Increasing renewal efficiency
The 2008 membership renewal season was one of the most efficient that the College and its members have ever experienced, thanks to the continuing success of online renewal, which was accessed by even more members this season.
By the Dec. 31, 2007, deadline, over 117,600 members had renewed their membership, and almost half (49.8 per cent) chose to renew their membership online. This is an increase of more than 13 per cent compared to the preceding year when the College introduced online renewal.
Part of the increase in the use of online renewal can be attributed to word of mouth among nurses. Many nurses who used online renewal in 2006 said they would urge their colleagues to try it in 2007. In addition, the College supported a wider range of browsers, allowing more members to access online renewal.
Positive spin off
Online renewal has had other positive effects, too. For example, the College saw a significant decrease in the number of Annual Membership Renewal (AMR) forms that had to be returned to members because they were incomplete. Between Oct. 31 and Dec. 31, 2006, the College returned 4,728 AMR forms to members. In the same period in 2007, the number plummeted to 2,452.
When forms had to be returned, members were told that instead of correcting the paper form, they could resubmit online. Many members did this for the sake of expediency, especially if the deadline was close.
Also in 2007, the College’s AMR Call Centre saw a decrease in the number of phone calls related to renewal. In 2006, the College responded to more than 10,800 renewal-related calls between Oct. 31 and Dec. 31. For the same period in 2007, the number dropped to 8,944.
The decrease in incoming calls provided the College’s Call Centre representatives with time to conduct 795 courtesy calls to members whose payments couldn’t be processed. In many cases, the courtesy calls enhanced efficiency because some issues could be resolved immediately.
While member feedback on online renewal was generally positive in 2007, there is always room for improvement. The College will continue to listen to user feedback to enhance the renewal processes. Members are also reminded that throughout the year they can visit the Members’ Area at www.cno.org/members to submit an address change or update other personal information.