Wednesday, May 22, 2013

What’s Your Credit Union’s Voice?


by Amy Neale 

I’ve been writing copy for credit unions for the past five years and I’m noticing a trend. More and more, credit unions are paying attention to their “voice” and making sure their websites and marketing materials have a distinct personality. Not that credit unions were lacking in personality to begin with, but there’s been a definite shift from formal business writing to informal writing for their content.

In this quest for informal content with a personality, I feel like I’ve been lucky enough to have an advantage. I used to write for television and video – which has a completely different style of writing than postcards and Web pages. Until recently, that is. I applaud credit unions looking to reach their membership on a more one-on-one, personal approach. Especially when you consider how personal your members take their finances! 

If your credit union is hunting for the right voice, I have a few tips for you. Get your marketing team and/or creative-types from your credit union together and ask:

  • Who Are You?
    First, personify your credit union. If it was a person, who would it be? Find some good, solid adjectives to describe it.
  • Who Are Your Friends?
    What kind of friends would your credit union have if it were a person? What would they like to do together? Basically, what kind of members do you want to attract?
  • What Do You Want to Be?
    When you’re a kid, everyone always asks what you want to be when you grow up. Figure out what you want your credit union to be in five or ten years’ time.
While this may seem like a silly exercise, it does encourage you to think creatively about your credit union and what you need to accomplish when creating its voice. When I’d write for specific on-air talent, I’d always think about whom I was writing for and how to make it sound like my words came naturally out of their mouths. Each person had their own way of speaking. Writing for your credit union is essentially the same thing – just without the TV cameras or dressing rooms!


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