Posts Tagged ‘Membership’
Do you have card-carrying members?
I had to have my son’s car towed recently, and I was certainly happy that I carried my AAA card with me to avoid the tow charge. Then I used it the next week to save a few bucks on a hotel room when traveling. That’s when it hit me. I’m a card-carrying member. Now…
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Cutting your marketing budget is dangerous
Budget season certainly seems to be the right time for cutting fat, and unfortunately CFOs always seem to feel that the marketing line needs to lose a few pounds. But cutting your marketing budget will not help you improve your bottom line. In fact, it is likely dangerous. Marketing is the oil that allows the…
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Are you marketing to yourself?
A local non-CU client recently called us to do a TV spot. His competition is a big national chain, so he really wants to use his community roots as the main theme. A local non-CU client recently called us to do a TV spot using his community roots as the main theme. Which made sense…
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Were the Pilgrims Illegal Immigrants?
I’ll admit that I had no idea that, until recently, an illegal immigrant could get a taxpayer identification number (but not a social security number), pay taxes, open accounts, and even get a mortgage. And as it turned out, these mortgages performed quite well in financial terms, thanks to conservative lending criteria, fixed rates,…
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What’s in your CU DNA?
Credit Unions care more about their members’ economic well-being than making a profit. Most CU Marketers would agree that’s an accepted part of the credit union DNA, straight out of the “not-for-profit” designation, and therefore Marketing should promote those products most beneficial for the member. But ask a CFO and you will likely hear a different…
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Borrowing money is like wetting your bed
Wouldn’t it be great if all your marketing was effective in providing a mental hook that would help your members remember the main point and take action? We should probably strive to emulate Elizabeth Gilbert’s father, who wanted to make a point about debt to his daughter, because he cared about what happened to her…
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How’s Your Spanish?
Immigration reform may be a hot-button issue right now, but credit unions need to open their doors wider now — assuming they want to stay relevant in the future. According to Pew Research Center, the population of the U.S. will rise from 296 million to 438 million by 2050. Almost all (82% or 117 million)…
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Are you a commodity?
Is it any wonder the public does not know there is a difference between credit unions and banks? To the average consumer, financial services are often seen as a necessary evil, or at best, a commodity — something pretty much the same quality no matter where you get it, and sold by such a large…
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Your Members Aren’t You
To make an emotional connection with someone, you have to tailor your communication to their wants and needs, not your own. This seems pretty obvious — most people know that they should use simpler language and and talk about “kid stuff” when talking to children, and they probably shouldn’t use swear words around Grandma. But…
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Something To Hold On To
I’ve always been fascinated by the psychology of money. On the list of emotional minefields, money is right up there with sex and politics, and there are all kinds of baffling taboos and odd behaviors. It can be very interesting to look at some of these behaviors and think about what we might learn from…
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