Marketing Fundamentals That Still Matter: Trust, Touchpoints, and What Associations Should Focus on for 2026

About this episode

In this episode of The Association Insights Podcast, host Colleen Gallagher sits down with Katy Doss, Founder & CEO of Script Marketing, for a practical conversation on the marketing basics associations can’t afford to skip—especially as attention gets harder to earn and teams are stretched thin.

While Katy’s work centers on marketing for outdoor service businesses, her approach translates directly to association challenges: building trust, staying visible without overdoing it, and creating consistent member engagement that actually drives action.

🎧 If you’re a marketing team of one (or close to it), trying to prioritize channels, improve credibility, or plan smarter for 2026, this episode is full of grounded insight.

Key Highlights

The 10–15 Touchpoint Rule (and Why Associations Underestimate It): Katy explains why it takes repeated exposure for people to notice—and why you’re not “over-emailing” as quickly as you think.

Brand Is More Than a Logo: Your brand is how people describe you. Katy shares why clear messaging, strong visuals, and consistency build credibility fast.

Human Connection Wins: Video, staff visibility, and member stories are powerful trust-builders—especially when associations stop sounding institutional and start sounding human.

GEO Is the New SEO: To show up in AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini, associations need accurate, consistent information across platforms and helpful content created regularly.

Small Teams: Do Less, Better: Batch work, measure results, and drop what isn’t working. Katy also shares when it’s worth outsourcing—especially paid digital ads.

Credibility Leaks to Fix: Outdated blogs, inconsistent posting, and slow responses quietly erode trust—easy fixes that make a big difference.

Stay Connected: Subscribe to The Association Insights podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or YouTube Podcasts to ensure you never miss an episode.

Follow us on LinkedIn at OnWrd & UpWrd for the latest in association trends and strategies.

Coming Soon: We’re continuing to sit down with association professionals and industry experts to share what’s working, what’s changing, and the top trends shaping engagement, growth, and strategy heading into 2026. Stay tuned.