Mobile-First Member Engagement: How BIGGA Transformed Digital Connection
Join us for an exclusive webinar exploring the power of mobile apps in membership organisations.
Every day, your members reach for their phones dozens of times. They're tapping, swiping, and scrolling through apps that have earned a permanent place on their home screens. The question isn't whether your members are mobile, it's whether you're meeting them there with the experiences they expect.
For membership organisations, the shift to mobile-first engagement isn't just about keeping pace with technology. It's about fundamentally reimagining how you deliver value, strengthen relationships, and create new opportunities for both members and your organisation.
The Mobile Reality
When the British & International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) analysed their digital analytics, they discovered something striking: 75-80% of their members were already accessing their website through mobile devices. Their members weren't asking for a mobile strategy—they were already living one.
This insight sparked a transformation that would reshape how BIGGA connects with its 6,000 members across the UK and internationally. But rather than viewing mobile as simply a smaller screen for their existing content, BIGGA saw an opportunity to create something more powerful: a mobile app that would become an indispensable daily tool for their members.
From Opportunity to Impact
Working with mobile specialists RD Mobile and their Engagefully 365 platform, BIGGA launched a member app that has fundamentally changed their digital engagement model. The results speak for themselves:
- 7,000 app downloads across their membership base
- £7,500+ in annual cost savings through digital transformation
- 30kg of plastic waste eliminated annually by reducing physical materials
- New revenue streams from sponsors eager to reach engaged members
- Reduced overhead for handling routine member inquiries
But numbers alone don't capture the full story. The real transformation lies in how the app has positioned BIGGA to deliver value in ways that weren't possible before. Members now have instant access to the organisation's resources and content—all from the device that's already in their pocket.
Three Pillars of Mobile Member Engagement
BIGGA's success highlights three critical elements that make mobile apps particularly powerful for membership organisations:
1. Meeting Members Where They Are
Rather than asking members to change their behaviour, a mobile app integrates seamlessly into their existing daily routines. Whether they're checking updates during a commute, accessing resources on-site, or engaging with community content in spare moments, the app meets them exactly where they are.
2. Creating Unified Experiences
The most effective member apps don't exist in isolation—they bring together content and functionality from across your digital ecosystem. By integrating website content, CRM data, learning management systems, community platforms, and publications, a mobile app becomes a single gateway to your organisation's full value proposition.
3. Extending Event Impact Year-Round
Many organisations begin their mobile journey with conference apps, but the real opportunity lies in extending that engagement beyond annual events. BIGGA's approach demonstrates how a year-round member app can transform periodic touchpoints into continuous connection, turning event momentum into sustained engagement.
Making Mobile Work for Your Organisation
The technology exists, the member appetite is proven, and the business case is clear. But how do you translate these possibilities into reality for your specific organisation?
That's exactly what we'll be exploring in our upcoming webinar with RD Mobile, featuring insights from the BIGGA case study and practical strategies for leveraging mobile to drive member value, engagement, and ROI.
Join Us for the Full Story
On 23 October 2025, Hart Square is partnering with RD Mobile to share the complete BIGGA story alongside practical frameworks for implementing mobile member engagement in your organisation.
You'll learn:
- How a member app can empower your members, demonstrate your organisation's value, and create new revenue sources
- Strategies for leveraging content across your different systems (website, CRM, LMS, communities, publications)
- How to extend conference app value into year-round member engagement
- Smart approaches to integrating existing content into mobile experiences
This webinar is designed for directors and executives in membership, marketing, communications, and technology who are exploring how to strengthen member relationships and drive measurable results through mobile-first strategies.
With 15 years of experience delivering mobile apps for member organisations, RD Mobile brings proven expertise and real-world results to the conversation. Combined with BIGGA's practical insights as a successful long-term user, this session offers the perfect blend of strategic vision and implementation reality.
The Mobile Moment Is Now
Your members are already mobile. The question is whether your organisation is ready to meet them there with experiences that matter, value that resonates, and connections that last.
Mobile-first member engagement isn't about the future—it's about recognising where your members are today and having the courage to meet them there with something exceptional.
Register for the webinar below to discover how organisations like BIGGA are transforming member engagement through mobile-first strategies.