 300,000 small businesses (more than any other industry) in the building and construction industry who are winners from the budget,” MBA chief executive Wilhelm Harnisch said. “The $5.5 billion small business package will massively boost confidence, activity and jobs in the industry.

“In an industry as capital intensive as building and construction, the immediate write off of assets up to $20,000 will provide an immediate stimulus. Measures to cut tax for both small companies and sole traders will also underpin a reboot of confidence for builders, home-buyers and consumers.”

The Property Council

The Property Council of Australia said the scrapping of GST reverse charging measures in this year’s budget would save property owners “hundreds of millions of dollars in additional stamp duty”.

“The Government’s original proposal to replace GST free business sales with a reverse charging mechanism was a technical measure that would have inadvertently penalised property owners with a tax hike for no real gain,” Andrew Mihno, PCA’s executive director international and capital markets, said.

“In NSW, this could have meant an additional $550,000 of stamp duty on the sale of a $100 million tenanted office block.”

Environment Victoria

The crackdown on tax avoidance by multinationals shifting profits overseas announced by Joe Hockey overlooked “tax avoidance by multinationals in our own backyard”, Environment Victoria said. “In his speech Treasurer Joe Hockey said we ‘want people or companies who are avoiding their tax to pay their fair share’, but his budget completely ignored the $2.5 billion in subsidies going to highly profitable mining companies,” Nick Roberts, campaigns director at Environment Victoria, said. The Fuel Tax Credit Scheme is a $7 billion a year federal government subsidy for diesel consumption – one of the largest single expenditure programs in the country. Environment Victoria has been calling for the government to introduce a cap which would save around $2 billion a year by taking the subsidy away mostly from huge mining companies with billion-dollar profits.

“Twenty-four hours ago Treasurer Joe Hockey gave the Tax Commissioner new powers to claw back billions of dollars of profits shifted overseas. By failing to cap the unfair diesel fuel rebate to rich miners, Joe Hockey has effectively given them a $2 billion lump sum payout.”

There have been worldwide calls to end fossil fuel subsidies for a number of years from the United Nations, The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. “Even Abbott Government climate contrarian poster-boy Bjorn Lomborg has called to end fossil fuel handouts.

“A cap would also reduce a scheme that is currently subsidising over eight percent of Australia’s total greenhouse gas emissions. This would save money, grow renewables and reduce pollution. Most Australians want investment in clean energy, just not Joe Hockey and the Abbott Government.”

Australasian Rail Association

ARA said it is disappointed the budget allocated no new funds for rail infrastructure to service the major cities and reduce road congestion. Interim chairman Bob Herbert said rail was swiftly approaching a funding cliff that would see key integrated rail infrastructure projects fall off the policy agendas of our biggest and fastest growing cities. “Federal contributions to state government rail projects have effectively halved between this budget and the last, making up less than five per cent of the $8.6 billion infrastructure spend in 2015-16,” Mr Herbert said.

“Australia as a nation is facing increasingly serious economic, social and environmental problems with traffic congestion clogging our roads, transport emissions choking our urban environment, fluctuating fuel prices and the continued growth of our major cities.

“The Federal Government’s continued approach of prioritising roads over rail will not address the long term transport needs of our growing cities.”

Australian Academy of Science

President of the AAS Professor Andrew Holmes said researchers were not only still feeling the impact of the savage cuts in the 2014 budget, this year’s effort put $290 million of further cuts to science and research programs on the horizon. “It is great that [National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Scheme] facilities will continue to be supported for the next two years but cutting block grants to researchers in universities is like taking engines off the jumbo jet. You need to fund the scientists as well as the tools they need to do their work, it can’t be one or the other. NCRIS needs a long-term sustainable funding model,” Professor Holmes said.

“While there are forecast selective cuts there have also been selective increases, and we look forward to seeing those increases sustained into the future.

“The Industry Minister and Prime Minister say they want to see science play a greater role with industry and yet in this budget we’re seeing nearly $30 million cut from Cooperative Research Centres, that are designed to help improve collaboration with business. What will replace them in generating jobs from research and development?

“As the mining boom slows, this should be a time of growth in science funding to allow us to better prepare for the knowledge economy we need. Instead our future prosperity is at risk,” he said.

North Queensland Conservation Council

The Northern Infrastructure package has the NQCC concerned a new coal-fired baseload power station for Townsville and Northern Queensland is on the cards. It is also concerned about ongoing support for the expansion of coal mining and lack of action on climate change.

“The budget announcement of cheap loans for ports, pipelines, power and water infrastructure rings alarm bells for anyone concerned about our environment,” NQCC coordinator Wendy Tubman said.

