iMIS Features Guide for Nonprofit Associations

It’s a story that has played out at nonprofit associations across all industries: The leadership team sits down to map out their growth strategy for the year, and one theme keeps resurfacing — they’ve outgrown their toolset. 

For years, a patchwork of on-site databases, spreadsheets, and siloed tools helped manage membership, renewals, events, and donations. But as the organization grew, cracks began to show.   

If that story sounds familiar, you’re not alone. According to research consultancy Wipfli’s latest State of Associations, more than 80% of professional associations and 76% of trade associations plan to increase their technology investment over the next 12 months, focusing on CRM, AI, and data analytics to meet modern demands. 

That’s where iMIS comes in. Built specifically for associations and nonprofits, iMIS is a cloud-based engagement management system that helps streamline operations, improve member experiences, and drive growth — all in one flexible platform.

“Nonprofit associations choose iMIS because it’s a flexible, all-in-one platform that consolidates their online presence, member and donor data, and operational tools. As your organization grows, iMIS grows with you, offering built-in functionality and automatic updates without the need for expensive customizations,” says Chadd Arthur, Vice President of enSYNC.

Explore Key iMIS Features for Nonprofit Associations 

Click below to explore a particular iMIS topic:

• What Is iMIS? Feature Overview for Nonprofit Associations

• iMIS AMS and Data Management Tools for Associations
• iMIS Membership Management Features for Associations
• iMIS Website Builder and Content Management Capabilities
• iMIS Events Management and Learning Tools for Associations
• iMIS Commerce and Financial Management Tools for Associations 
• How to Maximize iMIS Features for Association Growth and Efficiency 
• iMIS Training Resources and Learning Support for Nonprofit Associations

What Is iMIS? Feature Overview for Nonprofit Associations

iMIS is a comprehensive, cloud-based association management software (AMS) designed to meet the evolving needs of nonprofit associations and membership organizations. It integrates core functionalities into a unified platform, eliminating the need for multiple disparate systems.

“With iMIS, everything your team needs is in one place, and it’s always improving behind the scenes. That means less time juggling systems and more time focusing on what really matters: engaging your members,” says Amanda Feil, CAE, Director of Operations at enSYNC. 

Here’s a quick look at key iMIS features and how they can benefit your association:

Association Management and Data Management

• Powerful AMS that’s purpose-built for associations and nonprofits
• 360-degree view of every contact, capturing interactions, preferences, and engagement history in one place
• Robust, real-time data management tools like automated address verification, duplicate record detection, and self-service profile management

Member Management

• Supports complex membership structures, including multi-tiered and variable-duration models 
• Facilitates online membership applications and renewals
• Tracks participation in chapters and committees 
• Allows associations to deliver more personalized engagement and deepen member relationships

Website Management

• Ability to build and manage one or more websites, all from the same platform 
• No special tech skills needed
• Organizes content with tags to show the right information to the right people 
• Translates pages to reach members in multiple languages

Events and Learning

• Organizes event logistics, communicates with attendees, and handles registrations
• Includes a powerful learning platform and the ability for online certification applications and tracking 

Commerce and Accounting Features

• Manages financial transactions, including selling event registrations, selling merchandise, processing dues, and fundraising contributions 
• Integrates with your accounting systems
• Supports multiple payment methods
• Ensures accurate financial tracking

iMIS AMS and Data Management Tools for Associations

iMIS’ powerful AMS system is built to support the unique needs of associations and membership-based organizations. It captures every touchpoint from dues payments and event registrations to email clicks, committee involvement, and donation history. Unlike generic CRMs, iMIS tracks the full lifecycle of engagement for every content type in your network, whether someone is a member, prospective member, donor, volunteer, or event participant.

This robust data isn’t locked away in spreadsheets or buried in disconnected systems. iMIS’ built-in dashboards and reporting tools give your team a clear view of what’s working and what’s not, so you can adjust strategies quickly and confidently. From engagement metrics to financial reports, insights are easily accessible and actionable.

