What Makes Your Credit Union Unique?

When we work with credit unions on a marketing campaign, social media plan, website or an HR consultation we often ask them “what makes your credit union unique?” More often than not, they’ll say that it’s their member service, variety of products or mobile banking. While these are all great answers, if all credit unions say this – then these features aren’t truly unique, are they?

Sometimes you need to sit back and look at your credit union and its website, marketing materials and offerings as if you were a member and see if there’s something that would set you apart from the competition. Or you could always conduct a member survey to determine what your differentiators are in their eyes. 

If you’re still not sure what makes your credit union unique, here are some places to start in your search:

• Personality – Spread out all of your marketing materials and look at your website – do they have a common voice? Does the verbiage help convey a personality for your credit union or is most of it in business “brochure-speak?” Members want to feel a brand personality and a connection to the organizations they do business with. This is true especially for Gen Y and younger, they want to feel like they can identify with you, that your credit union “gets” them, so be sure to write your materials with that in mind.
  
  This common voice and personality should also be evident in your social media – one of the most informal forms of member communication. Share interesting non-financial related articles or fun staff photos from recent promotions or outreach events. Social media is a great outlet for showing off your credit union’s sense of humor and community involvement. Just make sure to keep all content business appropriate.
  
  
• Rewards – More often than not these days, people expect to be rewarded for doing business with you. No matter how great your rates may be or how few fees you charge, these aren’t enough. And everyone offers a credit card with reward points these days. It’s time to think bigger. Offer relationship-based programs that encourage members to bring all of their accounts to you. Many credit unions now give their members special yearly dividends on their accounts to boost wallet share.
  
  Another option is to help them save. Everyone wants to save money, and with the credit union credo of putting members first, a dynamic discount rewards program could be just what you need. Invest in America offers exclusive discounts on what people buy every day – from new cars and roadside services to monthly wireless service and satellite TV.
  
  
• Technology – Keeping up with the current website technology is basically a credit union requirement these days. How you do it is what matters. Your website is the first contact many people will have with your credit union – so make sure they can see it the way it was meant to be seen with responsive design. This lets your members have a seamless online experience whether they visit your site on a PC, tablet or smartphone. Speaking of smartphones, members are becoming more tech-savvy and expect their mobile banking app to be able to do almost everything they can do in your branches.
  
  Other ways you can set your credit union apart online is by offering online chat as a member service tool or a searchable FAQ section to get their questions answered. Financial literacy can also be a differentiator, so offer members helpful articles, videos or podcasts to help guide them.
  
  
• Staff – Sometimes it is excellent member service that sets your credit union apart. A happy staff leads to happy members and a happy credit union. Make your recruiting count and hire the right people for the right jobs. Once they’re hired, have a solid onboarding process in place so they can hit the ground running in their new position. Many credit unions have a “buddy system” in place so your new hire has a go-to person already on staff to help them smoothly navigate your credit union’s culture.
  
  Don’t forget about your current staff. Sometimes it’s easy to hire someone, train them and then have them fall off of HR’s radar. Stop that from happening by offering useful performance reviews and ongoing training, including your managers. The better your staff understands your credit union and their role in it, the better they’ll be able to serve your members.

Finding what makes your credit union truly unique is a complicated, continual process. But don’t be afraid to dive in and uncover things that set you apart from the competition – your credit union’s success could depend on it.

Getting it Right: Eagle Community Credit Union

Name: Eagle Community Credit Union

State: CA

Assets: $207,936,496

Members: 18,697

Website: www.eaglecu.org

Sometimes a member needs a little extra incentive to sway them into applying for that auto loan. Eagle Community Credit Union understood this and got creative. It started offering the One Perfect Loan promotion.

The One Perfect Loan promotion includes loan rates as low as 1.99% APR, the chance to win one year of free car payments, and a free one-year membership to Credit Union Auto Club, Invest in America’s new roadside assistance program.

“We, like most of our peers, are in need of consumer loans, specifically auto loans,” explains Erica Waetjen, vice president of marketing for Eagle Community Credit Union. “Once I heard about Credit Union Auto Club, I thought it would be a nice tie-in and a way to promote our loans and full service lending.”

