e-Membership FAQ
This FAQ page explains the process for signing up for the new MI-AMTE e-Membership system and provides answers to frequently asked questions about the transition from traditional memberships to e-Memberships.
Overview:
In early January 2024, MI-AMTE launched a new e-Membership system. e-Memberships retain the features of a traditional membership while opening up many new possibilities, including exclusive access to the new Members Only❖ area of our website.
Q) What’s changing about MI-AMTE Memberships?
Pre-2024, our membership system consisted of one-time purchases through the MI-AMTE Store; most recently, these provided non-renewing one-year memberships that expired in February of the following year. These Traditional memberships required significant human attention to maintain and to cross-check against conference registration and email distribution lists. We moved to an e-Membership system through our web hosting platform to provide more accurate membership tracking and an automated processes for renewals. The new system also allows for special Members Only❖ content to be accessible through our website.
All of the traditional member benefits – such as discounted conference registration fees and access to webinars, newsletters, voting, and coffee chats through email communications from MI-AMTE – will continue.
Q) When does the new e-Membership system launch?
The new e-Membership system launched in January 2024, along with the opening of registration for this year’s Conversations Among Colleagues conference. Members receive discounted conference registration rates and often renew their memberships when they register to attend the conference.
MI-AMTE Members were notified by email of both events (the new e-Memberships and the opening of CAC registration) in early January.
Q) What are the benefits of the new e-Membership system?
The new e-Membership system allows MI-AMTE to provide protected Members Only❖ content, allowing us to post links to upcoming webinars, archives of past webinars, professional development materials and resources, and to create pages and specialized content for SIGs, Coffee Chats, graduate student resources, and more, all on the miamte.org website. See the e-Membership system page for pricing.
The new system also gives members full control over their MI-AMTE membership, including the ability to check their membership status, view their renewal date and purchase history, and update their name, email address, password, and payment methods at any time. The new e-Memberships automatically renew on the expiration date using the saved payment method; of course, users can cancel their MI-AMTE membership at any time.
Q) When do e-Memberships expire? How does this compare to traditional memberships?
Both e-Memberships and traditional memberships are considered annual memberships. Traditional memberships expire at the end of February regardless of the time of purchase and do not auto-renew. The new e-Membership system gives a full one-year membership from the date of purchase and auto-renews until canceled by the user. (»What happens if I cancel my e-Membership subscription?)
Q) I already have a traditional MI-AMTE Membership. Will I be automatically enrolled for a new e-Membership so I can access the protected Members-Only content?
Sorry, the e-Membership platform does not provide MI-AMTE the ability to sign someone up on their behalf. Each member must sign up for their own membership and choose their own login credentials and provide payment information.
Q) What if I just recently renewed or purchased a traditional MI-AMTE membership?
If you have an active traditional membership, MI-AMTE can provide a prorated discount code equivalent to the time remaining on your membership. (»How do I convert my traditional membership to an e-Membership?). If you believe you are eligible for a prorated discount code and have not yet received one, email michiganamte@gmail.com to inquire.
As we transition to the new e-Membership system, MI-AMTE will continue to accept traditional memberships by mail (paid by personal check) for the calendar year 2024. Any traditional memberships purchased in that period will expire on February 28, 2025. Traditional memberships will no longer be available for purchase after Dec. 31, 2024. During the transition, those with traditional memberships will continue to receive MI-AMTE emails with links to upcoming webinars, newsletters, voting, and coffee chats, and both traditional and e-Memberships will be eligible for the same discounted rate for the 2024 CAC conference.
Those who purchase a traditional membership will not be able to access the protected Members Only❖ content unless they convert to an e-Membership. (»How do I convert my traditional membership to an e-Membership?)
Q) Can I continue using the traditional membership system?
Q) How do I sign up for an e-Membership?
Starting in January 2024
There are two easy steps to add a new e-Membership or convert your traditional Membership to an e-Membership.
Step 1: Create a MI-AMTE Customer Account (free!). If you do not yet have a Customer Account, create one at https://www.miamte.org/account/login/create.
(»How do I know if I have a Customer Account?)
Step 2: Sign In and Subscribe! After your account is created, follow these steps to add your e-Membership subscription:
Sign in to your Customer Account.
Visit the Sign-up page and click Become a Member to access the secure checkout page for purchasing an e-Membership subscription.
Provide your payment info and discount codes* (if applicable), and click Continue to review and complete the purchase.
*Discount codes are listed on the Sign-up page.
Q) How do I convert my traditional membership to an e-Membership?
We use special prorated discount codes that can be applied at checkout to convert the time remaining on your paid traditional membership* to an e-Membership, which extends for one year from the date of purchase and auto-renews annually until canceled by the user.
Launch period: Special discount codes are available during the launch period (Jan. 1-Feb. 29, 2024) for members with a 2023 traditional membership. These codes provide a prorated discount for the one or two months remaining on the 2023 traditional membership*. These launch discount codes are available on the Sign-up page.
*Please note that traditional memberships purchased in 2023 expire on February 29, 2024, regardless of time of purchase.
Post-launch: After March 1, 2024, members who wish to convert a 2024 traditional membership to an e-Membership should email michiganamte@gmail.com to request a one-time use discount code for the time remaining on their 2024 membership. All e-Memberships require a valid credit card and will auto-renew annually unless canceled by the user.
Q) Do e-Memberships automatically renew?
Yes, the MI-AMTE website membership system (hosted by Squarespace) only allows e-Memberships that auto-renew. A warning email is sent prior to the renewal date, and users can cancel at any time.
Q) Can MI-AMTE create an account for me?