In addition, members can update their own profiles, manage preferences, and renew memberships online — creating a more efficient experience for both users and staff.

Three Ways to Support Association Growth with iMIS Data

1. Boost Member Retention with Smart Renewal Outreach

Use iMIS’s AMS to identify members whose renewals are approaching within the next 60 days. Generate a filtered list based on renewal dates, membership level, or engagement history.

• Action: Send automated, personalized renewal reminder emails that reference the member’s recent activity (e.g., events attended or resources downloaded).
• Outcome: Increased renewal rates and a more personalized member experience, without manual tracking or last-minute scrambles.

2. Spot and Re-engage At-risk Members

Using the data stored in iMIS, run a report to find members who haven’t attended an event, opened an email, or logged into the member portal in the last 6–12 months.

• Action: Tag inactive members in the AMS and trigger a tailored email campaign offering a “we miss you” message, exclusive content, or a survey to find out what’s missing.
• Outcome: Re-engages inactive members and gives your team insight into areas for improvement.

3. Clean Your Data to Improve Campaign Accuracy

Leverage iMIS’s automated address verification and duplicate detection to maintain clean, accurate contact records. Clean data ensures your messages land in the right inboxes and your reports reflect the full picture.

• Action: Schedule routine data hygiene tasks like merging duplicate records and verifying postal addresses.
• Outcome: Better campaign performance, more reliable metrics, and a professional member experience.

iMIS Membership Management Features for Associations

iMIS is built to handle the complex membership structures that many associations require, including hierarchical records and relationships for a parent organization with multiple groups or locations, multi-tiered membership levels, variable-duration terms, or special pricing for students, retirees, or corporate groups. What sets it apart is that it supports these configurations out of the box, without relying on costly custom development or manual workarounds.

Members can apply or renew online with ease, and their participation in chapters, committees, or interest groups is automatically tracked in the system. This not only reduces administrative overhead for staff but also provides a clear picture of each member’s involvement across the organization.

Three Ways to Better Support Members with iMIS

1. Launch Tiered Membership Offerings without Adding Complexity

With iMIS, you can set up and manage multiple membership levels (e.g., basic, premium, student, corporate), each with its own pricing, benefits, and renewal rules.

• Action: Introduce a new “premium” membership tier with added benefits like exclusive webinars or early event access. Use iMIS to configure pricing and benefits, and allow members to upgrade via the self-service portal.
• Outcome: Adds revenue-generating options without manual tracking or extra staff workload.

2. Streamline Renewals with Automated Workflows

Instead of manually emailing members and tracking payments, iMIS automates the entire renewal process, from reminders to payment processing to status updates.

• Action: Set up automated renewal reminders based on expiration dates, and enable members to renew and pay online in minutes.
• Outcome: Reduces staff time, increases on-time renewals, and creates a seamless member experience.

3. Track Member Engagement Across Chapters and Committees

iMIS automatically logs participation in sub-groups like chapters, committees, and special interest groups, providing insight into member involvement.

• Action: Run reports to identify highly engaged members for leadership opportunities or inactive members for re-engagement efforts.
• Outcome: Strengthens retention by recognizing contributors and reconnecting with those at risk of leaving.

iMIS Website Builder and Content Management Capabilities

iMIS makes it simple for associations to create, manage, and update one or multiple websites directly within the platform — without requiring advanced technical skills or external content management systems. Whether you're building a public-facing site, a members-only portal, or dedicated microsites for events or chapters, everything is managed from one centralized system.

With intuitive drag-and-drop tools and templates, staff can easily update pages, post news, and publish content without waiting on a developer. The built-in content tagging functionality allows you to display the most relevant information to specific audiences, like showing student members different announcements than corporate sponsors.

For organizations with diverse communities, multilingual support allows you to create and maintain pages in multiple languages, ensuring inclusive communication across global or bilingual member bases.

