I’ve been noticing that many hobby clubs and community groups are slowly moving away from traditional plastic membership cards and trying digital membership cards instead. It seems convenient since members can keep their card directly on their phone rather than carrying another physical card.
Some systems even allow the card to be stored in mobile wallets like Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, which makes check-ins at events or club meetings quicker.
I’m curious if any clubs here have tried something similar.
Did it actually make membership management easier?
Do members prefer digital cards over printed ones?
Any challenges with adoption among members?
Would love to hear real experiences from other clubs or community groups.
Stuffing everything into the phone is just fine until you lose the phone or it simply breaks and refuses to start.
A wallet can get stolen but it doesn’t shut down when the battery is low …
I’m president of the Northeast Military Modelers Association, an AMPS chapter. We don’t bother with membership cards, we know who all the club members are. AMPS doesn’t have cards, either. You are in their database and at an event you just give your name and they look you up. No problem. It’s not like you’re trying to sneak in to a meeting of the Masons and learn their secret handshake. And believe it or not, not everyone has a smartphone.
Same, Old Hickory President. We are such a small group it’s not needed and half the old guys don’t really use phones. Our IPMS club (former President - need to stop volunteering ) doesn’t worry about cards. I think IPMS nationals has paper cards, been a long time since I was a paying national member.
We have a few unaffiliated clubs and they don’t bother with cards either. Just not a thing anymore. More expensive and effort than it’s worth.
Our club offers a discount on show registration for national members of AMPS or IPMS/USA and showing proof of such membership is necessary to claim that when entering our shows. It’s not much (only $1 off an already low charge) but is a way to encourage and recognize modelers who support either national society. AMPS has a feature on their website for members in good standing to download and print a hardcopy membership card (but well accept an image on a phone of that same page and information). AMPS membership numbers also show up in the database registration system that we use, so that’s another option if the entrant remembers his or her number. As far as I know, IPMS/USA still sends members a printed membership card in the mail.
We do ask about local club affiliation when folks enter our shows, but that doesn’t require any proof and is just for us to track show patron demographics (useful for future show promotion, etc.).
However, we no longer issue membership cards for our local membership after the last local hobby shop stopped giving our members a discount on purchases. After that, there was no point in having the cards - as others have mentioned, we all know each other, our treasurer tracks dues and keeps our membership roster up to date - so there’s no other need to “show proof of membership” to any outside entity.
Well, I suppose it was a bit of an insult; they were considering that I was worthy to be a Commissioned Officer, and sort of making an offer, and there I was, spurning it with one of the best quotes ever.
That said, I greatly enjoyed being a Warrant Officer for another 20 odd-years (and some were very odd indeed!) I feel I was able to still look after the boys and girls, and prevent some of the more arcane lunacies emanating form the officer corps. That said, I was able to look after them as well, not least, that as I grew older, things got easier as we ended up being the same age as it were (not often in the British Army due to differing career-styles and options. When you’re the same age as the General you’re PA to, life gets much easier.
Mind you, I haven’t got a Lieutenant Colonel’s pension. Sigh.
) doesn’t worry about cards. I think IPMS nationals has paper cards, been a long time since I was a paying national member.