Don’t Join a Credit Union

by: James Robert Lay, Grower of Relationships, PTP NEW MEDIA & CU*SWAG

It’s International Credit Union week and I have been doing a lot of thinking about positioning credit unions in local communities beyond the cookies and cupcakes many are giving away this week.

When you position your credit union in your community, which words do you use in the call to action of your marketing collateral? If you’re like most credit unions, you may use terms like “join the credit union” or “become a member.” I know I have seen this in many ICU day/week examples.

But what does this mean? Does it really resonate with consumers? Does the average person really get it?

If you want to put this theory to the test, just go out on a busy street in your community (dressed in plain clothes and not your corporate credit union logo shirt) and start asking people what kind of organizations they join or have become a member of.

You might get responses of people joining churches, clubs, gyms or other associations. Odds are, it’s not going to be your credit union.

The point is, why are we continuing to kill ourselves trying to get people to understand industry speak when we should simply start the conversation and use words that are familiar to everyday consumers.

In reality, most people wake up and say I am going to join a gym today and then I may apply for a loan or open an account at a bank. And that bank…could be your credit union.

So keep your call to action simple with something along the lines of “open an account” or “apply for a loan”.

Just don’t ask people to “join a credit union”.

In February of 2002, during his sophomore year at San Jacinto College, James Robert founded PTP NEW MEDIA from his bedroom. Since then, PTP NEW MEDIA has helped credit unions build relationships with members with the help of offline, online, internal and external marketing channels.  Their work has won many state and national marketing awards. He is also behind the movement to help make credit unions fashionably cool with CU*SWAG and was named the first “CU Times Trailblazer 40 Below” of 2012.  James Robert completed his MBA in 2006 and has enjoyed speaking at many different credit union conferences and events.  www.ptpnewmedia.com  www.cuswag.com