Three Ways to Build Better Online Content with iMIS

1. Create a Personalize Member Portal

With iMIS, you can build a secure, members-only area that displays personalized content such as membership status, upcoming renewals, event registrations, and tailored resources.

• Action: Set up content tags and member-specific widgets to show relevant news, documents, or benefits based on membership tier or committee involvement.
• Outcome: Members feel more connected and valued, increasing satisfaction and retention, without adding extra work for your team.

2. Publish Multilingual Pages for a Diverse Audience

If your association serves a bilingual or international audience, iMIS makes it easy to maintain pages in multiple languages from the same platform.

• Action: Translate key web pages (e.g., membership info, donation forms, event announcements) and set up language toggles for seamless access.
• Outcome: Expands accessibility and inclusivity, helping you reach and engage more members without needing a separate site.

3. Launch Dedicated Microsites for Major Events or Campaigns

Need a separate space for your annual conference or fundraising drive? iMIS allows you to build microsites under your main domain.

• Action: Build an event-specific site with session schedules, speaker bios, registration forms, and sponsor highlights — all integrated with your AMS.
• Outcome: Boosts event engagement and professionalism while keeping data centralized and easy to manage.

iMIS Events Management and Learning Tools for Associations

iMIS helps ease the complexity of event planning by providing tools to manage logistics, communicate with attendees, and process registrations — all within the same system. Associations can coordinate details like schedules, session types, and speakers, while also sending automated confirmations and reminders to keep participants informed without the need for manual follow-up.

For organizations that offer education or credentials, iMIS helps manage the process online. Members can apply for certifications, track their progress, and access course materials all in one place, making it easier to stay organized and reduce paperwork.

Three Ways to Elevate Association Events and Learning Experiences with iMIS

1. Streamline the Certification Application Process

Instead of using PDF forms or email submissions, you can set up an online certification application directly in iMIS.

• Action: Create a web-based application form tied to your member database, so applicants can submit required information, upload documents, and pay fees in one step.
• Outcome: Saves staff time and reduces errors while giving applicants a smoother, more professional experience.

2. Offer a Member Dashboard to Track Progress

Using iMIS’s integration with learning tools or credentialing modules, members can log in to view their certification status, course completions, CE credits, or upcoming deadlines.

• Action: Enable personalized dashboards that auto-update as members complete requirements.
• Outcome: Improves transparency and accountability while reducing the number of routine inquiries to your staff.

3. Automate Reminders for Education Deadlines or Recertification

Leverage iMIS workflows to send automated emails when certifications are about to expire or when members are eligible for new training.

• Action: Set up scheduled alerts based on completion or expiration dates stored in the system.
• Outcome: Keeps members on track, boosts engagement with learning programs, and helps protect revenue tied to credentialing.
  

iMIS Commerce and Financial Management Tools for Associations

iMIS simplifies the way associations handle a wide range of financial transactions by bringing everything into one centralized system. Whether it’s collecting membership dues, selling event tickets, accepting donations, or managing product sales, iMIS keeps all transaction data tied directly to individual member records. This means your staff no longer needs to juggle multiple systems or manually transfer data between your AMS, event platform, and accounting software.

The platform supports multiple payment options, including credit cards, ACH, and scheduled recurring payments, making it easier for members and donors to contribute. iMIS also integrates with popular accounting systems, helping ensure accuracy in revenue reporting and streamlining reconciliation. Built-in tools for invoices, receipts, and tax documentation reduce administrative overhead and support compliance.

Three Ways to Improve Association Financial Management with iMIS 

1. Set Up Auto-billing for Multi-year Members

If you have members on one-year, two-year, or lifetime plans, you can use iMIS to assign automated billing schedules based on membership duration.

• Action: Configure each membership type to trigger invoices at the correct interval and enable recurring payment options at checkout.
• Outcome: Ensures timely renewals without staff intervention and gives members a consistent, hands-off renewal experience.

