Get the word out

Hi all!
My name is Courtney Cantwell and I am an Instructional Designer at the Credit Union National Association. My job at CUNA is to work with writers, content experts and web designers to create online, interactive courses for credit union staff. Throughout my tenure at CUNA I have had many wonderful opportunities to work at national conferences and events.

This winter I will be co-moderating CUNA's 2007 YES Summit in Austin, Texas. I am thrilled about this opportunity because I finally get to meet folks from the Gen X/Gen Y demographic who know the history of the credit union movement and why cooperatives are so important.

CUNA is based in Madison, WI which is a fairly liberal college-based town. Credit unions are very prevalent here but even some of my friends didn't know the difference between a cu and a bank until I explained it to them. It is my job to explain the merits of belonging to a credit union to those who don't know. There are many clueless people out there. They don't realize that they are throwing money away- they are paying higher fees for withdrawing money from ATMs, higher rates on loans and they are fattening some big CEOs' wallets by belonging to banks.

We need to get the message out! We need to steer our friends, family and acquaintances in the direction of the nearest credit union. With credit unions declining so rapidly, it is up to us- to the younger generations- to save the movement. We need to come up with alternative methods for reaching new members, and we need to start reaching them at an early age.

I became a member of UW Credit Union when I was 16. I wanted a checking account and my mom took me to the credit union (she also happened to worked in the cu industry). I have never left UW and wouldn't consider doing so for a number of reasons:
1) their online web branch (I check my account daily),
2) the low rates they offer on loans,
3) the friendliness of the staff and
4) the accessibility of ATMs throughout town.
They also took a chance on my fiance and I and helped us purchase our first home.

The key to reaching new members is to find out what is important to them, to figure out a way to accomodate their needs and then to get the message out that their local credit union has solutions that are in their best interests. Let's do our part to get the word out.

Courtney

What Are They Saying About You?

Here is a great flash piece (hover over the topics) on optimizing Social Media. Some good tips there, especially the importance of monitoring all aspects of your brand and content.

An extension of that is monitoring what else is out there on your CU - I set Google alerts that email me anytime something new comes up on the internet with search words I set – for example, I can set one up for “YES Summit” and I’ll get an email anytime something new comes up that Google catches. Very useful for Marketing/PR folks out there to monitor online press coverage. I almost always get results that I wouldn’t find on my own.

Yelp is another example of monitoring your presence on the internet. Your members can write a review of your credit union service…good or bad. User reviews used to be limited to Amazon.com and a few other sites - now they are everywhere. More sites like this are here.

On a separate but related note, I’d encourage secret shopping. As part of Credit Union Development Education (DE) training, participants visit payday lenders, credit unions and banks undercover as potential customers. The observations and discussion afterwards is always enlightening.

Gen Y Ranks Traditional Services as More Important

Don't go branchless just yet!

See this recent CUNA News Now piece:

"Though often noted as the "tech-savvy" group, Generation Y prefers more traditional banking methods, a recent study indicated.

A study conducted by Javelin Study and Research, based in Pleasanton, Calif., surveyed members of Gen Y to get their opinions on traditional versus non-traditional banking methods. Surprisingly, study participants rated access to ATMs and physical branches as more important than access to online transaction services (MediaPost Aug. 17)."

For completists, the original story is here.

For all the talk about the importance of leveraging technology catering to Gen Y and others (on this blog even), it's good for a study like this to reiterate the need for the basics.

Aside from providing great service and ATM access, what can credit unions do differently? To start, do you have 18-to-30-year olds working in your branches? How about on your Board? I doubt it - the average age of CU board members is 56... because younger people "lack experience" right? What about the perspectives and insights they bring? You can also put together a separate Gen Y advisory board comprised of 18-to-30-year olds. Any other ideas?

Also, the original story points out rightly:

"[The study] finds that Gen Y is an untapped market for the most part, with bank and credit union marketers focused on 'short-term goals of gaining an increased share of wallet from their currently more lucrative consumers.'

The study cautions that 'not planning for the long-term with respect to Generation Y will leave banks and credit unions in the same position they find themselves in today, fighting for short-term profits.'

Untapped market indeed - Gen Y's population is poised to be greater than any other by 2017, comprised of 91 million potential credit union members.

Alternative Financial Services and My Generation

NEWSFLASH... In case you weren't aware, young adults are prime candidates for "alternative financial services" (AFS). These services include check cashing, pay day lenders, pawn shops, auto title lenders, rent-to-own shops, and refund anticipation loans.... you get the idea.

According to a recent REAL Solutions Special report: Solving the Financial Service Needs of America’s Working Families, folks who are likely to use these services are people who have:

1. Little to no savings,
2. Limited or blemished credit history,
3. Are low-to-moderate income,
4. Have no deposit accounts

These characteristics mesh with a large portion of the 18-to-30 crowd, and AFS purveyors are well aware. As any business would, they set up shop where folks are most likely to need their services. Young members of the military, for example, are surrounded by these alternative financial services as soon as they step foot off of their base.