“The idea of expansion of the coal industry, more port facilities on the Barrier Reef coast and the development of Cape York for agriculture are ideas from the last century. They ignore what we now know about the impacts of coal on climate change and the impact of land-clearing and climate change on the Reef.

“The Reef is in danger and climate change is costing individuals and governments more and more. We face increasing disaster recovery costs, mitigation expenses and rising insurance premiums. Yet, the Federal government budget has cut funding for climate-related issues while supporting development that will only make climate change worse.

“We need governments that have the intelligence to recognise that ignoring the environment only damages the economy. We need leaders who recognise that there are alternatives to coal-fired power, alternatives that are ideally suited to our region.

“And we need governments with the integrity to accept that jobs for the future do not lie with digging up and exporting resources or with clearing our native vegetation. There are thousands of potential jobs that do not damage the environment and which are sustainable.”

Written by Alex Gourlay, Marketing Association Blog

As Mobile overtakes desktop usage and statistics show 70% of mobile searches lead to online action within an hour, having an impactful mobile presence for your brand is imperative.

Smartphones and tablets are an intrinsic part of our daily lives, with studies showing the average smartphone user checks their phone up to 221 times a day. In an historic first, more New Zealanders now access the internet via mobile devices rather than desktop. By 2018 New Zealand will have 90% smartphone ownership (Frost & Sullivan). With a strong existing base of smartphone and tablet users (2.2 million and 1 million respectively), mobile is the fastest growing channel in New Zealand, up 119% year-on-year according to the International Bureau of Advertising (IAB)/PwC Q4 2014 Ad-spend report. Brands are increasingly shifting their marketing focus towards a more mobile first outlook, with greater importance been given to visual communications. However whilst New Zealand is showing phenomenal growth in mobile advertising many advertisers are yet to fully embrace this medium with mobile accounting for only a 2.4% market share of the total digital ad-spend.

Mobile allow brands to create immersive experiences to maximize social participation and emotionally engage consumers as seen in Sky TV’s ‘Bring Down the King’ success culminating in the visual spectacle of the toppling of King Joffrey in Auckland. Scientific studies show the human brain processes images 60,000 times faster than text and visuals can increase brand engagement as much as 94%. Visuals are now more important than ever and mobile devices are the main portal through which we experience them.  At present, brands need a greater understanding on what works, because as we move to a smaller screen, the rules around visuals inevitably change.

So, how do brands select the right visual content to make an impactful mobile experience?

First person point of view (POV): Sales of first person POV visuals are increasing amongst mobile consumers. Their popularity is because they provide a raw, immersive and authentic feel leading to greater levels of engagement.  The rise of wearable technology like GoPros bring us into an intimate view which create a sense of realism as well as adventure.  NZTA’s snap-chat anti-drug-driving campaign is a powerful example of using point of view to innovatively connect with a hard-to-reach audience in tackling New Zealand’s drug-driving crisis.

Super sensory: As we increasingly experience things through our mobile screens, we want to be presented with a more immersive experience that tantalises our senses. We want images that are more elicit, with HD driving this trend forward. Colourful visuals and those that showcase macro detailing which make the everyday seem enhanced are massively popular with Getty Images’ customers.  It is for this reason that images of food do so well. Such visuals are inviting and arouse the viewers’ senses. Smirnoff’s Kiwi #Instagram your Fridge campaign is a great example of mobile meeting a sensory experience with personalised video recommendations of customised cocktails based on sending in Instagram snaps of the available ingredients in your fridge.

Wonderlust: In today’s technological world of hyper-connectivity, our sense of space and connection to geographical distances has undergone a revolution, thanks in no small part to mobile. Technology is leading to more solo travelers, as smartphone and the always ‘plugged in’ gives a sense of security in foreign lands. New Zealand sales of Wonderlust imagery that is expansive, full of epic landscapes and inspired meaningful travel have increased by 35% over the last five years, influenced by the ever-growing rise of the travel ‘braggies’ to the continuous sharing of travel imagery on Instragram to Pinterest. Airbnb’s Instagram feed is a brilliant example of Wonderlust images being used to engage the follower. All the images it posts of vast beaches and stunning cliff sides are bookable.

Using strong imagery and video in mobile brand activities drives the connection to the audience. And creating or curating the right visual content can truly unlock the richness that mobile experience now offers, creating experiences that push the boundaries of mobile interaction, for a more immersive and sensory experience.

If you’re interested in getting up to speed with Mobile, check out the upcoming Mobile Marketing course run by the Marketing Association starting soon.

