SAE International
How Reconnecting the Member and Volunteer Experience Drove 30% More Renewals
SAE International needed a clearer, more consistent path to membership growth.
SAE International is the world's largest technical mobility organization, with 200,000 engineers, technical experts, and volunteers working at the forefront of transportation innovation. At that scale, attracting new members matters, but keeping them and helping them find their place in the organization matters more.
The problem was structural. Member and volunteer engagement were being treated as separate experiences, which made it harder to communicate the full value of belonging and left members with no clear picture of where their involvement could take them. New signups were inconsistent and renewals were slipping.
We worked with SAE International to reconnect those two experiences, sharpen the messaging around membership value, and build a digital path that matched what the organization actually offered.
Services provided:
Marketing Strategy
Website Optimization
Email Marketing
Digital Marketing
Why Member and Volunteer Paths Needed to Be One Story
We started by addressing the structural problem directly. Working with their internal design team, we developed a unified engagement graphic that brought membership benefits, volunteer opportunities, and professional development into a single picture.
For the first time, a prospective member could see not just what joining meant on day one, but where sustained involvement could take them. That graphic informed a full rewrite of the membership webpage as well as their printed member recruitment brochure.
Making Sure the Experience Matched the Promise
Clearer messaging only works if the experience after first contact exceeds expectations. We audited the email campaigns and key web pages that a prospective member encountered after expressing interest and found the same disconnection that existed on the membership page. The follow-up experience didn't reflect what had drawn them in.
We rebuilt the email sequence to mirror the unified story the membership page now told. Each message addressed a specific stage in the decision, connecting membership benefits to volunteer opportunities in the same way the engagement graphic did. The web pages followed the same logic.
When Members Could Finally See the Full Picture
Member and volunteer paths had always existed separately. The unified engagement graphic was the first time that connection was visible in one place. Members who could see where involvement could take them stayed involved. The numbers reflected that.
30%
increase in member renewals
20%
increase in new member signups
117%
increase in non-member web traffic
“Deep Varnish was a strategic partner in every sense. They stepped in quickly and delivered clarity where it was needed most. With a disciplined, insight-driven approach to our membership marketing, they helped us align messaging, streamline engagement, and clarify the value path for members and volunteers. Their work directly contributed to stronger acquisition, improved retention, and a more sustainable foundation for future growth.”