This promotion was soon a great success at the credit union. “The members really responded to the promotion,” says Erica. “And in such a competitive rate environment for auto loans, the Credit Union Auto Club and the payments drawing really helped us to stand out amongst other financial institutions.” 

Invest in America is a membership enhancement rewards program from CU Solutions Group. Click here to learn more about Credit Union Auto Club

Credit Union Member Rewards to Set You Apart

A unique way your credit union can grow its members and/or wallet share is through a carefully thought-out rewards program. A successful rewards program is one that goes beyond credit card points. The three things to keep in mind when choosing a program are: to make sure it’s free to your membership; have it offer discounts on things your members want and use; and that it’s simple to implement at your credit union. 

A recent study from Kelton Research showed that: 

• Nearly all (95%) of credit union members say they trust special discount offers from their credit union
• 85% of members would like more discount offers from their credit union 
• 37% of members would increase credit union usage due to the availability of discounts

Credit unions are known to put members first, and offering a valuable rewards program underscores this mission. Member rewards are just another way that your credit union can set itself apart from banks.

CU Solutions Group’s own Invest in America (IIA) member rewards program has been proven to increase member loyalty and grow loans at credit unions. Plus, it offers exclusive discounts from partners such as GM, Sprint, Dell, TurboTax, DIRECTV and more. The IIA team is there for its credit unions every step of the way and even offers free marketing materials for credit unions to use in their branches, on their website and in their statements.

Six Ways to Boost Auto Loans at Your Credit Union

 by Amy Neale

As you might have read in last week’s blog, credit union loan growth is on the rise. In fact, over the past nine consecutive quarters, new auto loans have grown 10.7% and used auto loans are up 9.3%. Whether or not your credit union has experienced similar growth, there are still ways to boost auto loans:

1. Work with an indirect lending company like Credit Union Direct Lending.
2. Cultivate connections with auto research sites such as AutoSMART.
3. Target market to the 35-65 age demographic, especially those with incomes that range from $40K to $75K. The recent Credit Union Satisfaction Index (CUSI) from CFI Group showed this demographic was greatly interested in seeking auto loans from their credit union.
4. Offer incentives to members when they acquire new or used auto financing. Incentives like discounted or free auto club memberships can go a long way.
5. Join a membership enhancements program like Invest in America’s Credit Union Member Discount from GM which offers instant auto loan leads when your members get a GM discount authorization code.
6.  Make sure your frontline and lending staff are well trained and kept up to date on your latest auto loan promotions and rates and that your team has the skills to accomplish the loan volume your credit union needs. CUNA Mutual Group’s Lender Development program can help with this. 

Whichever way your credit union chooses to boost auto loan volume, the key is to be as proactive as possible. We’d love to hear other ways you have grown auto loans your credit union. Leave us a comment and let us know!

Help Your Credit Union Stand Out from the Crowd – Part 1: Member Loyalty

  by Amy Neale

In response to CUNA’s Member and Nonmember Survey Results, we thought we’d address three distinct ways you can help your credit union stand out from the competition. To do each section justice, we’re delivering it to you over a three-part blog series. Welcome to Part 1.

Member Loyalty

Now is the time to focus on rewarding member loyalty – when it’s at its highest national level in years. CUNA’s Member and Nonmember Survey shows that nearly 60% of members say their credit union is their primary financial institution (PFI). That’s up from 42% in 2009. Banks as a PFI have shrunk from 56% in 2009 to 38% today.

And with 57% of members “extremely likely” to recommend their credit unions to others, don’t you want to give them even more reasons to recommend you to their friends and family? The right member loyalty program can help accomplish that.  

Rewards

People like to do business with organizations that treat them well. While credit unions tend to inherently treat their members well, you need something to set you apart. That differentiation can come in the form of a member rewards or loyalty program.

When you hear “rewards program,” chances are you think of a credit card rewards program – and you’re not alone. Rewards point consultant Brian Kelly discovered in a study that 73% of Americans are enrolled in either a credit card rewards program or frequent traveler program.

While your credit union may have a successful credit card rewards program, it might be time to think above and beyond points when it comes to rewarding your members. It might be time to think of rewarding member engagement as well as credit card usage. This member engagement can come in the form of growing your credit union’s auto loan volume, wallet share and membership.

