For me, the program must be good. And no drama during a meeting. The guild that let this happen lost 1/2 of it's membership in 1 year. Now that it's stopped it, it's growing with many new members. And it started spending some money on quality activities. The board is there to hash out any drama. Just present the Guild with decisions.
A new idea to me has been a quarterly 12"x12" challenge. The theme for December is "red". It gives the artist in me a chance to try something innovative on a small scale.