Case Study

Challenge

The New England Employee Benefits Council is a small organization with a strong reputation, dedicated staff, and an engaged membership base. Leadership approached The Parker Circle to design a membership acquisition campaign that could increase enrollment without placing additional strain on a lean team.

Time and capacity were real considerations. While NEEBC had valuable assets already in place—including conferences, digital communications, and an active community of members—those elements had not previously been coordinated around a single membership growth effort. The challenge was to stay sharply focused on the goal of increasing membership while making smarter use of what already existed, rather than adding new layers of work.

Approach

The Parker Circle partnered closely with three anchor staff members to design a year-long membership campaign that blended acquisition, retention, and growth—without overwhelming the team.

Rather than building the campaign from scratch, the work began with a strategic review of existing assets. Together, we identified how upcoming conferences, the organization’s website, social media presence, and e-communications could be woven into one cohesive campaign framework.

Key elements of the approach included:

• Development of a clear campaign theme that felt celebratory, accessible, and mission-aligned
   
• Creation of a Member Champions program, inviting highly engaged members to share their experiences and advocate for NEEBC within their professional networks
   
• Alignment of messaging across channels so each touchpoint reinforced the same value proposition
   
• Visual consistency across campaign materials to strengthen recognition and professionalism
   
• Ongoing coaching and working sessions to guide execution, maintain focus, and adapt tactics as the campaign unfolded
   

Throughout the process, recommendations were made with staff capacity in mind—prioritizing leverage over volume and coordination over complexity.

Impact

The campaign delivered strong, measurable results:

• 10% increase in membership 
• 10% increase in website traffic 
• 20% growth in social media engagement
   

Beyond the numbers, the campaign shifted how NEEBC approached engagement. Staff gained confidence in running coordinated campaigns, the board expressed pride in the professionalism of the work, and the organization developed a clearer understanding of how to activate members as advocates.

Perhaps most importantly, the campaign demonstrated that meaningful growth does not require more activity—just better alignment. By leveraging existing assets and relationships, NEEBC strengthened its membership base while building a repeatable model for future outreach.