Does your member loyalty program help your credit union achieve these goals? Adding to or changing your rewards program could do just that. In addition to credit card rewards programs, there are programs out there that help members save. In this tight economy, it’s a surefire way to show your members that you’re putting their interests first. Can you think of a better way to grow member loyalty and help your credit union stand out from the competition?

Invest in America is an award-winning membership enhancement program from CU Solutions Group that can help your credit union grow. Click here to learn more.

Give SEG Member Loyalty a Boost at Your Credit Union

  by Amy Neale

A natural outcome of any SEG relationship is that at some point membership growth will level off or even decline. Either the newness wears off or your one-on-one relationship with the SEG relationship has hit a roadblock. This is where a member rewards program can be your credit union’s best friend.

Reward programs have become the go-to strategy to build customer loyalty for marketing departments in all industries. For your credit union, you should already have strong SEG member loyalty, so a rewards program is your opportunity to reinforce, and even boost, that loyalty.

Since they were first introduced as S&H Green Stamps in the late 1800s, reward programs have played an important part in customer loyalty. Today, the number of reward programs in the U.S. has reached 1.3 billion, according to Colloquy research. Your average American belongs to about 18 reward programs and 54% of them would consider increasing the amount of business they do with a company that offers a loyalty program.

But not just any rewards program will do for your credit union. You need to choose one whose goals underline your credit union’s brand strategy and mission and your SEG goals. To help make your SEG relationship a sticky one, your rewards program needs to be well-planned and well-executed. 

Invest in America was created solely for the credit union industry to help credit unions align their core products with its exclusive discounts and to help members save. It strives to have something for everyone with the Credit Union Discount from GM, the Sprint Credit Union Member Discount and more. But what if your members aren’t looking to buy a new car or cell phone? That’s where Shop America comes in. It gives members cash back on more than 1,500 retailers in its online mall. From Sears and Macy’s to Target and Best Buy, Shop America is assured to have something to offer all of your SEG members.

However, a great reward program means nothing to your SEGs if they don’t know about it. That’s why the Invest in America team offers free marketing materials for all of their partner discounts. You’ll also want to make sure your staff and SEGs are trained and up-to-date on all of your reward program benefits through emails, newsletters, websites and social media posts.

Adding Multimedia to Your Credit Union’s Website

by Amy Neale

Including dynamic content on your credit union’s website can improve traffic if done right – or repel visitors if done poorly. Like with many visual media it’s best to follow the “less is more” mantra. That being said, adding multimedia elements to your site can have a huge impact. While there are many aspects of website multimedia, we’re going to go with the basics: images, audio and video.

Images

While image quality is important, you need to be careful when using stock photography. Many images have been overused, so if you do use stock images make sure they’re fresh and original looking. Using quality images of real members and staff from your credit union is always preferable. They can add credibility and authenticity to your brand and are statistically known to keep visitors on your website longer. Images really do matter to your members. A survey by SEO agency BrightLocal showed that 60% of the respondents said that images associated with local businesses made them more likely to consider or contact that business.

Audio

When audio first became available as a website component, there were numerous sites out there that started incorporating music on their site – much to their visitors’ chagrin. But there is an audio component you can add to your site that visitors not only enjoy but find useful – podcasts. Educational podcasts to improve your members’ financial literacy are simple to add to your site and go a long way towards illustrating to your members how your credit union continues to put their needs first. Your credit union could create its own podcasts, but there are also pre-produced podcasts that you could include that would give your site a more professional image.

Video

According to comScore, 100 million Americans watch online videos daily – why not have it be a video on your credit union’s site? And visitors who view a Web video are 64% more likely to purchase than other site visitors. Video is definitely the “now” multimedia element to include on your credit union’s website. Just make sure the videos are of good quality, short and relevant to the viewer. Viewer generated content, such as member contests, etc. are a great affordable option as well. So is pre-produced/credit union branded videos from partners like Gas Station TV and Invest in America. And the use of educational or instructional videos has been known to grow brand loyalty. Whatever type of video you incorporate, just make sure it loads quickly or they’ll have the opposite effect.

