A renewal notice arrives 45 days before a member's year ends, with email and WhatsApp reminders until payment. Payment marks the member active, sends a receipt and extends portal access. Members unpaid 30 days after expiry move to lapsed and onto a committee call list.
Typical results
+8 pts
Annual renewal rate, from about 78% to 86%
≈22 hrs/mo
Membership staff time on renewal chasing saved
4
Touches before expiry: three emails and a WhatsApp
30 days
Grace period after expiry before lapsed status
Figures reflect typical results for this kind of automation.
The challenge
Members join throughout the year, so about 125 renewals fall due each month, and reminders depend on someone checking a spreadsheet of expiry dates. Payments arrive late or never, lapsed members keep getting members-only mailings and portal access, and nobody calls long-standing members who quietly stop paying.
Before and after
Annual renewal rate
+10%Staff hours per month on renewal chasing
−73%Renewals paid after the expiry date
−63%The automation
Forty-five days before a member's year ends, the automation emails a renewal notice with the member's dues tier and a payment link, then reminders at 14 and 3 days and a WhatsApp message on the expiry date. A payment marks the member active in the CRM, issues the receipt and extends portal access for a year. Members unpaid 30 days after expiry move to lapsed, leave members-only mailings and appear on the membership committee's call list.
How it works
- 01
Notice 45 days ahead
Forty-five days before a member's year ends, an email arrives with the member's dues tier, the amount and a payment link.
- 02
Reminders at 14 and 3 days
Unpaid members get email reminders at 14 and 3 days, and a WhatsApp message on the expiry date with the same link.
- 03
Paid means active
A payment marks the member active in the CRM, issues the receipt and extends member-portal access for another year.
- 04
Lapsed after 30 days
Members still unpaid 30 days after expiry move to lapsed and stop receiving members-only mailings and portal access.
- 05
Committee call list
Lapsed members land on a call list for the membership committee, sorted by years of membership, so long-standing members get a personal call.
Starts from
- Member CRM expiry dates
- Dues payments
Delivers
- Notices and reminders
- Receipt and portal access
- Committee call list
The impact
The renewal rate rises from about 78% to 86%, around 120 more members a year staying on. Membership staff spend about 8 hours a month on renewals instead of 30, lapsed members lose access on schedule, and the committee's calls start with the longest-standing members.
Questions about this automation
Does it handle different dues tiers and discounts?
Yes. Each member's tier, such as full, early career or retired, is read from the CRM, so every notice shows the right amount and payment link. Discounts the association approves, like a hardship reduction, are set on the member record and carried into the next renewal without anyone recalculating by hand.
What happens if a member pays by bank transfer instead of the link?
The office marks the transfer as paid on the member record, or the bank export is matched by member number, and the same steps run: active status, receipt and portal access. Reminders stop the moment a payment is recorded, so members who already paid don't get chased.
Which systems does the renewal cycle connect to?
The membership CRM with each member's join date and tier, a payment provider that sends links and receipts, the email tool, a WhatsApp business number and the member portal's access list. The association sets the reminder timing, the grace period and who sees the call list. This is a multi-step build, usually rolled out in stages.