And let me get one thing straight, I'm all for businesses doing what they can to succeed. However, when a business practice is irresponsible and/or takes advantage of an individual's situation to make a buck... then there's a problem. In this case, it's a problem I think credit unions can help fix.

Want a real life example? Okay... here is a story of an intelligent young woman, also a credit union employee, who was caught in the AFS trap as a young adult. Her candid tale appeared last weekend in the Baltimore Sun.

In short, Aziza is awesome and very passionate about preventing others from following in her financial footsteps. We had the chance to chat during a Maryland/DC Credit Union Association REAL Solutions program this Spring. I can only hope that more folks out there in credit union land are as passionate as she is when it comes to AFS in general, and helping credit unions better serve 18-to-30s.

Student-run branch on a college campus?

I came across an article in the Ozaukee Press explaining how Kohler Credit Union may open a high school branch at Port Washington High School, located outside of Milwaukee, WI. It got me thinking... why don't credit unions do the same thing on college campuses?

High school branches have been successful across the country. In fact, Kohler Credit Union has been operating a high school branch in a separate school for the past 2 years, according to the Ozaukee Press article. So, is it a giant leap of faith that a similar model would work for college campuses?

Credit unions that are 100% student operated have existed for a number of years and have run into a number of difficulties. As a result only a few remain today. But where campus credit unions have met difficulty, an established credit union will be able to deliver the resources and guidance needed for the student-run branch to remain effective on a college campus.

What about gaining access on campus? Tons of schools partner with banks for exclusive rights, so depending on the school, gaining access could be difficult. But the same benefits that have swayed high school officials would be compelling to college administrators.

Designed and promoted as an educational tool, a student-run branch at a university would provide students the opportunity to learn about money management and about credit unions. As part of a Co-Op/internship program, students who work at the credit union would be trained at other credit union branches, are paid, and can receive school credit for their efforts. This mirrors successful high school programs such as Kohler Credit Union's program.

It seems like a great opportunity for all involved, so why don't credit unions embrace this idea, as they have embraced high school branches?

Cell-Phone Banking

Check out this short article from Newsweek recently on mobile banking. There was also a recent piece in Time Magazine as well. How many credit unions are doing this?

Not many, but Amplify Credit Union is...and doing it well. They also do a great job of explaining how it works - see their mobile banking demo as an example (to sign onto the demo, use amplify as the account number and pda as the PIN).

This emerging trend has huge implications for serving Gen Y because they use cell phones more than any other age group. This is also the beginning of a new era in banking, the rise of the e-wallet. The Time article reads, "Once mobile banking catches on, it's likely to pave the way for even more electronic-wallet services like making purchases at department stores, supermarkets and even vending machines. "

For continual coverage of mobile banking, visit mobilemoneybanking.com - a good mobile finance blog.

I'll leave you with this quote:

"We're changing. Banking is changing," said Citigroup CEO Chuck Prince at the [CitiMobile] launch event. "I look forward to the competition trying to keep up with us."

Del.icio.us Links

Looking for more great articles, resources, neat websites and more on Gen Y? Then check out our Del.icio.us page @ http://del.icio.us/yessummit. There is also some great items we have tagged relating to credit unions and what they are doing to serve this demographic.

It will be continuously updated and always accessable from the right margin of this blog.

Del.iciou.us is one of those newfangled Web 2.0 social bookmarking sites. Don't know what social bookmarking is, who is doing it, and why it is significant? Click here for a great pdf primer. Don't forget to share it with friends and co-workers.

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UPDATE - Watch the following video for a great primer on Social Bookmarking:

New Chat Box!

Remember all that talk about blogs being part of a conversation?

Well, we just installed some functionality for the ability to have side conversations. Look on the right - see it? Think of it as a hallway between posts.

Thanks to Shoutmix, who offer the chatbox free of charge. Another free alternative is Cbox, which is very similar, but the ads are annoying.

It's easy to use:

1. Type your name, you web address (optional) and message.
2. You can also click the "+" to add smileys/emoticons to emphasize a point, but that's entirely up to you - my favorite is the guy bottom right who is either flying or bowing in admiration.
3. Press "Shout!" and voila! You are now part of the conversation. Neat, eh?
4. Sit back and wait for a reply by hitting "refresh" over and over...or come back later.

What's our motive?

While it's one thing to post a comment in response to a specific post, we (Josh and I) thought it would be beneficial to offer a conduit for readers to post something we might not have covered. Whether you have a general question, and idea for a post, YES Summit suggestion, or a funny limerick (keep it clean...), chat away!

Enjoy and don't be shy.