Rock & Roll for Credit Unions 12: All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth

Though not truly “rock n roll”, it would be a folly to not choose a Christmas song to use for the December edition of Rock N Roll for Credit Unions. For several weeks I reviewed Christmas songs with my team. We had some good ones that made the list, but we just couldn’t find one that had a good story behind it to share with you. That is, until we stumbled upon an often forgotten oldie, the Spike Jones tune All I Want For Christmas is My Two Front Teeth.

Back in 1944, a young man named Donald Gardner was teaching music in a public school in Smithtown, NY. During a lesson in one of his second grade classes he asked his students what they wanted for Christmas. As each answered he noticed something they all had in common. Every student was missing at least one front tooth, causing them to answer with a bit of a whistle. Within thirty minutes Gardner had penned the silly little holiday tune. The song was published in 1948 after an employee of a music publishing company heard Gardner sing it at a music teachers’ conference.

It’s funny how much our daily lives in our branches are so much like Gardner’s sitting in front of a second grade class. Each day we sit behind a desk and ask people about their wants and needs, but all too often we overlook the obvious. “I need a loan to pay for Christmas.” It sounds like a simple loan request that you could approve or deny within a matter of minutes by looking at some data in front of you. But there’s more of a story there. Chances are your members may be asking for a shiny new bicycle for Christmas, when all they really want is their two front teeth. Listen to what they say, but pay attention to the details. You’ll be amazed at the lives you can change when you stop and learn the stories to meet your members’ needs.

“The more you engage with customers the clearer things become and the easier it is to determine what you should be doing.” 
John Russell, President, Harley Davidson

Bo McDonald

Bo McDonald

Bo McDonald is president of Your Marketing Co. A marketing firm that started serving credit unions nearly a decade ago, offering a wide range of services including web design, branding, ... Web: yourmarketing.co Details