I am doing research on an expensive social club.  This is primarily an
exclusive restaurant that only admits members who pay a $10,000
initiation fee and monthly dues in excess of $1,500.

The membership list is a closely guarded secret.  The membership
profile for individuals who are joining this club is that they are
wealthy (in excess of 1 million in assets) and they are self-made. 
They have ?transitioned? from a lower social status (measured solely
by financial capacity) into a higher social status.  Many of them have
a chip on their shoulder ? feeling that they don?t belong in this
?social class?. Additionally, many of these individuals talk about
having lost their old friends as they made this social transition.

I am looking to develop a membership profile so that the club can
tailor services and marketing to members and prospective members.

What underlying needs (psychological or sociological) can a social
club fulfill for these individuals?

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Request for Question Clarification by leapinglizard-ga on 29 Nov 2005 13:21 PST

I have come up with nine psychological and sociological needs that can
be fulfilled by membership in an exclusive social club. Are you
interested in hearing these, or do you require links to published
research?

leapinglizard

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Clarification of Question by davelorenzo-ga on 29 Nov 2005 13:48 PST

I am interested in the nine psychological and sociological needs that
can be fulfilled by membership in an exclusive social club however I
will need some backup (links are fine) to support them.

My own limited research tells me that looking at Maslow?s hierarchy of
needs is a good place to start.  The individuals that would be a good
target for this club already have the two needs at the bottom of the
pyramid completely met ? the physiological needs (food, clothing and
medical care) and safety ? (shelter, removal from the danger
associated with poverty).

The focus of the research should be around helping fulfill the three
needs at the top of the pyramid.  These are the need to belong, the
need for esteem and the need for self-actualization.

I specifically need research (with references) related to driving
these three needs within the target group.  In other words:  How can I
market the club to fill these three specific needs:

?	Belonging
?	Esteem
?	Self Actualization

There is no bad idea.  The club can provide any service imaginable
(they have deep resources).  I need research that will support the
fact that these needs will drive the desired behavior ? applying for
membership.

Please let me know if that help?s clarify things.  I am too close to
the topic to recognize if this makes sense to people outside of my
little circle of knowledge.

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Clarification of Question by davelorenzo-ga on 29 Nov 2005 13:56 PST

Sorry for the typos.  I think faster than I type!  :)

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Request for Question Clarification by czh-ga on 29 Nov 2005 20:11 PST

Hello davelorenzo-ga,

I?ve been researching your question and I find that I need more
information about your target market for your expensive social club
for the self-made rich.

My preliminary research shows that how to position your club will
depend on where it?s located, who you want to exclude (as much as who
you want to include), what age group you would like to reach, whether
you will allow women as members or guests, and what you want to use as
the desired benefits of belonging to your club.

You said that members will be wealthy because they have at least $1
million in assets. My research shows that this would not put them in
the ranks of the super rich, maybe not even the very rich. What level
of wealth do you expect your members to have reached? My research
shows that what the self-made rich want to do with their money and how
they want to spend their time also differs by what industry they?re in
and how old they are. In addition, geographic considerations also
apply. What the wealthy want in one country may not be the same in
another.

Here are some links to show you the diverse issues involved in your
question. I?d love to answer your question. I look forward to your
clarification.

All the best.

~ czh ~

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/07/18/MNGH57NJL51.DTL
THE CHOSEN FEW 
S.F.'s exclusive clubs carry on traditions of fellowship, culture --
and discrimination

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/06/03/1022982671555.html
Lifestyles of the rich and anonymous

http://csmonitor.com/2003/1230/p10s01-woap.html
Thailand dangles luxury to attract 'lifetime' tourists

http://www.forbes.com/2004/02/25/bill04land.html
The World's Richest People

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4337493.stm
Forbes rich list at record levels

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/may2005/forb-m09.shtml
Forbes reports bonanza for world?s billionaires

http://www.dineshdsouza.com/articles/tycoons.html
Middle-Class Tycoons

http://www.janegalt.net/blog/archives/005468.html
They don't make rich people like they used to

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Clarification of Question by davelorenzo-ga on 30 Nov 2005 02:53 PST

Hi Chz,

The club is located in New York City.  It will admit women.  One
million dollars in net worth is the minimum threshold ? however the
membership committee will not be collecting tax forms to verify this
information.  The ability to pay the initiation fee and the dues for a
year (in advance) will be enough of a qualification.

