Challenge

The American Health Law Association, formerly the American Health Lawyers Association, was inadvertently limiting access to other legal professions that could benefit from being connected to the organization. 

A rapidly evolving healthcare environment meant a much wider audience could be accessing its resources, but AHLA’s name was a deterrent because the brand implied it only served lawyers and not other professionals in the health law space. AHLA was also having difficulty convincing its board to change the group’s name. 

Additionally, AHLA’s membership categories were not conducive to casting a wide net and attracting new audiences. While AHLA’s mission was clear, it recognized a need to realign and simplify its dues structure and remove unnecessary barriers to engagement.

Solution

Avenue M led a comprehensive deep dive and immersion by engaging key stakeholders to identify and confirm project goals and assess their insights about the issues affecting AHLA and conducted an extensive membership and branding study. To better evaluate AHLA’s brand, name, and offerings, Avenue M administered a strengths, weakness, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis.

Avenue M also analyzed AHLA’s membership and financial data and presented several new options for its membership model, outlining the risks and rewards of each, and worked with the group’s staff and board to modify the model based on their feedback, interests, and needs. 

Avenue M additionally investigated and presented options for AHLA’s transition to its new name, which aligns with its revised brand and makes the association more relevant to a larger group of health law professionals.

Outcome

Avenue M’s multifaceted and thorough research and analyses resulted in the transition to a more inclusive and accurate name change for AHLA, aimed to encourage growth. It also facilitated a revamped, three-tiered membership model structure with updated category names. 

AHLA’s success since its partnership with Avenue M is ongoing. According to its annual reports from 2020 and 2021, its membership continues to grow.

Avenue M’s multifaceted and thorough research and analyses resulted in the transition to a more inclusive and accurate name change for AHLA, aimed to encourage growth. It also facilitated a revamped, three-tiered membership model structure with updated category names.