Sorry, the e-Membership system does not provide us the ability to sign someone up on their behalf. Each member must personally sign up for a membership and choose their own login credentials. (»How do I convert my traditional membership to an e-Membership?).
Q) What’s the difference between a Customer Profile, Customer Account, Traditional Membership, e-Membership, and MI-AMTE Member Content subscription?
A Customer Profile is created the first time you make a purchase through the MI-AMTE Store. Orders associated with your Customer Profile can be accessed by providing the email address and confirmation code from your order confirmation email, regardless of whether you opted to create a Customer Account at checkout.
A Customer Account is created when you opt to create an account from the order confirmation screen during checkout, when you purchase an e-Membership, or when you sign up for our mailing list. Your username is the email address you provided. (»How do I know if I have a Customer Account?). A Customer Account provides access to your full purchase history at miamte.org, including any Member Area subscriptions you have purchased. Once created, your Customer Account remains active even if you cancel your membership.
A Traditional Membership is achieved through a one-time purchase through the MI-AMTE Store. Traditional memberships are non-renewing, last up to one year, and expire the following February, regardless of the time of purchase. Member benefits include discounted CAC conference registration fees and access to webinars, newsletters, voting, and coffee chats sent via email communications from MI-AMTE. Traditional memberships are being phased out in 2024 in favor of a new e-Membership system.
An e-Membership retains the benefits of the traditional memberships while adding several new benefits, including access to Members Only content (e.g. webinar links and videos). Technically, the e-Membership is a subscription to miamte.org’s Member Content. Because creating an e-Membership requires creating a Customer Account, members also gain the ability to monitor their membership (subscription) status, view their renewal date and purchase history, and update their name, email address, password, and payment methods at any time. e-Membership subscriptions automatically renew annually on the date of the original purchase. A credit card is required to purchase an e-Membership. You can cancel your e-Membership at any time.
The MI-AMTE Member Content (subscription) is the internal name for the new e-Membership when viewed in the user’s Customer Account.
Q) How do I know if I have an existing Customer Account?
To find out if you have an existing Customer Account, you’ll first need to identify the email account you may have used at miamte.org in the past. (»Does it matter what email account I use when I sign up for an e-Membership?).
Begin by searching your email account for an order confirmation email or account verification email from MI-AMTE. The sender of these messages will either be “<no-reply@squarespace.info>” or “<michiganamte@gmail.com>”, depending on how recently the email was sent.
If you find an account verification message, it means you had a Customer Account at one time, whereas finding an order confirmation email means you have a Customer Profile, but not necessarily a Customer Account. (»What’s the difference between a Customer Profile, Customer Account, Etc.?).
Once you identify the email account you’ve used at miamte.org in the past, you can navigate to https://www.miamte.org/account/login to either sign in, reset your password, or create an account. Note: If you initiate a password reset but there is no Customer Account linked to that email, you will not receive a password reset email message.
Yes. If you have ever made a purchase or subscribed to a mailing list at miamte.org, you already have a Customer Profile with the associated email address. We recommend using the same email address when you set up your e-Membership subscription. This will convert your Customer Profile to a Customer Account, and all previous purchases and orders will be available to you under Account Details after you log in to miamte.org.
If necessary, your Customer Profile can be converted to a Customer Account at a later date by returning to the Order Status page using the View Order link in your confirmation email. Please contact MI-AMTE (michiganamte@gmail.com) if you need us to resend your confirmation email for a recent order.
You can change your username (email address) any time by logging in to your Account and editing your Profile. The new email address must not be already associated with an existing Account or Customer Profile at miamte.org. It is not possible to merge two Accounts or Customer Profiles created with different email addresses, and we cannot delete an existing Customer Account if it has already been used for purchases at miamte.org.
Q) Does it matter what email account I use when I sign up for an e-Membership?
Q) What happens if I cancel my e-Membership subscription?
Canceling the e-Membership will stop the auto-renewal process. In most cases, you can continue to access the Members Only content at miamte.org until your expiration date. Your customer profile and account will also remain active, so you can continue to login and review past purchases and subscriptions. You can resubscribe from your Account before your expiration date and continue your membership. In most cases, canceling your e-Membership does not refund the cost of any time remaining on your membership.
Q) I have a student e-Membership. What should I do when I'm no longer a student?
Student accounts are created when a student uses a special discount code to sign-up for an e-Membership. These codes provide a 50% discount on the initial purchase and all subsequent renewals. The only way to stop applying the discount is to cancel the e-Membership*. The way to do so depends on whether you intend to resubscribe as a regular member:
To cancel a student e-Membership and NOT renew as a regular member: Any member can cancel their e-Membership subscription from their customer account. Doing so continues to provide access to the Member Area until the expiration date, but your membership will not renew. If you attempt to purchase a new membership before your expiration date using this method, you will be redirected to your Account and invited to reactivate your previous student membership. See step 2 for instructions for renewing as a regular member.
To cancel a student e-Membership and RENEW as a regular member: If you want to renew as a regular member, please contact MI-AMTE (michiganamte@gmail.com) and ask us to cancel your e-Membership subscription for you. This action will fully deactivate your student membership and make it possible for you to purchase a new e-Membership at the regular rate. If appropriate, MI-AMTE may be able to provide you with a one-time use pro-rated discount for the time remaining on your student membership when you convert to a regular membership.
*MI-AMTE reserves the right to periodically review student e-Memberships and cancel those that no longer meet the requirements.
Ready to Sign Up?
You can sign up for an e-Membership through our e-Membership sign-up page.
Not sure yet?
Check out the Benefits of Membership, or visit our Events, Conferences, and About Us pages to learn more about the MI-AMTE organization.