Make the Most of LinkedIn’s Changes at Your Credit Union

 

As far as social media platforms go, LinkedIn isn’t always a priority for credit unions. While the professional networking site isn’t as consumer-based as Facebook or even Twitter, your credit union may want to consider adding it to its stable of social media endeavors. Around since 2003, LinkedIn now has more than 277 million members worldwide, many of whom are leaders of Fortune 500 companies.

LinkedIn is a great resource for credit unions that are looking to hire, want to target select employer groups or are just looking for ways to boost their SEO and online presence. LinkedIn can also be an invaluable tool helping to position your credit union in the marketplace. 

About Showcase Pages 

Another new benefit of LinkedIn is what it calls Showcase Pages. A Showcase Page begins with a strong hero image, or banner, at the top followed by a short description of the purpose of the page. Under that are any posts your credit union makes on the page. The benefit of these pages is you can post about specific products and services. That’s what they’re there for. Unlike regular social media company pages where you refrain from too many posts about your products and services so you don’t alienate your members – Showcase Pages are all about marketing.

Up until mid-April, businesses on LinkedIn were able to have a Products & Services Page to highlight what they offer. LinkedIn is taking that option away and is encouraging companies to create Showcase Pages instead. Even though Showcase Pages have been around for about a year now, thanks to this LinkedIn change you’ll be seeing many more of them soon. 

Showcase Pages and Your Credit Union 

If your credit union is already on LinkedIn and have a Products & Services Page, it’s time to come up with a strategy for creating a Showcase Page. And even if your credit union isn’t on LinkedIn, you might want to consider joining it now and creating a Showcase Page. In many ways, these pages seem custom-tailored to credit unions. Why? Because you can target market and use selective messaging.

Many companies like Microsoft, HP and others are already successfully using Showcase Pages for company divisions, etc. Credit unions could use Showcase Pages to promote a new product or service, highlight its youth programs or even devote a page to all of its community outreach.

There are a couple of downsides to LinkedIn Showcase Pages. First, it’s additional social media content for your credit union to create and maintain. And two, you’ll be starting from scratch as far as followers go. But if you already have a social media platform or two going, it’s simple to cross-promote platforms and share content.

However your credit union utilizes LinkedIn, or doesn’t, is of course up to you. We just wanted you to be aware of these changes and highlight how these changes could benefit your credit union. We also want to offer our assistance should you want to elevate your social media presence in any form. 

What’s Your Social Media Personality?

 by Amy Neale

We’ve all become comfortable putting people in various categories: Type A, Gen Y, soccer mom, etc. Each “type” has its own personality and set of expected characteristics. But did you ever think about how your – or your credit union’s – social media habits might have a personality of their own?

Borrowing heavily from the Meyer-Briggs Type Indicator personality test, I’ve put together the four main social media personalities. Do you recognize yourself or your credit union in any of them?

• Performers (SP)
  Performers like to live in the now, use all five senses with all they do and like spontaneity. With social media the more platforms the better. They tend to retweet and repost at the spur of the moment and don’t like to be kept to any social media calendar. If you’re looking for the latest credit union news, a Performer is your best bet.

• Intellectuals (NT)
  Using their intuition and logic whenever possible, Intellectuals are analytical, inquisitive and avoid emotion at all costs. When online, Intellectuals only report the facts – never opinions. They follow only trusted sources like the Wall Street Journal or the New York Times. While they might not be the most interesting of choices to follow, you know their information is reliable.

• Guardians (SJ)
  A Guardian is a perfect fit for the credit union industry. They like security and stability and always follow the rules. Guardians are the ultimate credit union ambassadors online. If there’s positive credit union news out there, they’ll find it and share it. But Guardians can also be rigid and inflexible – so don’t expect them to veer off of their social media strategies or calendars.

• Idealists (NF)
  Everyone knows what an idealist is. As far as a personality, they’re empathetic visionaries who see what others cannot – such as patterns or connections. They also are known to greatly dislike criticism or conflict. In the social media world they, like the Guardians, are great credit union ambassadors. But they might not be the best group to handle any online member complaints. 

Like most personality tests, you might find yourself or your credit union falls under more than one category. The best case scenario is to have a bit of all four in you. The more balanced you are in social media, the more balanced your credit union image will be.

We'd love it if you'd share your - or your credit union's - social media personality on CU Solutions Group's Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or LinkedIn pages! 

