Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

Improvement is never linear

By Wes Trochlil | June 10, 2026

Improvement is never linear One of the many lessons one learns over a lifetime is that improvement, regardless of what you’re trying to improve, is never linear. That is, you’ll always have days where you’re better, and days where you don’t improve, or maybe even fall back. And so it is with data management. Even if you […]

Don’t forget to take a “before” picture!

By Wes Trochlil | June 3, 2026

Don’t forget to take a “before” picture! Whenever I start on a big home clean up or renovation project, I like to take a “before” picture, so that I can see the progress that was made when the project is complete. (Ironically, even though I’m the son of an award-winning amateur photographer, I often forget […]

Are you being penny wise and pound foolish?

By Wes Trochlil | May 27, 2026

Are you being penny wise and pound foolish? Two quick customer service stories to illustrate a point: First story: I’ve used the same email provider for more than 20 years. But for technical reasons, recently I needed to switch providers, so I canceled my service with them a few weeks in advance of my renewal. […]

AMS Products are getting better – and what that means for you

By Wes Trochlil | May 20, 2026

AMS Products are getting better – and what that means for you I’ve been working in and with AMS products for 36 years (27 years of consulting, nine years as an association staffer). And I can say with great confidence that the systems available today are much better than they were 36 years ago! (Shocking, I know.) But […]

Using AI beyond content generation

By Wes Trochlil | May 13, 2026

Using AI beyond content generation Recent surveys by ASAE and others suggest nearly 90% of associations are using AI for some type of content generation (e.g., creating blog posts, newsletter articles, “canned” responses to inquiries, etc.). That is great, but when it comes to data management, there are so many more opportunities for leveraging AI. Here are some ideas […]

Older Posts

How diverse is your product palette?

November 17, 2014

Over two decades ago, I worked for a small trade association whose primary product was a very large trade show […]

Plan on (and budget for) training before AND after go-live

November 14, 2014

Over the past six months I’ve helped several associations go-live with their new association management systems. One thing that has […]

Improving transparency

November 12, 2014

In my last blog post I wrote about Protech’s efforts to improve transparency into their company, an effort that I […]

Thoughts on Protech User Conference

November 10, 2014

I had the opportunity to attend Protech’s Annual Users Conference in September, and one of the overriding themes from Brian […]

"We call it the coffin."

November 7, 2014

I was meeting with a group of association CFOs recently, discussing how they use their association databases. During the course of the […]

New Article Posted – Measuring Engagement: Just a Fad, or Here to Stay?

October 29, 2014

Within the association community, there is always buzz around something. For the past several years, the buzz was “big data.” […]

Some tips on how marketing and membership staff can work effectively with the CEO

September 18, 2014

This article, co-authored by Scott Oser and myself, outlines some highlights from our sessions at the recent ASAE Membership & Marketing […]

Why you shouldn’t build your own software (from someone who knows!)

September 16, 2014

This blog post is LONG and fascinating (unfortunately, it’s no longer online!). It’s written by the CEO of an AMS […]

New Article Posted – Amazon and Other e-Commerce Sites Set the Bar

August 4, 2014

Amazon.com is easily my favorite place to shop online. Everything about the experience there is top-notch. Of course, any of us […]

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