Wisconsin Land Information Association

What Wisconsin Land Information Association does

Wisconsin Land Information Association (WLIA) is a Wisconsin-based nonprofit professional association founded in 1987 that represents GIS, land records, and land information professionals working in state and local government, the private sector, and academia. The association convenes its members through three primary annual events - an Annual Conference in February, a Spring Conference in May, and a Fall Conference in October - supplemented by virtual workshops on emerging technical topics. WLIA also coordinates with the Wisconsin Land Information Program (WLIP) on county grant administration and statewide land records modernization efforts, and operates the Damon Anderson Memorial Scholarship fund, established in 2004, to support student participation in the field.

WLIA's product surface is essentially an educational and professional community platform rather than a technology product. It does not build or license proprietary GIS software; its deliverables are conferences, workshops, scholarships, advocacy, and member coordination services. Workshops increasingly include sessions on LLM-assisted GIS workflows, but these are member education offerings, not internal AI capabilities. The association is governed by an elected board of directors drawn from its membership and operates under a published code of conduct.

WLIA's revenue model is a classic member-funded association structure. Individual membership is priced at $70 per year, student membership is free, organizational memberships are tiered at $300 for 1-15 members and $600 for 16+ members, and conference attendance is priced at $325 for members and $500 for non-members. Additional revenue comes from workshop fees ($100-$125) and corporate sponsorships, with platinum-level sponsors including Ayres Associates, Seiler Instrument Geospatial, and NV5 Geospatial. The organization is transitioning from a 501(c)(6) trade association structure to a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, allowing expanded access to philanthropic funding; pricing increases have been announced for 2027 to support expanded programming.

Name

Wisconsin Land Information Association

Legal name

Wisconsin Land Information Association

Website

https://wlia.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Wisconsin Land Information Association is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit professional association, founded in 1987, that convenes GIS and land information professionals across Wisconsin through annual conferences, workshops, scholarships, and coordination with the state Land Information Program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Wild Rose

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership dues from individual, student, and organizational members (501(c)(6) non-profit organization)
2. Conference Registration: Fees for annual conferences, spring conferences, fall conferences, and regional meetings
3. Workshop Fees: Fees for virtual workshops and educational sessions
4. Sponsorship Revenue: Sponsorship packages from geospatial companies and vendors (Ayres Associates, Seiler Instrument, NV5 Geospatial, etc.)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

WLIA is a 501(c)(6) non-profit professional association that delivers paid membership, educational events (annual conference, seasonal spring/fall conferences, virtual workshops), and applied land information resources (WLIA Standards, Foundational Layers documentation, Survey123 templates, legislative whitepapers) to GIS and land records professionals across Wisconsin. Its offerings are gated by individual, student, and organizational membership tiers and are complemented by the Damon Anderson Memorial Scholarship and an annual map contest.

Product overview

WLIA is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit professional association representing GIS and land information professionals in Wisconsin. Founded in 1987, it offers a portfolio of membership services, educational events (annual and seasonal conferences, virtual workshops), the WLIA Map Contest, the Damon Anderson Memorial Scholarship, and various resources including standards documentation, foundational layer guidance, Survey123 templates, and legislative whitepapers. The association does not develop or sell a standalone software product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WLIA Membership Program Paid membership program offering individual, student, and corporate membership tiers that provide access to conferences, workshops, legislative updates, member directory, and the Member Compass portal. Targeted at GIS and land information professionals across Wisconsin state, county, and municipal government agencies.
• Annual Conference Annual flagship conference featuring educational sessions, map contests, networking, and professional development for GIS and land information professionals; typically held in February with recorded sessions available to registrants.
• Seasonal Conferences (Spring and Fall) Regional conferences held in spring and fall featuring educational content, workshops, and networking opportunities across Wisconsin.
• Virtual Workshops Online workshop sessions covering GIS topics such as LLM workflows for GIS professionals, ADA compliance for maps, and address data management, delivered virtually with recorded sessions available for registrants.
• WLIA Map Contest Annual map competition featuring categories including base and reference maps, thematic maps, interactive maps, story maps, and a youth map contest, showcasing cartographic excellence from Wisconsin GIS practitioners.
• Damon Anderson Memorial Scholarship Scholarship fund established in 2004 to help Wisconsin students pursuing careers in the land records profession, administered by the WLIA Foundation.
• WLIA Standards Standards documentation and guidelines for land information systems and GIS practices in Wisconsin, published as a member resource.
• Foundational Layers Resources Resources and documentation related to foundational geospatial layers used in Wisconsin land information systems, available as a member resource.
• Survey123 Templates Pre-built Esri Survey123 templates developed by WLIA for land information data collection, including event sharing templates, shared among members.
• Legislative Whitepapers Policy documents and position papers on legislative matters affecting land records modernization and GIS in Wisconsin, supporting the association's advocacy mission.
• Member Directory and Member Compass Online directory of WLIA members and a member portal providing access to account history, invoices, and registration management, accessible via Novi AMS.
• Document Archive and Video Archive Online repositories of past conference presentations, recorded sessions, and organizational documents, available as a member resource.