2. Sell and Track Conference Add-ons

If you’re offering conference add-ons like boxed lunches, workshop seats, and T-shirts, configure iMIS to sell them as part of the registration process, rather than collect payment manually. 

• Action: Create optional event items in iMIS, link them to your event, and enable users to select them during registration.
• Outcome: Captures all revenue in one place, avoids data silos, and reduces post-event follow-up for missing payments or counts.

3. Run Real-time Reports for Monthly Fundraising Goals

If your development team wants to track monthly giving across different campaigns, use iMIS’s commerce features to tag each donation by fund and generate filtered, live reports.

• Action: Set up donation campaigns in iMIS with unique fund codes, and build a monthly revenue dashboard filtered by fund, amount, and donor type.
• Outcome: Gives leadership and staff an up-to-date view of fundraising progress and enables quicker adjustments to outreach strategies.

How to Maximize iMIS Features for Association Growth and Efficiency 

A tool is only as effective as the team’s ability to use it efficiently. To ensure your association gets the most from iMIS, consider these three best practices:

1. Align Organizational Goals With iMIS Implementation 

With so many features and training resources available in iMIS, it can be tough to know where to begin. A great starting point is to anchor your use of the platform to your organization’s specific goals. 

• Want to streamline how you plan and manage events?
• Trying to increase donations or improve your fundraising strategy?
• Need to improve member retention and make renewals more efficient?

Clearly identifying your top priorities can help you target the iMIS tools and training that will have the most impact.

“When your goals are defined, you can configure iMIS in a way that supports them directly, enabling the right modules, integrating key systems, and customizing dashboards or workflows to reflect your needs,” Feil says. 

2. Share Knowledge With Your Team

Getting the most out of iMIS isn’t just about attending a few training sessions; it’s about spreading knowledge across your organization. 

Not everyone needs to join every training; one person or a small team, like your membership staff, can attend and then share what they’ve learned with others.

That knowledge-sharing can happen in whatever format works best for your team: 

• Hosting lunch-and-learn sessions
• Developing internal workshops
• Creating summary documents
• Sharing direct links to training courses
• Passing along quick summaries and tips via internal collaboration channels like Slack or Microsoft Teams

3. Work With a Partner Like enSYNC

Working with a partner like enSYNC can make a big difference in how well your association uses iMIS. Instead of trying to figure everything out on your own, you get expert guidance tailored to your goals — whether that’s simplifying membership management, improving event registration, or getting more out of your data.

“We have worked with associations for years and know how to shape iMIS so it fits your day-to-day operations. Plus, we offer training and support to help your whole team feel confident using the platform,” Feil says. “We help organizations get the most out of their tech.”

iMIS Training Resources and Learning Support for Nonprofit Associations  

Whether you're just getting started with iMIS or looking to deepen your team's expertise, the right resources can make a big difference. Here’s a breakdown of available resources from enSYNC to help your team grow more confident and effective with iMIS:

Self-paced Learning Resources

• Webinars: enSYNC offers a range of webinars to build your team’s proficiency with iMIS.
• Blog: enSYNC’s blog offers regular content updates, including case studies, trends, and more, to keep you informed about iMIS capabilities.

Customized Learning Plans

• Tailored Training: enSYNC offers customized educational programs designed around your team’s needs and specific objectives.
• Learning Management Systems (LMS): enSYNC provides LMS solutions like TopClass, which integrate with iMIS to support continuous learning and training programs. 

“iMIS is a powerful platform, but it becomes truly transformative when your team knows how to use it strategically. The more you invest in learning and aligning the system with your goals, the more value you’ll unlock for your staff, your members, and your mission,” Arthur says.

Ready to See iMIS in Action?

Discover how iMIS can help your association streamline operations, boost member engagement, and grow with confidence.

Learn more about iMIS.