The SEO Advantage

Including images and/or video on your credit union’s website not only improves traffic, but it can boost search engine optimization (SEO) as well. Effectively filling in the image and video descriptions can help move your site up in the search engine rankings. And depending on how your videos or images are added to your website, you should be able to track visitors, videos watched and click-through rates. Like with many things in life, adding multimedia to your credit union’s website is a trial and error endeavor – but it’s worth it.

 Related Services: New Media, Podcasts, SEO

Gaining the Competitive Advantage for Your Credit Union - Part 3: The Ultimate Reward

 by Amy Neale

Below is Part 3 of a four-part series we've done on Gaining the Competitive Advantage for Your Credit Union.

Does your credit union’s member rewards program begin and end with points earned for using its credit card? Time to think bigger than the competition. From your grocery store and pharmacy to big box chains, everyone is offering their customers rewards far beyond points.

Instead of offering your members a contingency-based program – they have to spend to earn – why not offer them a program that rewards them just for being a member? A program like this could boost your member loyalty while enabling your credit union to tie its core products to the rewards.

A good example of this idea in action is CU Solutions Group’s member discount program Invest in America (IIA). In a 2012 survey, participating credit unions were most satisfied with these IIA benefits: the ability to offer member discounts (80%), earning additional non-interest-income (69%) and increasing value of membership (68%).

The program that IIA participating credit unions were most satisfied with? The Sprint Credit Union Member Discount, which has 1,806 participating credit unions and has saved members more than $244 million since it began. 

So, you can set your credit union apart by offering your members and business members discounts on their wireless service, all while earning incentives for your credit union – just for promoting the discount to your members. A win-win for everyone!

Getting it Right: Langley Federal Credit Union

Name: Langley Federal Credit Union
Assets : $1,699,949,400
Members : 166,955
Website Facebook  Twitter
 
While Invest in America has Shop America, Langley Federal Credit Union has its own Shop Langley. Shop Langley lists discounts from local companies as well as from national Invest in America partners. Langley FCU uses their website as a key marketing tool for Invest in America and a simple way to grow member loyalty.

“We built the Shop Langley section of our site to feature many discounts and offers provided to our members. The Invest in America program is a major part of that area,” explains Langley FCU Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer Brett Noll. “We also cross-educate the deals on relevant pages, such as mentioning car savings where we present vehicle loan information.”

Its membership is the cornerstone to everything Langley FCU does, including providing its members with Invest in America’s valuable discounts, “We’re always looking for ways to enhance the value of membership. The program has grown and now offers a variety of great deals and our members truly appreciate their credit union for making these avenues of saving available,” states Noll.

Staff and member reactions to Invest in America have been nothing but positive, “To sum it up in a word, appreciation,” Noll says. “Staff and members simply appreciate the fact that the credit union cares enough to help them save money when they’re shopping.”

To learn more about Invest in America visit LoveMyCreditUnion.org. 

Meaningful Discounts = Increased Credit Union Member Loyalty

by Van Barker

Credit union branches have historically been a “go-to source” for meaningful discounts on items such as movie or theme park tickets. These discounts created the tangible benefit of increased branch traffic and the equally important intangible benefit of increased member loyalty. Over time, the combination of credit unions’ high level of service, competitive rates and delighters such as member discounts helped the credit union movement establish loyalty and trust as clear competitive advantages over larger financial institutions.

The growth of e-commerce and online banking makes it imperative that credit unions expand their discount programs beyond local, in-branch offers. Specifically, developing a cohesive and well designed “member discounts page” on your credit union’s website will effectively increase your member loyalty, website traffic and cross-selling opportunities for core products. In fact, findings from Kelton Research revealed that 85% of members would like more discount offers from their credit union and 37% of members would increase credit union usage due to the availability of discounts.

The Invest in America team has helped hundreds of credit unions provide meaningful member discounts by providing a full range of turnkey programs with free marketing collateral and web design that include discounts from trusted U.S.-based companies like GM, Sprint, Dell and Intuit. To learn more and easily increase member loyalty, please feel free to contact us at investinamerica@cusolutionsgroup.com.

Related Services:  Invest in America, Credit Union Member Discount from GM, Sprint Credit Union Member Discount, Dell Discount, Tax Services Discount