Quantifiable outcome

• Scholarship fund established in 2004 supporting Wisconsin students in land records profession
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Ayres AssociatescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPlatinum-level sponsor of WLIA, Ayres Associates is a geospatial firm providing survey, mapping, and GIS services. They have multiple staff members active on the WLIA Board and in leadership positions, contributing to conference content and association activities.
• Seiler Instrument GeospatialcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerFamily-owned geospatial dealer since 1945, Seiler provides survey, mapping, GNSS, drone equipment, and software technology. They are an authorized dealer for Trimble, Esri, ArcGIS, Autodesk, DJI and others, with dedicated staff and offices across the Midwest.
• NV5 Geospatial (powered by Quantum Spatial)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerNV5 Geospatial is a sponsor member since 2014, providing end-to-end geospatial solutions and services. They are described as the geospatial pioneer delivering actionable solutions to transform how clients utilize geospatial data.
• Ruekert & MielkeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual sponsor for the WLIA Map Contest, Ruekert & Mielke is a consulting firm providing engineering and GIS services to municipal clients in Wisconsin.
• GeoCommminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor for the WLIA Map Gallery, GeoComm provides GIS and public safety solutions.
• UW-Madison GIS Professional ProgramsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor for the WLIA Map Gallery, UW-Madison provides GIS professional education programs.
• Pro-West & AssociatesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSilver sponsor for WLIA Annual Conference, Pro-West & Associates provides legal description training and GIS consulting services.
• Robert E. Lee & AssociatesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSponsor for WLIA Map Gallery, providing geospatial and surveying services.
• Geospatial Professional Network (GPN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the 2026 Fall Conference (GIS-Pro 2026) being held in Milwaukee, integrating WLIA essence into the conference.
• URISA (Urban and Regional Information Systems Association)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational association for GIS professionals; WLIA supports URISA's Vanguard Cabinet initiative for young geospatial professionals.
• Wisconsin County Registers of Deeds Association (WRDA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional association for Register of Deeds offices in Wisconsin; shared leadership and collaboration on land records issues.
• Property Records Industry Association (PRIA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational organization for property records professionals; WLIA members serve on PRIA governance committees.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• Esri: Dominant GIS software vendor whose ArcGIS platform underpins WLIA member workflows; while not a peer association, Esri's user conference, training programs, and Survey123 templates referenced by WLIA represent an adjacent ecosystem shaping member expectations.

Direct peers

• National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC): National organization coordinating state-level GIS policy and programs; mirrors WLIA's role at the state level, making it the closest analog for benchmarking standards advocacy and inter-agency coordination.
• Wisconsin County Registers of Deeds Association (WRDA): Wisconsin-based professional association for Register of Deeds offices; collaborates with WLIA on shared leadership and land records issues, serving a closely overlapping government audience in the same state.
• Property Records Industry Association (PRIA): National organization for property records professionals; WLIA members already serve on PRIA governance committees, and PRIA addresses the same land records modernization mission from a national angle.
• Geospatial Professional Network (GPN): National society for geospatial professionals that runs the GIS-Pro conference; WLIA is partnering with GPN to host GIS-Pro 2026 in Milwaukee, indicating overlapping mission and audience.

Regional players

• Michigan.GIS Users Group: Michigan-based GIS user community; comparable in serving a state-level government and professional GIS audience through conferences, workshops, and standards advocacy.
• Minnesota GIS/LIS Consortium: Statewide GIS professional consortium in Wisconsin's neighboring state; operates with a comparable member-funded model serving government GIS professionals across Minnesota counties and municipalities.
• Illinois GIS Association (ILGISA): State-level GIS professional association serving Illinois; directly comparable to WLIA in structure, audience (government GIS practitioners), and programming (conferences, workshops, advocacy).

Broad incumbents

• American Association of Geographers (AAG): Large professional academic society for geography and GIS; broader in scope than WLIA but overlaps on professional development, conferences, and GIS practitioner audience.
• URISA (Urban and Regional Information Systems Association): National professional association for GIS and information systems professionals; WLIA already partners with URISA on the Vanguard Cabinet initiative, and URISA serves an overlapping member audience across all U.S. states.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wisconsin-land-information-association
• Xx.com/WisLandInfo
• Facebookfacebook.com/WisconsinLandInformationAssociation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Wisconsin Land Information Association