Spring is in the air and National Membership Day is right around the corner! Mark your calendar for Tuesday, May 19^, from 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM Eastern Time to remind yourself to phone in your new member pledges. The number to call is 800-899-6242.

While NAHB will not be hosting a National Membership Day Webcast this year, we will have the most outstanding cast of characters standing by on the red phone, waiting for your call.

Our own team of superheroes has developed several new things to give life to this year’s campaign – extended double Spike credits, the City of Superheroes game, Vanity and her evil apathy powder attacks – so much to take in!

SMC Competitions

NSMC will award a $200 credit voucher for University of Housing student materials to the top SMC in each group size. NSMC will recognize all winners at the Fall Board Meeting and in Sales + Marketing Ideas and NSMC eNews.

SMC Group Sizes

• Group 1:     10-49 members
• Group 2:     50-99 members
• Group 3:     100-249 members
• Group 4:     250+ members

SMC Individual Recruiter Competition

• All individuals recruiting four or more new SMC members will receive a Membership Defenders stainless steel thermos.
• All members will receive DOUBLE Spike credits for March, April and May for every new SMC member they recruit during those months.

National Competition

To avoid any confusion, we wanted to help you prepare for the May 19 call and prize-ordering procedures. You will need your May pledge numbers only: new Builders, new Associates, new Affiliates (if you have this category), and new Council members.

While the 2009 campaign is on a 3-month schedule, awarding double Spike credits for participating associations for March, April and May, and awarding recruiters and local associations for their performance for this same 3-month time period, you will only need to phone in your May pledges since your March and April data has already been received.

Don’t forget: you must submit your May actuals by Friday, May 29^th.

By mid-June, when the May membership numbers have been finalized, the National Membership Day prize ordering site will be made available online at www.nahb.org/membershipdefenders and you will be able to place your orders for your recruiter prizes, free of charge, as always.

The 2009 campaign prizes for your very own Membership Defenders are as follows:

Remember:

-- Spike credits for all participating association are doubled in March, April AND May.*

-- Your actual May membership numbers and payment must be received by NAHB by Friday, May 29, 2009.

-- Your ability to order prizes for your recruiters is contingent on your telephone call being received on May 19^th. The prize ordering site will be live in mid-June, as soon as the May numbers are finalized, and will cease to exist on August 28, 2009. Prizes are not automatically sent, you must order them.**

For more information on the local SMC competition, please contact Anne Ladewig or call 800-368-5242 x8066. For tips, visit www.NAHB.org/membershipdefenders.

For more information on National Membership Day, contact your NAHB Membership Team at membership@nahb.com or 800-368-5242 x8440 with questions. Also, visit www.nahb.org/membershipdefenders for more information on the campaign.

*Depending on when you signed on to the national campaign.

**There is no charge for your National Membership Day prizes, but you must submit your order with quantities for each of the three prizes to initiate the fulfillment process.