Blog: Wes’s thoughts, articles, and insights

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My most recent posts

Blog post themes over 20 years…

By Wes Trochlil | August 5, 2026

Blog post themes over 20 years… I’ve been writing blog posts for nearly 20 years now. WordPress tells me I’ve written over 1,200 posts. So I asked AI to analyze my 1,200+ posts and give me my top three themes. Here’s what it came up with: Data management and data quality – these posts emphasize that data management is […]

Lots of feedback is a GOOD thing!

By Wes Trochlil | July 29, 2026

Lots of feedback is a GOOD thing! A client in the middle of their AMS implementation said to me: “I’m getting a LOT of feedback from staff about what the system can and cannot do. Is that good or bad?” My response: “Feedback means they’re actually in the system and using it! That’s a good […]

Doing the reps…

By Wes Trochlil | July 22, 2026

Doing the reps… I’m helping a client with the implementation of a new AMS. During a recent call, their internal project manager said “I’m still not as familiar with the system as I’d like to be. I need to get in there more often and play around.” I responded: “That’s exactly right. I suggest you […]

Add one, remove one

By Wes Trochlil | July 15, 2026

Add one, remove one In the world of home-organizing, there’s the “one in, one out” rule. Simply put, for every new item that enters your home, one similar item must leave, helping to maintain a constant level of possessions and prevent clutter accumulation. This would be a great rule for database managers when considering adding new fields […]

Spring cleaning, all year long

By Wes Trochlil | July 8, 2026

Spring cleaning, all year long I talk frequently about “weeding the garden,” the idea that proactively managing your data, consistently, over time, is a better practice than trying to clean up the data in one big effort once every couple of years. But beyond the data itself, weeding the garden should also include making sure all […]

Older Posts

Measuring Member Engagement – The AMS Vendors Are Starting to Get It

April 1, 2011

In a few weeks I’ll be speaking at ASAE’s Marketing, Membership & Communications Conference. My session will be on leveraging your organization’s AMS to improve…

Focus on profound change, not incremental change

March 31, 2011

I wrote recently about being bold and taking risks. Focusing on profound change rather than incremental change is a related concept.

When you think about the work you’re doing every day, consider…

Are you de-duping your lists?

March 22, 2011

In the mail today I received three (3!) identical solicitation letters from the same organization to which I have donated […]

Be Bold!

March 10, 2011

I was talking to an association colleague recently. He was explaining how his association has had flat membership growth for […]

Amazon continues to Amaze

February 25, 2011

Regular readers of my blogs and articles know that I’m a huge fan of Amazon. I’ve been buying from Amazon for well over a decade now and they continue to impress me with the things they do. Here’s my recent experience:
I was searching for a specialized…

"Uptalking" Makes You Sound Confused and Unsure

February 22, 2011

For those who don’t know, “uptalking” is when the speaker has a tendency to end any sentence on an “up” note, thus making it sound like a question rather than a statement. For example say to yourself…

CiviCRM a Year Later

February 17, 2011

Just over a year ago I posted this item on how the Evangelical Press Association is using CiviCRM as its association management software system. To my knowledge, CiviCRM is the only open source product on the market that directly addresses…

New Article Posted – Skills Required of a Database Manager

February 16, 2011

I’ve posted a new article on my website. Increasingly I’m hearing from my clients that they want to create a […]

Often it's about service, not product

February 10, 2011

Association management software (AMS) has existed for over 20 years, so I think we can fairly say the market has […]

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