Personality Key

Feeling (F)
Intuitive (N)
Judging (J)
Perceiving (P)
Sensing (S)
Thinking (T)

6 Reasons Your Credit Union Should Be LinkedIn

When it comes to credit unions, blogs, websites, Facebook and Twitter seem to be the most popular kids in the online neighborhood. Too often LinkedIn gets overlooked as solely a business networking site. And even if that is what LinkedIn does best, it doesn’t mean your credit union should ignore it.

We’ve got six great reasons you should build a presence on LinkedIn for your credit union. And if you’re already on the site, you might pick up on some new ways to use it!

1. Promote – Just like you already (hopefully) do on your credit union’s website and Facebook page, LinkedIn allows you to promote offers and discounts to your members by creating a Products tab on your Company Page. Plus, it’s a great way to cross-promote all of your other online efforts like your website, blog, etc.
   
2. Engage – Where would your credit union be without its select employee groups (SEGs)? Guess what, chances are your partner employers are probably on LinkedIn. So, reach your SEGs right where they network! A LinkedIn page will help further establish your brand and presence with the company’s employees.
   
3. Establish – In addition to SEGs, LinkedIn will allow you to further establish your credit union’s brand and presence with is the overall community you serve. With LinkedIn your credit union can search, research and connect with community organizations to team with on upcoming events in your area.
   
4. Answer – Did you know LinkedIn lets your credit union flaunt its extensive expertise? Click on the More tab on the top navigation bar and select Answers. Then you can search by category (like Finance and Accounting) or do your own search for topics like checking, saving, mortgages, etc. Then just look for a question you like and then answer away!
   
5. Optimize – Looking for a new way to help boost your credit union’s search engine rankings? LinkedIn, like most social media sites, can do just that. When current or potential members search for your credit union, a LinkedIn entry usually pops up on page one. How’s that for search engine optimization (SEO)? Just make sure to update your content regularly to keep up the rankings and ensure that visitors don’t click on outdated information.
   
6. Network – For those of you that are already familiar with LinkedIn, you know it’s all about connections and groups. It’s no different for your credit union. Join or create groups that feature other credit union professional. This not only lets you network, but it also enables you to start discussions, exchange ideas and analyze industry trends. You can also ask your staff and board to join LinkedIn and follow your credit union – which helps build Follower and Employee Insights.

We hope this article has motivated you to add or enhance your credit union’s presence on LinkedIn. If you need a hand with this or any other social media endeavor, CU Solutions Group’s social media experts are happy to help.

Does Your Credit Union Have a Social Media Policy? (Part 1 of 2)

The following installment of a two-part blog comes from our cohort Joyce Campbell, content manager at HRN Performance Solutions.

The last ten years has seen a revolution in how people communicate with each other. Social networking, which includes use of Internet forums, blogs, wikis, LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Twitter, Flickr – and the list goes on and on – has changed the world. As with most social transformations, this one affects the workplace as well.

If your credit union hasn't already created a social computing policy and guidelines for your workplace, you probably should. No policy is a risky policy. The trick is trying to decide what will work for you, specifically.

The following are a few key points to consider in drafting your credit union's policy. Given how rapidly things are changing in this area, you’ll likely need to review and update your policy regularly. It will definitely be a work in progress. 

Developing Social Networking Policies and Guidelines 

1. One size definitely does not fit all – Don’t expect to adopt another organization’s policy. At the very least you’ll need to customize sample policies (including the HRN written policy included as a template in HR Suite) to fit your credit union, how technology is used in your workplace, your employees and overall organizational need.

2. There are varying degrees of tolerance among organizations – High tech organizations may be very liberal regarding employee social computing and see business opportunities in letting employees network at work. Some older brick and mortar companies may have little use for and only see problems arising from employee social networking. Where does your credit union fit along this continuum?

3. What kind of social networking does your organization seek to regulate?
 
a) When?
      i. Social networking during work
      ii. Social networking after work
      iii. Both

b) What?
      i. What types of communications do you intend to address?
      ii. Does it depend on whether the activities are at work or home?

4. What types of communication may be useful to your organization?


5. What types of communication could present problems to you?

6. Which groups in your organization should be allowed to use company equipment and work time for social networking? – All employees? None? Some?

