Invest in America is Now Love My Credit Union Rewards

We thrilled to announce that it’s official – Invest in America is now Love My Credit Union Rewards.

For credit unions, this rebrand brings two big changes. First, and brand new to the program, we’ve developed bundles to make it easier for credit unions to participate in the holistic program. We also have developed cohesive marketing requirements to simplify promotion implementation and management. Second, we streamlined marketing requirements across the individual programs.

So, what are bundles? We have grouped like-discounts into bundles – which facilitates enrollment and offers multi-partner marketing materials.

Bundles

Click on the bundle links to learn more or to enroll: 

• All – This includes all Love My Credit Union Rewards partners and is the best option for both credit unions and members. It encompasses all of our exclusive partner discounts and our 1,500+ merchant cashback shopping experience, so members save on large purchases, as well as on the things they buy every day. Your credit union will receive all the benefits of the program – adding member value and member retention, increased usage of core products and generating non-interest income.
• Auto – All auto-related discounts that help boost auto loans.
• Home – Home-related discounts that can help drive mortgages and refinances.
• Invest in America – Discounts on U.S.-based companies.

Many of the updated marketing materials are already available in our Partner Center; including GM, Sprint, Allied, ADT, Credit Union Auto Club and Love to Shop (formerly Shop America). And more are rolling out soon, including DIRECTV and our bundled materials.
 

We are very excited to launch our program with changes that benefit everyone. Saving your members money and accessing great tactics for loan growth, member retention and non-interest income just got easier!

For more information on any of these new, exciting changes, visit the Love My Credit Union Rewards Partner Center, reach out to your business consultant or email ClientSupport@cusolutionsgroup.com. 

Three Ways to Grow Your Credit Union’s Non-Interest Income

As a credit union, reconciling your not-for-profit, “people helping people” mission with the need to generate income can be tough. Unlike other financial institutions, hiking up fees or charging for once free services aren’t a credit union’s go-to solution when the need for additional non-interest income becomes apparent. So, what’s a member-friendly credit union to do? Get creative.

Comparing the 2012 and 2013 Non-Interest Income Surveys from Callahan & Associates show that overall, non-interest income is down for credit unions. Here are some numbers to consider:

• NSF/courtesy pay income was the largest source of non-interest for credit unions in 2012. In 2013 it moved to second.
• Non-interest income from debit card interchange and fees is now the largest contributor for credit unions – up to 23.8%, compared to 22.5% in 2012.
• Miscellaneous non-interest income also grew from 4.5% in 2012 to 8.8% in 2013. Safety deposit boxes and skip-a-payment fees were the most common source of this income. 

Growing Non-Interest Income

Other sources of non-interest income on the survey included mortgage sales, credit card interchange and fees, investment and insurance sales, ATM fees and others. As with most issues credit unions need to contend with in this roller coaster economy, it may be time to get creative on sources of non-interest income. How creative is up to you. We have a few suggestions – some are just expanding on current efforts while others include adding something new to the mix:

1. Become their PFI
   Easier said than done, right? But jockeying to become your members’ primary financial institution may not be as difficult as you think. There’s still plenty of backlash from the banking crisis a few years ago that many members would be happy to ditch their bank. They just need reasons to move, and a simple process to do so.
   
   Increased wallet share is basically the Holy Grail for credit unions, and sometimes less is more. If your credit union doesn’t offer free checking, it should. The more members you attract with fewer fees can exceed what you currently earn on your regular checking accounts.  Relationship discounts are also a popular way to attract more wallet share. Discounts on loans if members use their checking accounts to make payments is becoming more commonplace. Also, have an online (and in-branch) switch kit to help simplify the move for your members.
   
   
2. Think Beyond Interchange
   As the survey says, debit card interchange and fees are the top source of non-interest income for credit unions. But there are other ways your credit union can take advantage of debit cards. Train your front line staff to promote debit card overdraft protection if you have it. If you don’t, you might want to consider adding it. Let your members know exactly how it works, what it costs and how it can help them. Chances are they’ll sign up.
   
