The American Association of Nurse Practitioners is the largest full-service professional organization of nurse practitioners, representing the interests of more than 248,000 nurse practitioners and 84,000 members around the country. AANP’s mission drives our work. We aim to empower nurse practitioners to advance quality healthcare through practice, education, advocacy, leadership, and research.

Since we launched in 1985, a lot has changed in the field. AANP has worked to stay ahead of massive workforce expansion, advocating for legislation aimed at empowering nurse practitioners, all while grappling with unrivaled healthcare demand that has brought nurses to the forefront of a much larger debate about quality access to affordable healthcare.

To tackle these challenges, which are likely like those of many other associations, here are seven growth principles that have helped us continue to grow our membership.

Collaborate with peers. Even though AANP lacks a chapter structure, one of the association’s most significant assets is our nationwide reach and breadth of relationships—from local and state nursing organizations to patient, policy, and healthcare organizations. Building this capacity to reach locally and nationally helps us to align the profession and organization with thousands of peers and elevates our voice to recruit new members.

Control the narrative. Some patients and lawmakers lack an understanding of the profession and the role that nursing plays in delivering high-quality healthcare. So, we launched a campaign designed to shatter outdated notions and stereotypes. Strengthening the narrative and building awareness of the profession pays dividends in membership growth, legislative advocacy, and the public’s awareness.

Focus on advocacy. Members care about professional success, and they understand the role of strategic advocacy in how patients, legislators, and other members of the healthcare community view their professional worth. We take this job very seriously, and we leverage every advocacy victory to build critical momentum. Recently, we grew our advocacy staff at both the federal and state level to ensure we can communicate to policymakers.

Celebrate success. The legislative landscape governing nurse practitioner-provided healthcare has improved dramatically in the last five years, and we have won significant victories that ensure nurse practitioners can deliver healthcare autonomously to diverse populations. At each moment, we celebrate our success. From state legislation granting nurse practitioners increased practice rights to national legislation empowering nurse practitioners on the frontlines of the opioid crisis, we make sure our members and partners know our work is paying off.

Member retention is just as important as recruitment. For us, that means adding distinct member value through continuing education, advanced job opportunities, networking practice groups, scholarship and grant opportunities, and student loan financing.

Add member value. Member retention is just as important as recruitment. For us, that means adding distinct member value through continuing education, advanced job opportunities, networking practice groups, scholarship and grant opportunities, and student loan financing. We utilize social media to both communicate our value to members and to listen and act upon feedback from members.

Invest strategically. Last year, we branded the first association-sponsored nurse practitioner research panel that is informing the work of health insurers, pharmaceutical innovators and federal and state governments. We also broke ground on our national headquarters, based in Texas—a state lagging in modern nurse practitioner laws. Our headquarters represents progress, but also signals that more work needs to be done and that we’re willing to stick around for arduous challenges.

Champion international clout. The role of nurse practitioner is emerging globally, and AANP helps members navigate diverse education and credentialing, so they can practice internationally. Participating in this way, especially in bodies like the International Council of Nursing, not only allows us to fortify the profession overseas but also adds credibility to the argument that nurse practitioners deserve more respect.

Association growth will always be challenging, especially when efforts straddle the need to recruit new members and retain existing members with evergreen value. In everything we do, we strive to see our rapidly evolving industry through the lens of our members and potential members, and in doing so, our strategies and communications reflect their goals and interests for the future.