Credit Union Marketing
The epic battle between Marketing and Accounting
Some things just don’t mix: Light and dark. Fire and Ice. Marketing and Accounting. But why has there always been this constant struggle between the two sides? Why does Marketing see Accounting as a miser with an iron grip on the budget, while Accounting sees Marketing as a wasteful spendthrift with no sense of ROI?…
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The 1-2 punch is knockout marketing
Most people are not engineers, or scientists, or accountants. They are emotional, not logical. Heck, most people don’t even like doing math, especially when it comes to money. Put a dollar sign in front of a number or a percent sign behind it, and most people’s eyes start to glaze over. Behavioral studies using brain…
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Build a Brand Strategy before a list of new names
When a Credit Union Board and/or Executive Team decides that it is FINALLY time for a name change, too often they make a major mistake: They start coming up with names. That’s a natural reaction, to be sure. After all, the people around the table certainly know the history of the credit union and have…
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Taming the toxic client
In my last two articles, I discussed iDiz Inc’s perspective on Building the ideal credit union marketer and Helping the not-so-ideal credit union marketer. Now it’s time to dish up some dirt! With some people, it’s almost impossible to develop a productive business relationship. I’m sorry to say we’ve encountered all the red flags below,…
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Marketers often don’t know what they don’t know
Those heart-warming, emotionally-moving ads you are running? Only about 19% of consumers notice them. You say your ads are more thought-provoking? 33% of the people may have paid attention. Are you more focused on creating well-designed, eye-catching visuals? You reached about 50% of your audience. If you truly want to get their attention, you have…
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Registered trademarks: do you need one?
For many years, we’ve been working with a wonderful trademark attorney, Amy Wright, who has advised us and and several of our clients on the ins and outs of getting a trademark. We sat down with Amy and asked her to share her knowledge of trademarks with our CU marketer friends. ———————– Diz: Amy, why…
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Building the ideal credit union marketer
Over the years, I’ve noticed that our most successful clients — the credit union marketers who get the best results and make this job a lot of fun — have a lot in common. In fact, several years back, I started compiling a list of traits for our ideal client as a way to define…
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80% of your credit union’s members are blood-sucking parasites
Okay, that may be worded just a bit strong, but it’s certainly one way to look at the idea that the vast majority of your profits (80%) come from a minority of your members (20%). Obviously this isn’t a new idea. Most CEOs & CFOs are well aware of the 80/20 Rule, and are among…
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Are you DIY dizzy?
Credit unions have a strong DIY (do-it-yourself) ethic. It probably comes from the early days — every credit union started as a home-grown effort. The cigar box in a desk drawer became a shoebox in a closet, then the CU moved into an unused office near the break room, and, well, the rest is history. For…
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Blow it up and start over
Let’s do a thought experiment. Close your eyes and imagine getting everyone out safely of the building. Hustle them down the street and issue big bags of popcorn, party hats, confetti, and kazoos. All set? Count backwards from ten and then… Imagine blowing up the credit union. Now imagine how you would build a new credit…
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