7. Should you consider blocking, filtering, or monitoring certain sites at work? If so, for what groups of employees?

8. What are the legal concerns and potential negative aspects for employers?  

a)    Companies may be liable for defamatory, harassing, or discriminatory communications by their employees.

b)    Organizations should understand that employees have certain privacy rights and, in some states, laws protect employees who engage in lawful activities outside of work.

c)     Although this area of law is evolving, there are protections for employees engaging in political activities so an employee blog regarding politics, working conditions, or employee rights is probably protected.

d)    Federal labor law provides that employees have the right to discuss wages and terms and conditions of employment.

e)    Employers must be careful not to violate the federal Stored Communications Act. It prohibits a 3rd party from accessing electronic communications (e.g., email or social network sites) without proper authorization. There’s nothing wrong if an employer reads an employee’s posts on a public site…there’s no expectation of privacy. However, if that employer gains access to a password protected site by illicit means or by coercing another employee to offer up the password, that’s another problem.

f)     Many employers review applicants’ social sites to learn more about the candidates. However, an employer who learns about an applicant’s or employee’s disability, sexual identity, race, etc., and fails to hire the applicant or promote the employee could face discrimination allegations.

g)    A Federal Trade Commission guideline (Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising) provides that employees who use social media to make statements about an employer’s products could create liability (even unintended) if a consumer later claims that he was misled or purchased a defective or dangerous product. Companies could be liable for any false or unsubstantiated claims by employees or even for an employee’s failure to disclose his relationship with the company.

h)    Inappropriate communication can damage company reputation.

i)      Problems may arise by intentional or accidental employee action.

j)      It can waste an awful lot of time and decrease productivity. (Some characterize this as “social notworking” vs. “social networking”).

Come back next week to read Part 2!

Recruit Credit Union Employees (for Free!) with LinkedIn

LinkedIn has become the “go-to” place for job seekers or those looking to network or connect with friends and current or former coworkers. Connections aside, LinkedIn is also a bountiful tool for credit union human resource professionals. 

Like CareerBuilder.com, Monster.com and other job classified sites, you can post a job opening on LinkedIn for a fee. Posting fees range from $125 to $295 per job depending on where your credit union is located and how long you want to post the position. But if your credit union is like many other organizations out there, your HR department is working on a tight budget and those numbers can add up quickly.

     There are two fairly simple ways to recruit new hires for free on LinkedIn:

• Looking Good
  An effective way to find potential applicants for a position is to look for them. In the search box on the top right of the LinkedIn home page you’ll see a drop-down menu. Click on People and type in what position you’re looking to fill and you’ll get numerous people on the site who have that title in their profiles.
  
  For a more specific search, click on “Advanced” next to the search box. This lets you specify parameters like title, industry (there’s an option to select Financial Services), location and more. Just sift through the search results to find likely candidates for your job opening. You’ll even see a BETA testing area that’s unclickable, but shows you what’s coming soon for LinkedIn searching.  
  
• Join the Crowd
  If you haven’t already, we suggest you create a LinkedIn profile and a company profile for your credit union, and then join groups relevant to credit unions as well as any related fields. As a group member you’re able to post “discussions”; they even have a tab for Job Discussions where you can post a job opening. It’s free to post and you’ll want to have a link to the job details, whether it’s a PDF or a link to your credit union’s website.
  
  This form of recruiting relies heavily on word of mouth, which can go a long way in the world of LinkedIn. But the credit union industry is one based on community and the credit union focused LinkedIn groups will definitely help you spread the word!

Whichever way you choose, you’ll be one step closer to finding the perfect candidate to join your credit union family. Plus, it doesn’t put a dent in your credit union’s budget!

Protect Your Credit Union with a Social Media Policy

If your credit union is like many organizations, you’ve jumped onto the social media bandwagon enthusiastically, but without having a social media policy in place. Good news – it’s not too late to develop and implement one! All it takes is a little thought, preparation and research to create a thorough policy. 

When we say social media, we’re talking about Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and even blogs. If your credit union is participating in any of these platforms, have you determined where they fit into your overall strategic plan and philosophy? Have you analyzed the potential risks involved? These risks might include:

• Security risk – With all of the back and forth communications, you may be at risk of system intruders
• Regulatory risk – Anything you post could be considered advertising, which may be subject to compliance issues
• Legal risk – Social media has the potential of opening your credit union up to lawsuits, compliance problems, copyright issues and even employee discrimination
• Reputational risk – An erroneous post or slapdash comment could open the door to negative feedback and a public relations nightmare

By adopting a social media policy, you can protect your credit union from these risks and even fines or expensive legal fees. Each social media platform comes with its own risks and considerations. And since all are essentially electronic forms of communication, they can be construed as advertisements.

