Groups, clubs and organizations all face the same challenge - how to grow membership while increasing affinity and participation.
Whatever your passion, be it biking, documentary filmmaking, writing or photography, you can grow your group and drive activity by finding an audience at Gather.com.
Members of Gather Groups are connected through interactive, multidirectional communication that extends beyond the one-way communication inherent in today's Internet, according to founder Tom Gerace.
Gather Groups enables members to interact with one another through compelling, member-created content such as articles, photographs, profiles and messaging.
"Today, organizations lose the interest of their membership as soon as the meeting ends," said Gerace. "With Gather Groups members are constantly connected, which increases and maintains group affinity."
Anyone can start such a group, and each receives a unique URL. The group owner determines the moderators; who is allowed to post; and what permissions members have in terms of posting images and articles and inviting new members. Groups are searchable by tags, making it easy to find other members with similar interests. It can not only give your group more exposure, but also help you get feedback from others with the same interests.
"Gather Groups has enabled us to bring those involved with our organization together in a way we had previously been unable to achieve," said Cynthia Close, a documentary filmmaker.
"We've created a high-energy environment around a shared passion which has only fostered further membership participation. Being part of the overall Gather community has helped draw attention to our documentaries and brings out members' new perspectives, ideas and experiences."