The Brand Champion program was developed to enable peer-to-peer communication about the association. We found that CPAs were more likely to take action based on encouragement from their CPA peers. This was also a great volunteer opportunity for our members who have found value in the organization and want to give back. The initial program focused on recruiting members and encouraging CPAs to attend our conferences and special events. Last year, we shifted the focus to recruit students into the CPA profession, as there is a shortage of students going into accounting and following through to become CPAs.

We reached out to members we believe would be dynamic, had a strong network and came from a variety of fields in accounting, as well as diversity in ages, gender and ethnicity. This allows students to see themselves as future CPAs and to learn about all the opportunities available to them. This involved personal outreach to specific members and a broader outreach to the entire membership to recruit volunteers who were interested in taking on this new challenge. The program would help them professionally, as they learned persuasion techniques and built a strong network with other CPAs.

I developed a storytelling workshop that I delivered to our CPA volunteers. Each CPA created their membership story that they could share at events, on social media and when talking with colleagues to encourage them to join the assocation. The following year, I brought in a speaker who taught them how to tell their stories on video.

Our Brand Champions told their stories at conferences and other events and shared a special incentive for nonmember CPAs to join the association, which resulted in new members joining the organization. Champions also spoke at student events, resulting in 50 students signing up for membership in just three months.