I guess it could be any of the those, but let me "talk it out" a little bit.
How we do things now:
Memberships, both new and renewal, go to come to the treasurer who takes the money and forwards the information to the membership secretary who keeps the "official" list.
My vision: (it's brand new and subject to change...)
1.) Receive memberships on paper as now, but the "official" list is actually a database that is web accessible by the treasurer, membership secretary, and maybe others.
2.) Receive memberships online. Again, they are added to the "official" list.
3.) Use the membership list to send newsletters, renewal notices, etc.
4.) (really visionary) Our facilities could have "POS" terminals to verify membership and services that members have access to. An example would be a gym membership, where they check at the counter to see what level you have rights to.
I imagine that there is more we could do once implemented.
Thanks,