3 lessons for credit union marketing from a world-class fisherman

“The fishing was good; it was the catching that was bad!” – A.K. Best

On a recent beach trip, I saw charter fishing boats move almost in unison from one spot to another. It was obvious why they were doing this. With their high-tech gadgets and vantage points, they were following a school of fish while ensuring their paying customers a guaranteed successful outing.

It got me thinking, with all the beautiful ocean, how much more successful would they have been if they ventured off on their own without the chaos and fish deterrents of the other boats around? Surely more schools of fish were swimming around within just a few miles.

Parallels between fishing and problems we face in the credit union community came to mind. With so many lenders, banks, and fintechs competing with credit unions, we can sometimes feel like those charter boats, trying to land the same people and scaring or annoying many people off in the process. After all, from the bottom looking up it would probably appear that each boater (financial institution) is the same. We even dangle the same bait in front of them in this line tangling contest.

 

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