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Rebuilding value for members
The Southern Association for College Student Affairs (SACSA) is a professional association supporting 600+ higher education administrators across the US and beyond. For years, member benefits were minimal — primarily discounted access to an annual conference.
That changed when SACSA moved to ToucanTech. The team, led by President Matt Varga, aimed to redefine what it meant to be a member — offering networking, mentoring, job boards, and more.
“Previously, we had to ask: what do people actually get for their membership? Now we have clear value through dedicated modules that support careers, community interaction, and member profiles,” Matt shared.
Ditching clunky systems for a clean slate
SACSA had outgrown its legacy tools. The website was hard to update, databases were fragmented, and even simple reports produced wildly inconsistent results. “At one point, our report said we had 1,500 members, and the next day it said 550,” said Matt.
The switch to ToucanTech enabled SACSA to combine separate databases (for donors, conference attendees, and members) and gave the team powerful admin tools.
“Even someone with no HTML skills can now create content or update records — it’s that intuitive.”
Driving engagement with smarter workflows
Today, SACSA uses the platform to communicate, connect, and collect feedback. Their team has built workflows to streamline email campaigns, promote the annual conference, and run online forms for volunteers and fundraising.
“We’re seeing people log in every day now — this time last year, we were lucky to get one or two visits outside the conference period,” Matt said.
Other engagement wins:
- Clean marketing design and consistent branding
- Integrated email comms (no more reliance on Constant Contact)
- Dynamic member profiles with education and work history
- Segmented admin access and activity logs
Custom features to fit SACSA’s vision
SACSA has creatively adapted ToucanTech’s features to meet their unique goals. For instance, the business directory has been repurposed as a graduate program catalog for student affairs professionals — helping members navigate next steps in their careers.
The team is now preparing to:
- Monetize job postings and online events
- Expand fundraising efforts through tailored donation forms
“We used to rely on Google Forms and external payment links. Now everything’s centralized, and it’s easier to manage and track,” said Matt.
Advice for other associations
Matt encourages other associations to be thorough and patient in their search for a new system.
“Everyone’s trying to win your business — ask the tough questions. For us, customer support was a top priority, and ToucanTech’s team has gone above and beyond.”
