ACCAN has a broad membership base that represents groups in the community sector, disability sector, small business owners and more.

Our members are invaluable to the work we do as they are often invited to have their say in our submissions and consultations. Not only that, we look to our members to support ACCAN’s work and to let us know of the issues affecting their stakeholders.

Being an ACCAN member gives other opportunities as well; our newsletters and resources help to keep our members informed and equipped with the latest tips and advice to navigate the complicated telecommunications market. We also provide networking opportunities for our members to meet with key industry people and share their concerns and experience – registrations are now open for our 2016 National Conference.

Recently we surveyed our organisational members to find out more about their perspectives of ACCAN. The results proved interesting and will help us improve the way we interact with our members and the information we provide to them. This article presents a snapshot of the feedback we received.

ACCAN’s work

One aim of the survey was to find out the issues that are important to our members. While our focus is on telecommunications services and the internet, the industry is diverse meaning that ACCAN covers a range of topics that affect consumers.

The majority of the survey respondents told us that ACCAN focuses on issues that are important to their organisations. The comments we received reflected this too.

The most important issues for our members are accessibility (see our policies on accessible ICT procurement and accessible programming on TV), service quality and the Customer Service Guarantee, competitive practices, affordability and rural and regional communications.

These are all areas that ACCAN is currently working on. They align closely with our key goal of ensuring that all consumers have access to available, accessible and affordable communications services.

Our members also shared feedback on areas that they would like us to focus on – protection of vulnerable consumers, equity of access and affordability, consumer information and innovation. This is great feedback for ACCAN to have as we plan our future work. Affordability is one area that ACCAN has done significant work on previously and it was the theme of our 2015 Conference.

ACCAN resources and events

The member survey found that 97 per cent of the respondents said they were either very satisfied or somewhat satisfied with ACCAN as an information source. We were very pleased to hear this feedback as we devote a lot of time and effort into researching and developing our tip sheets, articles and resources that help guide consumers through purchasing and using telecommunications services.

The survey found that the most popular resources amongst our members are our research reports, tip sheets, submissions and guides. We regularly publish new reports and submissions and ensure that the resources on our website are up to date with the latest trends and information. We will continue to ensure we provide our members with the latest information on topics that affect them and their stakeholders.

Share your news, events and ideas with us

We often engage with our members to talk about upcoming submissions or to consult on important consumer issues, but we also want to hear about their news, events or any other ideas they have to share with us. That’s why we’ve created the ACCAN Community so our members can share this information with us (via email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

By sharing news and events with us we may be able to help get the word out through our networks in our weekly WebNews newsletter and on our social media profiles on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. By sharing content with us members can tap into our community of likeminded organisations and individuals.

Interested in becoming a member of ACCAN?

If you’re not already an ACCAN member, we would like to invite you to join our community of valued members.

• We represent telecommunications consumers to ensure that services are available, affordable and accessible.
• We are a not-for-profit, member based organisation and are always looking to improve our work in representing consumers and organisations.
• We are looking to build relationships with likeminded organisations and individuals so that together we can better assist consumers in a marketplace that can be confusing, overwhelming and costly.
  
  

If you’re already a member why not refer a friend?

For information and to become a member, visit accan.org.au/members or give us a call on 02 9288 4000.

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