Here are points to consider while diving into the world of social media:

Facebook
There are several informational areas on a Facebook page to add static organizational details about your credit union. These need to be reviewed and approved by management before posting. Daily status updates are considered interactive, and if you wait to get each one approved you’ll bog down the whole process. Make sure management periodically reviews the posts for content and that the person posting has a set of stringent guidelines to follow. If the information is an actual advertisement, you’ll need to meet the advertising regulatory and Facebook’s advertising guidelines.

Twitter
Just like Facebook, there are static areas to pre-approve content and the interactive element. Tweets should also be periodically reviewed and have posting guidelines in place.

LinkedIn
This is the best place to have a condensed online brochure for your credit union and to spotlight your staff. Just make sure everything is reviewed and approved by management before posting. Also, you might want to review what’s on your employee’s LinkedIn profiles to ensure it aligns with your credit union’s page.

Blogs
Any blog should go through the proper review and approval channels before being posted. You may want to consider including a disclosure or disclaimer on the main page for your blog describing your views and listing what states you’re licensed to conduct business in. Plus, always give credit for any sources you use in your blog post including quotes, articles, images or videos.

Whatever platforms your credit union utilizes, monitor incoming posts, tweets or comments from outside sources. Make sure to delete any inappropriate or misleading statements.

This overview is basically the tip of the iceberg on considerations your credit union needs to make when participating in social media. Each organization is unique with its own individual environment and context. But a solid social media plan could go a long way in illustrating to regulators or auditors that your credit union is taking this very public role seriously.
 

Related Services:  Social Media, Online Services

Using Technology to Recruit Credit Union Talent

When some of us began careers in the area of “personnel” (as it was called in those days), computers were non-existent and hiring employees was pretty simple and straightforward:

Step One: Run an ad in the local newspaper
Step Two: Screen typed resumes sent to you via mail
Step Three: Top candidates complete an application form (handwritten) and are interviewed
Step Four: Select best candidate, make offer – HIRED!!

Although this process is still used, your credit union is placing itself at a disadvantage if it ignores technological tools during the recruiting process. Online activity is now mainstream and needs to be used when hiring candidates. Consider these statistics:

• 1.3 million blog posts daily (18 per second)
• 100,000 new blogs daily (2 per second)
• More podcasts than global radio stations
• 90 million Facebook profiles
• 100 million+ LinkedIn profiles

These statistics can be overwhelming, so the first step is to evaluate your options:

LinkedIn is a business-related social networking site with users in more than 200 countries. It’s a way to manage your professional identity, and link to others to build your professional network. As an HR professional, it provides a resource to get a glimpse of an applicant and look at information posted regarding their personal profile. Recently, LinkedIn has uncovered some new tools: Linked Classmates and LinkedIn Talent Pipeline.

If you have any teenagers in your family, it is a given that you are familiar with Facebook. If your credit union isn’t on it, it may be missing the mark in branding and reaching the demographic it needs to recruit from. As an example, Ernst & Young’s Career Facebook page has well over 76,000 “likes.” It includes career and recruiting information, internship experience, photos, a recruiting brochure, a weekly poll question, career tip of the week and guidelines for its Facebook group. Of its members, 44 percent stated they heard about Ernst & Young through Facebook. Although your credit union’s recruiting needs in terms of volume may not be at the same level as Ernst & Young, your pool of applicants may be the same.

When it comes to recruiting, search engine optimization could be one of your best friends. Take the time to ensure your credit union’s job page on your website has the keywords it needs to attract potential applicants searching for jobs in your field and area.

On the horizon is another technology tool called Edge Content/Microformats. Imagine being able to “tag” your job information so that any job site, i.e., CareerBuilder, Monster, etc., will grab that job information and post it in their appropriate lists.

Before launching your recruiting technology, talk to your IT gurus. They can help you map out the best way for you to position your credit union, its job postings, and advertisements to reach the right people – all while screening those who may not meet qualifications. Need some assistance determining which technologies are for you? HRN Performance consultants can help.

There’s no way around it – recruiting through technology is here to stay. Whether you choose to use LinkedIn, Facebook, search engines, or a combination of all of the above, the time to engage is now. So, welcome aboard!

Related Services: HR Consulting, Search Engine Optimization