Virtual Association Professionals Roundtable
Are You Charging What You’re Worth?

Wednesday, September 30, 2026
Noon – 1 pm MT
Via Zoom - Link will be sent to you in the confirmation email after you register.

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How does your association decide what to charge to provide great value – and satisfy your financial needs?

Last year’s price plus a few percent? What another association charges? What your board thought members would accept? Or simply what you’ve always charged?

For associations facing rising costs, changing member expectations and increasing pressure to generate revenue, pricing may be one of the most important and least strategically examined decisions we make.

Research from Dr. Michael Carr-Tatonetti’s 2025 Industry Pricing Trends & Strategies Report found that 75% of associations expected to increase membership pricing by 1–5%, approximately 82% anticipated similar increases for in-person education and events, and value-based and tiered pricing models are becoming increasingly common.

But simply increasing prices isn’t a pricing strategy.

In this practical one-hour conversation, Michael will help association leaders answer questions including:

• Are we actually charging what our programs and membership are worth?
• When should pricing be based on cost, competition, member expectations or value?
• How do you determine the right difference between member and non-member pricing?
• Are your discounts, early-bird rates and promotions helping or quietly eroding revenue?
• How can you use member data and market research instead of intuition to make pricing decisions?
• When is it time to raise dues, registration fees, sponsorship/partnership rates or education pricing?
• How do you communicate a price increase so members understand the value behind the number?
• And perhaps most importantly: Where should your association start?

Michael’s work spans membership, conferences and events, education, certifications, subscriptions, sponsorships, discounting, market testing and value propositions—making this conversation relevant whether you oversee one revenue stream or the entire organization.

One Pricing Decision Can Have an Outsized Impact

Michael illustrates this with a deceptively simple example: if a $100 membership has a 30% margin, a 10% discount reduces the margin from $30 to $20—a 33% reduction in profit. The association would then need 50% more memberships just to generate the same profit.

That’s why pricing isn’t merely an accounting decision. It is a strategy decision.

Featured CSAE Member Perspective: Tyrone Adams

We’ll begin the conversation with a brief real-world perspective from Tyrone Adams, President/CEO of the Colorado Association of REALTORS®, on the challenge association executives face in balancing affordability, member value, revenue and long-term financial sustainability.

CAR provides an especially relevant example. Its governance policies distinguish between board-level decisions about membership dues and management decisions about program and service fees, while its Business Services Committee is specifically charged with developing sponsorships, programs and services that generate non-dues revenue.

“Every association executive has to balance two responsibilities: making sure members believe they are receiving significant value for their investment while ensuring the association has the resources to keep delivering that value. Pricing is where those two responsibilities meet. It isn’t simply about what something costs.  It’s about understanding what members value and building a sustainable organization around it.”  Tyone Adams

 About Our Roundtable Facilitators:

About Tyrone Adams, CAE, RCE

Tyrone Adams, CAE, RCE, is Chief Executive Officer of the Colorado Association of REALTORS® (CAR) and brings more than 28 years of experience with the organization. Over the course of his career at CAR, Tyrone has served in a variety of leadership roles and today is responsible for areas including business development, member and board outreach, organizational leadership, staff relations, board relations and CAR’s overall operations.

His long tenure provides a particularly valuable perspective on the decisions association executives must make about member value, dues, programs, non-dues revenue and long-term organizational sustainability. At CAR, Tyrone works closely with volunteer leaders to translate strategic priorities into programs and services that serve members while maintaining a strong, sustainable association.

For this CSAE conversation, Tyrone will bring the association executive’s perspective to Michael Carr-Tatonetti’s pricing research—helping connect pricing theory with the very real questions CEOs face about what members will value, what an association should charge, and how pricing decisions support the organization’s future.

About Dr. Michael Carr-Tatonetti, CPP, CAE

Dr. Michael Carr-Tatonetti is Founder and CEO of Pricing for Associations and a pricing consultant and association strategist with more than 20 years of association and nonprofit experience. He became the first pricing consultant to combine the Certified Association Executive (CAE) and Certified Pricing Professional (CPP) credentials and focuses exclusively on helping associations connect data, value and pricing to financial sustainability.

His recent work and presentations have explored pricing for association education, membership, events, sponsorships, subscriptions, certifications, discounting and value propositions. He has presented for ASAE, FSAE, Associations North, Associations West and other association organizations and was a 2026 ASAE Annual Meeting presenter.

If you are responsible for your association’s budget, membership, events, education, partnerships or non-dues revenue, this is one hour you won’t want to miss.

Stop guessing what to charge. Start understanding what your association is worth.

CAE Credit
CSAE will apply for one CAE credit for this roundtable.

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