Why join Creative Industry Association ?

• The industry landscape has changed and will continually be changing.
• Many businesses and entrepreneurs are facing struggles as they navigate these unsettling times.
• Having someone who will work hard for the best interest of your businesses is vital.
• Having access to

Joining a Creative Industry Association does not give members the ‘Eureka’ moment nor instantly solve problems. But by joining it is a statement of intent, taking business seriously and showing others you mean business. At your fingers tips members have an association that keeps them informed, builds contacts and connections, strikes up partnerships, creates new opportunities, provides a competitive edge, knowledge, and credibility.

Membership to any association is like having a car mechanic. When your car is breaking or broken, the mechanic fixes it and keeps it on the road.

The Creative Industry Association understands first-hand the trails, tribulations, the time, the commitment and the dedication it takes to run a business. Members are pivotal in keeping the association going as our customers to any business. Creative Industry Association offer members the reassurance that when call on can provide the specific help, information, support, advice needed to keep things running smoothly, effectively.

Membership may not make the ‘car’ go faster but it helps keep it on the road and gets you to where you want to go.

What is in it for you?

The importance of an association is getting the most out of membership by unlocking all the benefits on offer. It is equally important for members to have open and honest conversations, the more an association knows about your business, aims, goals, and struggles the more an association can help you.

By joining the Creative Industry Association, you effectively employ an extra person, another member of your team/staff, at the fraction of the cost and none of the legal requirements. We are focused on your businesses success. We are the business mentor who is looking from the outside in and who can give you unbiased advice, support and help to ensure your business is successful.

• We build communities of industry businesses and professionals who seek information, support, advice, business mentoring and strategic planning.
• We facilitate connections, introductions and business opportunities.
• We provide you with ideas, empowerment, knowledge, credibility and a competitive edge.
• We help you to adapt and navigate the changing landscape.

Below is just a few of the most common membership benefits, outside of discounts and specific offerings.

1. Networking: The most common and most obvious benefit of joining an association is that it is filled with potential contacts, connections, clients and partners who can help your business move to the next level and become more prominent. Due to data protection no trade association can give open access to the contact details of other members but as a member you can request to be connected.
2. Engagement: The more active and engaged you are, the more you will see opportunities to build long-term relationships and partnerships which are mutually beneficial. Business never comes to those that stand still or hide. Associations provide a trusted environment where like-minded individuals can come together to share ideas, strengthen ties, collaborate, and make connections.
3. TRAINING AND EDUCATION: Continued education and personal development is crucial in getting to the top of any industry. If your company is already a leader in the field, education is a key to remaining on top. This is especially true in any industry that involves a high level of expertise almost all do in the fast-paced modern world. Associations provide seminars, workshops and training classes that help members to learn, connect, and grow in their respective profession. We are now seeing these move more online via Zoom, Microsoft meetings etc.
4. RECOGNITION: Associations provides recognition for the contributions a member makes. These endorsements and validations provide a level of prestige and credibility in the minds of clients and customers which is invaluable.
5. INFLUENCE: Associations have the ability to support the mission of a member and influence not just the industry and also legislation/policy that affects the sector. The combined resources of members are often used to lobby policy makers and sway public opinion more positively.
6. INSIGHT: Membership gives access to news or developments that affect your business and the sector as a whole. Membership allows you to not only find news but also disseminate your own company’s news. Outside of the usual communication of members between each other, associations also provide newsletters, email updates and informative resources that help members stay on top of recent developments in the field through social media channels.
7. PROMOTION: Associations publishes informative content in regular journals and trade magazines, which helps members to reach their targeted and a wider audience.
8. BEST PRACTICES/STANDARDS: Any line of work has a specific set of Best Practices/Standards which are deemed important to ensure efficiency, repeatable quality, consistent service delivery or consumer confidence, especially for anyone new to the industry. Membership to association is a vital link to learning these practices and performing the best work possible. The fast pace of the market competition means that these practices are constantly updating and changing, and it is important to take advantage of any practices that can improve your business.
9. EXCHANGING OF IDEAS: Associations provide a forum for members to share ideas and develop new ways to improve the industry. Access is normally open to all members and this allows for more experienced members to help newer ones grow and provides the opportunity for all members to share innovative ideas that can help the whole sector.
10. Relationships: Members have opportunities to connect and get introductions to the right people. Association are very well connected and often have strategic alliances to provide members with valuable insight and further collaborative opportunities.
11. Sustainability: There is no single sector that does not have a skills shortage issue, be that from nursing to construction, plumbing to teachers all sectors face the same. Associations play a vital role in bringing stake holders together to address this issue through joint collaborations to ensure the sector has the visibility it needs to help facilitate a sustainable skilled workforce to meet future demand.

If you want to take your business next level, have a competitive edge, have credibility and want to succeed join Creative Industry Association today!