Huge thanks to all the ACID members who took part in our recent membership survey and provided feedback to enable us to give the ACID community what they need! Below is a summary to show how those who responded utilise and value their ACID membership. Importantly, it provides us with a valuable insight to tailor our benefits to meet our members’ requirements.

Let’s first take a look at our ACID community; who are our ACID members and what do they do? Of those that responded to the survey around 70% are either sole traders or employ less than five full time members of staff. Most of our members design fabrics & textiles, giftware, furniture & interiors or are artistic creatives. Designers become an ACID member for a range of reasons, e.g. attending ACID accredited exhibitions and for IP news & advice. The main reason designers and manufacturers join ACID is because they have a real concern about copying, design & IP protection and want to protect their intellectual property through use of the IP Databank and accessing legal support & advice. Key for ACID is to know that members value our ACID community, with nearly half our members joining us over four years ago and half of those maintaining membership for over six years!

Benefits. We all want something tangible for our investment, to feel we’re getting ‘our money’s worth’, and most members feel access to initial free specialist IP advice, use of the powerful deterrent Member of ACID Logo & IP Databank and our Campaigning work are valuable. Access to template legal agreements, case studies and the ACID website are strong benefits. Not so important to some were ACID Marketplace, the printed ACID Magazine and our social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram which we found surprising.

The benefits that members would like to see included in their membership are IP Databank credits closely followed by free template legal agreements and commercial partner discounts, such as legal fees and commercial insurance, with about a third of members interested in discounted business advice. The front runner, with over half of the responses requesting this was, unsurprisingly, trade show discounts. For many, trade shows and exhibitions offer a key sales and marketing opportunity.

In the comments area some members informed us that they find it difficult to navigate the ACID website, and some were struggling to understand the website structure and wording. On the other hand, many said the ACID website is one of the most valued benefits. We will investigate these comments and act where we can.

When we asked members to rate the ACID website, below is some of the feedback which we will discuss within the team:

• Website content – ACID members feel that the information available through the website is excellent in terms of quantity and relevance to a designer.
• Page load time – was short which made accessing information quick and efficient.
• Visual appearance – room for improvement included visual appearance and the ease with which the site is navigated in order to find information.
• IP Databank there were positive views of the cost and ease of buying IP Databank credits but let down by its appearance, ease of use and the ability to find, and label, Databank uploads

Improvement of our offer is our key objective and we asked what members liked least. The four most common answers were:

• the cost of calling a business rate telephone number
• the cost of purchasing credits to upload to the IP Databank
• the overall cost of membership
• difficulty in navigating and using the website.

Some members also expressed a wish for us to go paperless, to avoid unnecessary resource consumption, for both the printed ACID magazine and member packs.

Apparently, the ACID team shines when responding to your queries, almost three-quarters of survey respondents felt that the team had been excellent or very good in their responsiveness. You said that our team are friendly, people-orientated, knowledgeable, and proactive. When asked what members like most about ACID, the most common answer provided was the support & advice given by the team.

88% said they were likely or very likely to recommend ACID membership to a friend or industry contact

91% said they were committed to renewing their ACID membership

We are delighted with the positive outcome of the survey and grateful to the ACID community for sharing their thoughts and comments with us. We hope to act on the wishes of the majority to improve the ACID membership offer and we have under consideration the following plans:

• Redevelop the ACID website and IP Databank upload system
• Re-design Marketplace to be more functional and attractive to design buyers
• Include IP Databank credits in new memberships and consider proving some template legal agreements within the cost of membership
• Re-structure the pricing tiers to reflect the needs of sole traders
• Review our social media engagement so that members feel it is of greater value
• Offer a paperless membership pack and digital ACID magazine to save resources
• Enter discussions with accredited exhibition organisers for member discounts

We have already posted an alternative telephone number on our website in response to requests.

We hope that these potential changes reflect the needs of the membership majority. This interactive process has reinforced the strength with which we value the ACID community and its voice.  We hear you!