Posts Tagged ‘Marketing’
Credit unions: not for everybody
Credit unions aren’t for everyone. There, I said it. And it’s true. The latest numbers bear this out – according to Callahan, credit unions hold 6.6% of assets and 8.7% of deposits nationally. That’s a niche group if I ever saw one. Logically, a whole lot of people – the majority of consumers, really – could benefit…
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Where the wild things aren’t
A few months ago, I was talking shop with a relative who works in management at a large public library. She was lamenting the fact that libraries tend to attract introverts – the sort of person who would rather follow safe lists of rules than take a chance on interacting with other people. One of…
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First, fix your web site
Way too many credit unions have terrible websites, and frankly, I’m tired of it. I’m not talking about subtle things only geeks care about — I’m talking about some real train wrecks that make the credit unions look like amateur operations. Here’s the real problem: potential new members won’t do business with you without doing…
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Dreams and decisions
Ultra-blogger Seth Godin points out that people are astonishingly bad at making decisions about money. For most of us, that’s hardly news. But is it, where you work? If you’re working at a credit union, you’re probably pretty good with dollars and cents. And you’re likely surrounded by people who are also pretty good with…
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People are squirrels and CUs are nuts
Back in 1957, an informal study tried to find out whether squirrels preferred “wild” food or human food. The researchers went to Central Park and put out several morsels at once (natural fare like hazelnuts and acorns, along with human food like peanuts, popcorn, and Cracker Jack) and recorded which ones were taken first. The…
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The Marketspeak Menace
–As an advertising copy writer, I’m a failure. I’m incapable of writing fluff, and I’m not much of a spin doctor. I doubt I’ll ever get rich writing gushy catalog copy or political doubletalk. In short, I just can’t spew marketspeak worth a hoot. It’s a good thing I ended up in credit union marketing. At the…
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Are you buying talent or paper clips?
There’s a big difference between buying services based on talent and buying services from a vendor. To get the best results, your working relationship with someone selling talent (an artist) must be very different than with a vendor selling paper clips or bathroom remodeling. And since you are in charge of that relationship, here are…
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The-Word-That-Must-Not-Be-Named
Harry Potter reruns have been on TV lately, and every time I hear “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named,” I start thinking about other words that are rarely spoken for fear of retribution. “Profitable” is one of those words that you may never hear at a credit union. At least, spoken out loud. Yes, I know that credit unions are…
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It’s time for your mid-year marketing review
No, not your employee review, although if you flunk this one, you may need to be worried about that. Take a little time right now to go through a Mid-Year Marketing Review Where do you and your credit union stand right now with regards to your strategic goals in these areas? Loan Growth Membership Growth…
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Why would anyone join a credit union they have never heard of?
To many credit union CFOs (and CEOs that used to be CFOs), Marketing is just overhead. They don’t understand it, they don’t value it, and it doesn’t connect in their minds with the personnel and facilities it takes to keep branches open. To them, cutting the marketing budget is a quick fix when you need…
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