The club is located in New York City.  There is no age target.  

Benefits of the club include access to an exclusive dining facility
which features member ? specific menus, a spa, a library and a
screening room for exclusive movie premiers.  In addition the club
will also offer a ?personal board of directors? which features
financial planners, medical experts and other professionals who can
answer board member?s questions or be of service.  The ?board of
directors? is designed to be a resource ? often serving as a second
opinion.

Please let me know if this helps.

Hello Dave,
This is just a free comment.  Only a G-A Researcher  - those with blue
names - can "answer" a question, but none has jumped on yours, despite
the maximum price.
This is perhaps because the question presents a rather unique if not
hypothetical situation so that it would be difficult to support an
answer with website research, although I can think of a couple of
Researchers who could bring a lot of personal and professional
experience to providing a personal opinion that could be helpful.  But
that might not satisfy you, and the Researcher would have gone to some
effort on the risk that you rejected his/her "answer".

That said, a few thoughts of mine own  - for what they are worth:
You have already provided a membership profile:  self-made
millionaires who feel that they are not accepted by those with "old
money", but who aspire to find a place in the "upper circle",
apparently to the extent that they have cut connections to old
friends, which says something about them.
This is my rephrasing, my interpretation of your description.  It
sounds like a scenario for a Victorian novel.  You don't have to agree
with it.
The establishment of the dining club reminds the motives for the
founding of new  - second -  country clubs in some areas several
decades ago:  if they don't want us, or we feel uncomfortable with
them, we will start our own exclusive club.
A dining club with those fees and a closely guarded membership list
strikes me as inadequate to provide those "underlying needs" of the
members.  It is too low profile  - just a dining club.  The members
want to belong to something that has equal - if separate - status with
places the "old money" frequents, and something that has a certain
visibility.  Their "underlying needs" are not fulfilled by membership
in a dining club  ("primarily an exclusive restaurant").
Perhaps if the club can hire a three star Michelin cook, attracting
the interest of the "old money" ..., but you have defined that only
"new money" can join.
(Change the bylaws.  ;)  
The members want recognition and acceptance, but on their terms.  One
route is by having a facility that secures recognition from the class
they aspire to join - the Michelin cook, or a better (big-name
designed) golf course, yacht club, etc.  The members have money; they
want to "invest" it in a way that demonstrates their achievement in
terms that earn them recognition in some way that is not entirely
pecuniary and has a broader acceptance.

Is that any help?
Regards, Myoarin

Dave,
Just another potshot after seeing the clarifications.
"Belonging, esteem":  
Really fine hotels keep a file of VIPs' personal tastes and anticipate
their wishes.  They also have staff who remember names, not all the
staff, of course, but the people at the front door and the desk and
the head waiter, who can use the guest's name when passing him or her
on to other staff.
That kind of personal treatment is great for giving a sense of
belonging and esteem, especially if the members can bring guests.  And
if the waiters can remember the members' favorite cocktail, etc. that
adds effect.
It can be the little things that count. 

On another tack, you have described a membership that is a little
insecure in its newly earned financial/social level and maybe a little
uncertain about partaking in events appropriate thereto:  opera,
concert, racetrack, theater, museum, art fair/auction ...  The club
could arrange tickets for such as a group outing, maybe with an
introduction to the subject.  Similarly in-house: "name" speakers on
finance, international affairs, cultural topics, ..., wine-tasting, a
soloist's concert after dinner.
Yes, participation will have to be limited, but I expect that you have
a monthly newsletter, so members can register in advance for coming
events.
These could go further afield  - with the help of a specialist travel bureau.

A question that doesn?t have to be answered here:  What do the members
get for their $1500/month dues paid annually in advance?  Unless they
feel that they are getting a continuing benefit, after a couple of
years, some may feel that they are not getting their money?s worth, or
discover that they have ?arrived? enough to join the yacht club
instead.

Enough suggestions, Myoarin