5 ways for credit unions to grow

During the past year and a half, NAFCU staff and I have visited more than 300 credit unions around the country. It’s important for us to engage with and know our members; that engagement helps us strengthen our relationships with credit unions and to be a better voice for them in Washington, D.C. We learned a lot from these visits, but one of the things that really stood out are the numerous ways credit unions themselves are engaging with their communities to stay strong and to grow.

These credit unions are growing in membership and strengthening their bottom lines, and they all cite community engagement as one of the key ingredients to that success. Here are five of the ways they suggest other credit unions can also work to build community engagement and grow:

1. Wear your credit union logo out in public. This small thing can mean a lot – have you ever noticed someone’s t-shirt or tote bag at the grocery store? Wearing the logo can prompt a conversation about how you’re connected to the credit union, and it can make staff and volunteers alike lead the way to broader community awareness.
2. Adopt a school. You could open a branch in that school like some have done – it helps to increase your name recognition within the school’s community and to teach students early lessons in financial responsibility. Or you could get your employees to volunteer at the school’s tutoring programs and help out with events like field day or homecoming. These events are especially good for community outreach because you’ll find all generations are there to support the kids.
3. Invite local groups to use your branch space. Whether it’s Girl Scout cookie season or a Red Cross blood drive, this is a great way to get new potential members in the door. You could also host a community food or toy drive in partnership with a local charity. While community members are there, they’ll get a chance to meet your staff and find out what you offer.
4. Offer free custom credit reviews to community members or local organizations. Credit unions have always been great sources of financial literacy education for their communities. Giving people a head start by making the review free is an easy way to start a relationship with a current or new member and build trust in the community.
5. Sponsor local entrepreneurial leadership programs. This is in the same vein as adopting a school; credit unions must invest in the next generation of members if they want to succeed. Luckily for the industry, credit union values are very much in tune with those of the new generation, which has seen first-hand how toxic the Wall Street way of business has been for our economy. Show your community’s young leaders that you’re there for them – and they won’t forget it.

We’ve seen that credit unions grow and thrive when they are able to maintain deeply rooted connections to their communities. Consider these examples, and let me know what other ideas have worked for you.

While you’re thinking about ways to grow your credit union, I hope you’ll also consider joining NAFCU for its next Strategic Growth Conference, set for Feb. 21-23, 2017. It’s not too early to make plans for this highly rated conference, where you’ll hear case studies from other credit unions, learn about strategies you can use and share your own goals for growth.

I look forward to seeing you in Charleston.