Home Buying with Sam(PART 2 – CLOSING)

New home buyers need a budgeting coach

A couple of months ago (wait… really? Two whole months?) I shared my experience at the beginning of the home buying process and the ups and downs of online mortgage tools. Now that I’m past the buying process and into the owning process–which is both way better and way scarier, by the way– I can…

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ICYMI (In Case You Missed It)

In Case You Missed It – 6.18.25

A look at the GENIUS Act. Making your CU’s mission the a priority. Helping members through the ups and downs of real life. Putting an end to penny production. The importance of social media and AI. Here’s what we noticed, in case you missed it: So, uh, is the GENIUS Act good or bad or…

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Home buying with Sam, Part 1

Are your online mortgage loan tools actually helpful?

I’m already in my mid-30s, married, bought a new car, and have a toddler, so I thought I would complete my “ideal credit union member” bingo card by buying a house. In related news, this is going to be a shorter blog post because I’m in the process of buying a house. ARGH! On another…

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ICYMI (In Case You Missed It)

In Case You Missed It – 3.12.25

Credit union stability, member-confusing tech, cannabis banking, starting new credit unions, weird St. Patrick’s Day traditions, and how Americans spend their money. Here’s what we noticed, in case you missed it: CUs as a “Beacon of Stability” Spotted on CUInsight, this article from Jim Holt of CU Student Choice highlights one of the most vital…

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young people aren’t a monolith

Three young members you can help in 2025

Each year the Member Aging monster has been getting bigger and meaner for credit unions across the county. Why? Because as the average age of a credit union member rises, CUs tend to become increasingly out of touch with younger members. It doesn’t help that when we discuss young credit union members, we tend to…

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Access looks different for each individual

Do your members have the access they need?

With how laser-focused we are on credit union marketing and websites, our blog will often touch on topics such as SEO and creating a marketing flow. But today I’m not thinking about topics such as website accessibility, but about actual human access. And by “access” I mean, can people get to where they need to…

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3 big money questions from a new father

2024 has already been a crazy year, or maybe that’s just because I’ve spent most of it as a brand-new, first-time-ever Dad. Yes, parenthood is wonderful, watching my daughter grow and change is breathtaking, and I really, REALLY miss getting a full night of sleep. But this article isn’t about that. Instead of talking about…

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Focus on what real people really want

Real SEO for credit union websites starts with real people

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of the most mysterious and misunderstood terms in the world of credit union websites. The standard “SEO tactics” that might work for sites selling shoes or smoothie recipes (stuff like excessive repetition, rephrasing, padding, keyword stuffing, title and meta tag blather, even more repetition, etc.) will probably just annoy…

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It’s so hard to get young people’s attention nowadays!

Making content to attract younger members

Whenever the question of how to reach new, young members comes up, you’ll see recommendations like, “Make relevant, valuable and authentic content that displays your values,” and you have to wonder what the writer thinks it actually means. Now, this is actually good advice, but it can feel incredibly generic. I know this because I’m…

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Show them how a credit union really is different.

3 ways to earn your members’ trust

There’s an old saying, “May you live in interesting times,” which supposedly refers back to an old curse. If you’ve not heard of it before, the gist is that it’s better to live in a “boring” time of peace and prosperity instead of an “interesting” time of conflict and change. And when it comes to…

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