The following is a guest post by Lamees Abourahma of Webbright Services and first appeared on the WIld Apricot Blog here

Your website can be a major asset to your association, but there are a number of common mistakes that associations make that keep them from realizing their website’s full potential. 

By far the biggest mistake that an association can make with its website is that they don’t treat it as a marketing channel. Websites need to be carefully planned and curated with the same attention and long-term strategy that associations use for other marketing plans and opportunities. To get the most out of your website, avoid the following 6 mistakes associations make with their website.

The 6 biggest website mistakes associations make are:

1. They don’t have a clear strategy. The association fails to define a clear purpose for their website. What is the main objective of having this website? For some membership organizations, the sole purpose of the website is to list upcoming events and allow members to register online. Some professional organizations aim to promote their members through a provider directory or a marketplace listing. Yet other websites exist as an educational platform for the industry. When organizations are not clear on their website's purpose, they will not be clear on what their website strategy should be.
2. They don’t clearly define their audience. Most associations have different types of audiences (or constituents): members, sponsors, and supporters. Each has different reasons for engaging with the association and different communication preferences. Associations need to clearly define these audiences (their market segments) in order to create the right programs and services (the value proposition) for each audience type. 
3. They clutter their home page with content. As organizations grow and change, their websites grow and change with them. Adding new content to the home page is a common way to update your site and keep members and visitors informed of changes and exciting new developments. However, if left unchecked, this tendency can create a cluttered, confusing homepage that discourages visitors and information-seekers. 
4. They don’t customize the website template. Most website platforms offer free templates that can be applied to your website. While using the standard template might save you time and cost (since most membership organizations have a limited budget), without some customization, you miss out on branding (the way members and prospects perceive you). For a high-performing website, you need to tailor your site to your audience as much as possible so that it engages and speaks to them. 
5. They add pages and content without thinking about structure, site map, and navigation. As an organization grows, it will want its growth to be mirrored on its site.  However, just adding pages and content without a clear structure and easy navigation can make your site into a user-unfriendly nightmare – undoing the good that the additions were trying to accomplish in the first place.
6. They don’t have strong branding. Your website is your public face, and one of the best places to showcase your brand. Failing to incorporate a strong brand presence in your website weakens the organization’s message and identity to visitors to the site. Letting people navigate away from your site without a single, clear idea of who you are and what you do is leaving a golden opportunity on the table.

These mistakes can be fixed

These mistakes can hurt your site and your organization, but they can be fixed! To fix the above mistakes (or avoid them in the first place), follow these four steps:

1. Think about your website objectives.
2. Define who your target audience is.
3. Determine what you want your site visitors to do when they come to your site.
4. Review your site map, evaluate, and improve your website structure.

Since a website is a living artifact of your organization, the above steps should be done on regular basis. For most organizations, once a year or every two years is optimal, but the frequency depends on your particular organization.

Your website is your public face, your most common member interface, and often the measure of your credibility in the public eye. Avoid the mistakes we’ve outlined, take steps to make sure your site is focused, clean, and has a great strategy behind it, and you’ll have an engaging website that showcases your association in the best possible light.

Written By Joe Rominiecki, Associations Now

Another study offers evidence that education is one of associations’ biggest draws for nonmembers, so how do we get more of those nonmember learners to join?

Ask and you shall receive.

A few weeks ago, in a post that examined some findings from a study on membership in scholarly societies, I wrote that I would have liked if the report had dug deeper into the findings from its nearly 14,000-respondent survey. Soon, we will get just that.

Publisher John Wiley & Sons, Inc., will soon issue a follow-up to its “Membership Matters: Lessons From Members and Non-Members” study with a white paper that drills down into the generational differences among its survey respondents, with a particular focus on millennials. I’ve seen an early draft, and the final should be released shortly. For now you can check out Wiley’s preview infographic. There’s plenty that’s worth reading in the new report, though one data point stood out most to me.

“Continuing education and training opportunities” was cited among the most valued benefits across generations (number one among millennials), but when comparing members to nonmembers in the study, nonmembers said they valued education opportunities more than members did, again across generations.

Looking back at ASAE’s 2007 study The Decision to Join, this value placed on professional development is not necessarily surprising. That study also found “providing training/professional development to members” to be the association function most frequently cited as important, based on survey respondents’ choices—though in this case there was a negligible difference between members and nonmembers.

This all leads me back to a comment I made in that earlier post—”If nonmembers place just as much value on your association’s most valuable products as members do, you might have an opportunity to convert more of those nonmembers to members”—but I’d like to put a finer point on it by refocusing on professional development.

