2025 Trends in Association Management Software Purchases
- Vendere Group
- 3 days ago
- 5 min read
In a rapidly evolving digital market, association management software plays a crucial role in helping organizations remain competitive. The 2025 report from Gartner Digital Markets, based on a survey of 3,500 software buyers across 9 countries and 24 industries, provides valuable insights into new buyer expectations and winning strategies for software vendors.
Before acquiring new management software for your association, we invite you to read this article and reflect on the key data and recommendations.
Rising Budgets, Higher Expectations
Good news: 82% of growing organizations plan to increase their software spending in 2025. Top priorities include IT security (37%) and artificial intelligence (31%). However, buyers are no longer satisfied with feature-rich solutions alone. They want tools that are secure, intelligent, and tailored to their operational reality. For example, an association managing sensitive member data cannot afford to use a CRM without encryption or security audits.
Personalized Demos: Building Trust
The Gartner report shows that product testing is the decisive factor for 62% of buyers. This may seem disadvantageous for solutions that don’t offer free trials, like Membri 365. However, in the association sector, this statistic deserves nuance.
Unlike generic software, Membri 365 is a specialized solution designed for the complex realities of associations: indirect dues, multi-level governance, member management by groups or roles, and more. A free trial cannot reflect this functional richness without guidance.
That’s why we offer personalized demos, tailored to simulate real use cases for each organization. During these sessions, we explore your processes, challenges, and goals, and show you exactly how Membri 365 can adapt. This approach is often more effective than a free trial, especially for organizations with specific needs.
Our team supports you from the first meeting, with specialists who understand the challenges of the association sector. This human support often makes the difference in the final decision.
Key Considerations for Associations
Associations often face complex governance structures, indirect financial flows (such as dues collected by third parties), and volunteer or hybrid teams. These factors strongly influence software choice.
For example, a regional federation grouping several local organizations may need a system capable of managing differentiated access levels, consolidated reports, and targeted communications by role.
Before choosing software, associations should ask themselves:
Does the system manage indirect members or affiliated groups?
Can follow-ups be automated without relying on a single communication channel?
Does the provider understand the realities of the association sector?
These are just a few questions; many others may be relevant depending on each association’s specific case. Purchasing association management software is a complex process that must follow certain steps to select the product best suited to your reality. The research, analysis, and evaluation phase is crucial and should not be overlooked, as project success depends on it.
The Pitfall of Buyer’s Remorse
59% of buyers regret at least one software purchase in the past 18 months. Consequences include unexpected costs, security breaches, and reduced productivity.
For example, a chamber of commerce that invested in event management software without an integrated billing module must handle payments manually, leading to errors and delays. These consequences lead directly to regret, but this situation could have been avoided with a more thorough functional analysis.
📌 For more on common friction points and how to anticipate them, read:https://www.membri365.com/en/post/happy-with-your-crm-platform
Recommendations for Association Management Software Purchases
If you’re an association or SME looking for management software, this report recommends:
Prioritize security in your selection criteria.
Validate client reviews and use cases like your sector.
Test products or explore solutions in depth through interactive presentations with experts before committing.
Collaborate with providers who understand your reality, as ARIHQ did with Membri 365 and Groupe Vendere.
Case Study: ARIHQ did not directly collect member dues. Thanks to a custom module developed by Vendere, they automated the processing of Excel files sent by partners.
📌 Read the case study: https://www.membri365.com/en/post/case-study-arihq-vendere-group-member-management-software
The Role of Technology Partners in Association Success
In an increasingly complex and digitalized association environment, choosing a technology partner is strategic for ensuring organizational sustainability and efficiency. Technology partners like Groupe Vendere do more than provide tools: they help associations define needs, personalize solutions, and manage change.
Their expertise helps overcome challenges related to digital transformation, data security, and integrating processes specific to the association sector. Through a collaborative and tailored approach, these partners ensure deadlines, budgets, and operational fluidity, as illustrated by ARIHQ’s successful modernization with Membri 365.
Beyond technology, they bring true innovation, foster knowledge sharing, and help internal teams build new skills. With strong partnerships, associations can focus on their social mission while benefiting from scalable tools adapted to their field realities.
Interpreting the Gartner Report
While the Gartner report data is global and useful, it must be interpreted considering the association sector’s realities.
Contrary to what some may think, specialized and customizable solutions like Membri 365 often deliver more value than all-in-one tools, especially for organizations with specific needs in governance, member management, or indirect financial flows.
For example, an association that manages dues collected by external partners or operates with regional committees will not find the necessary flexibility in a generic tool to automate these processes. That’s exactly what we accomplished with ARIHQ, developing a custom module for automated processing of dues files sent by partner institutions.
All-in-one tools may suit businesses with standard processes, but for associations, specialization is a strategic lever. It helps avoid functional compromises, reduces error risks, and increases adoption of specialized platforms by internal teams.
📌 For more, see: https://www.membri365.com/en/post/20-great-reasons-to-use-a-membership-management-solution
Ready to Modernize Your Management with a Solution Tailored to Your Reality?
At Vendere Group, we understand that every organization is unique. That’s why we design custom solutions. Whether you’re a growing association or an established chamber of commerce, our personalized approach helps you gain efficiency while respecting your internal processes. With Membri 365, you benefit from a scalable platform that adapts to your field realities, providing the tools you need to optimize member management, communications, and events.
Our association management software is designed to simplify your daily operations, improve member engagement, and save you valuable time.
If you’d like to discuss your needs or discover how Membri 365 can help you achieve your goals:
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