   Offer instant-issue debit cards. A financial consulting firm discovered that credit unions/banks that offer instant-issue debit cards have a 15% higher activation on new accounts, 20% more swipes and new accountholders spend 20% more. Finally, if your credit union wants to benefit even more from debit card interchange and fees, then promote card acquisition and usage. Maybe offer incentives for increased usage. Once your members become comfortable using their credit union debit card, they’ll use it more often.
   
   
3. Partner Up
   Sometimes all it takes to boost non-interest income is the right program or partner – or both! Many member rewards programs offer credit union incentives for active participation. This lets your credit union bring your members attractive discounts while generating non-interest income at the same time.
   
   With many programs you’ll need to weigh any initial outlay to potential earned income. With other programs, like our Love My Credit Union Rewards program, credit unions only need to promote the program to earn non-income incentives. We even offer free marketing materials and support to help accomplish this. Discount partners like Sprint and Credit Union Auto Club offer valuable incentives – while other big-name partners like GM, TurboTax and DIRECTV help attract your members to the program. It’s a good source of non-interest income for minimal effort – a total win-win for your credit union!

However your credit union chooses to grow its non-interest income, it’s vital to rethink how you do it. With more and more consumer/member scrutiny on fees and rates, it pays in the long run to have the reduced fees and comprehensive services that non-interest income can help bring.

To learn more about Love My Credit Union Rewards, click here. To learn more about our partner discounts, click here. 

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.

What Free Checking Really Means for Credit Unions

by Amy Neale

 

For those that work within the credit union industry or are just credit union advocates (we’re both!), the results of the recent 2013 Checking Survey from Bankrate should come as no surprise. Here are some highlights:

• 72% of credit union checking accounts remain free while just 39% of banks offer fee-free checking. The average fee most banks charge is $5.54 per month.
• Overdraft/non-sufficient funds fees averaged $26.74 at credit unions and $31.26 at banks.
• When it comes to ATMs, nearly a third of credit unions doesn’t charge members fees for using out-of-network ATMs or waive one of these fees per week. The credit unions that do charge ATM fees usually charge $1 to $1.50. Banks, however, usually charge $2 to $2.50.

      We know that many other people/websites are talking about these survey results and that you may have even read this data already. Not wanting to be redundant, we’ve brought these statistics up for two reasons – both of which are to help your credit union.

 

Keeping it Free

With operating and regulatory costs steeply rising each year, it can be awfully tempting to get rid of your credit union’s free checking. We strongly recommend you look elsewhere for added revenue. Ditching the free checking could mean a substantial portion of your membership will think about ditching you. 

Bank of America has already shown us that consumers are sick of the constant fees – we even have the annual National Bank Transfer Day to remind us of this. The best way to look at your credit union’s free checking is as marketing leverage. The importance of supporting the not-for-profit credit union philosophy should not be underestimated. Credit union members are a loyal bunch, until you start tinkering with their finances, that is. 

Offering low or no fees and great rates have all become part of the credit union mantra. Now is not the time to change that. According to the TD Bank Checking Experience Index, a survey of more than 3,000 U.S. consumers with checking accounts, 12% said they closed or switched their primary checking account in the last two years with 39% saying fees were the main reason. Don’t give your members a reason to close their accounts with you.

On the Money

So, you want to keep your free checking and reasonable loan rates, but expenses are rising and other income like overdraft revenue is at an all-time low. What’s a credit union to do? Get creative and proactive when looking for non-interest income sources, of course. Apart from upping wallet share and membership in general, many credit unions reevaluate their offerings – from credit card programs to online banking – to see where there’s room to grow.

Another area to look into is a reward program with incentives. When implemented properly and maintained diligently, these programs can be a major asset to your credit union. Many of these programs revolve around marketing incentives that will just a little effort on your part can have a nice payoff for your credit union.

The membership enhancement program Invest in America is just such a program. Its partnerships with Sprint, Credit Union Auto Club and others offer marketing incentives based on credit union and credit union member participation. Invest in America is free to join and offers free professional marketing materials to help you earn those incentives.

Whatever route your credit union goes, whichever way it chooses to earn non-interest income – keep your free checking, low fees and great rates. It’ll be worth your while in the long run.