Clearly, professional development is one of the biggest drivers of people toward associations, if not the biggest. And yet the typical method for tying an association’s education programs to its membership package is through a simple member discount (whether as a percentage, a bundle, a voucher, or other). For a long time I’ve wondered: Can we do better? Is there a way for associations to get greater leverage out of their most-valued product (education) and make it more integral to the membership package? Or, more simply, if nonmembers value your education so much, how can you get them to join too?

I do not have an answer here—at least, not anything particularly creative or innovative. Just some variations on standard tactics:

Discounts. This is the obvious place to start, and it’s a no-brainer method to encourage nonmembers to join. According to ASAE benchmarking research, the median markup on association products and services for nonmembers compared to members is 25 percent. Discounts can only go so far, though; if nonmember fees are too high compared to member fees, your association can run afoul of antitrust laws.

Premiums. An alternative to discounting the price for members might be enhancing the product. Perhaps the standard version of an education program is available to everyone, but only members can get access to special features (which might offer a better experience if not a competitive advantage). Ed Rigsbee, CSP, CAE, author of The ROI of Membership, wrote last week that association meetings are ripe with opportunities for reinforcing member value [ASAE member login required], such as member-only sessions and networking events. Other ideas could include member-only access to front-row seating or to exclusive Q&As with speakers or facilitators.

Lead generation. If nothing else, nonmembers who participate in your association’s professional development programs are warm leads for membership. Knowing that education will be a consistent draw for a nonmember audience, you can focus on further engaging those nonmembers in ways that appeal to their expressed interest areas but also highlight how they could continue their learning through joining.

And that’s all I’ve got. There has to be more, right? There have to be other ways to more closely tie professional development (among associations’ greatest assets) to membership (their chosen business model), but I’m not sure what they are. What am I missing?

See the article here, originally sourced from Associations Nows

Implementing good practice in volunteer management helps organisations to value, reward, recruit and keep volunteers. In the spirit of National Volunteer Week, please find Volunteer Now’s Top 30 Tips for successfully involving volunteers:

• Value the gift of time and think about what you can offer the volunteer, not just what you need.
  
• Make it easy for people to volunteer by being creative and flexible when designing volunteering opportunities.
  
• Ask volunteers why they want to volunteer and try to meet their needs.
  
• Communicate, communicate, communicate – give information to volunteers and ask for feedback from them.
  
• Time, skills and experience are what volunteers offer, don’t waste this valuable resource and make sure there is a suitable role for your volunteer.
  
• Treat volunteers as you would want to be treated.
  
• Take time to listen and talk to your volunteers.
  
• Recruitment can be the easy part it’s keeping the volunteers that can be a challenge, support and training doesn’t stop at induction.
  
• Have fun with your volunteers.
  
• Keep an open mind about who can be a volunteer.
  
• Say ‘thank you’ and in lots of different ways – a full biscuit tin, a Christmas card, a Volunteers Week event.
  
• Never take your volunteers for granted.
  
• Pay attention to what your volunteers are saying they can be a great source of wisdom and ideas.
  
• Be flexible, involving volunteers is a two way relationship, a bit of give and take is important.
  
• Connect your volunteers together to build peer support and team work.
  
• Offer new opportunities to existing volunteers, most people like a bit of a change now and then.
  
• When offering or providing training to your volunteers keep it relevant and interactive.
  
• Keep your volunteers safe – pay attention to heath & safety and risk management.
  
• Think about your recruitment messages, know what it is you are looking for and what you need doing.
  
• Take time to provide the support that enables volunteers to enjoy their role and enhances their contribution.
  
• Help volunteers to take pride in what they do and the contribution they are making to the cause, the clients or the organisation.
  
• Be open and honest with your volunteers especially when there is an issue to be addressed.
  
• Think about what your volunteers do and then what they could do, you might be amazed at what other roles you can offer.
  
• Involving volunteers is not a static process, keep looking for ways to improve the volunteering experience.
  
• Don’t let your volunteers over commit; remember they have lives outside of their volunteering.
  
• When you ask for a volunteer be ready to act - don’t take their details and never contact them or contact them weeks later.
  
• At times we all need to be re-energised, encourage your volunteers to try something different, learn something new.
  
• Think of your volunteer’s comfort – a hot cup of tea, a better chair, the right type of equipment to get the task done.
  
• Volunteers are not necessarily free, there needs to be an allocation of appropriate resources for support including provision of out of pocket expenses.
  

Check out AuSAE TV episode with Jessie Harman: