9 things all credit unions should consider in their internal growth strategies
by. Emily Maxie
We’re happy to bring you a guest blog post from our friends over at Credit Union Resources. Chad Stanislav, VP Financial & Technology, presents nine key considerations credit unions should think about for their internal growth strategies.
Credit unions have been on a growth path for years. In general, if you are not growing, you are stagnant, declining or barely surviving. There are many ways to measure growth such as assets and ratios, but in the end, it’s about the membership. As we have seen over the years, credit unions have sought merger candidates as an effort to grow the credit union. Or, have gone on aggressive marketing campaigns to grow the membership base in the community.
In an informal survey of credit union CEO’s, many indicated that approximately 20% of the members use the credit union as their primary financial institutions. That’s one in five members who utilize the credit union as the primary institution. So, does it make sense that the credit union has to grow five new members just to gain one solid member? Interesting enough, the credit union is sitting on a potential goldmine with their existing members. With the right internal growth strategies, credit unions could grow from 20% membership usage to something higher.
So what should be considered for an internal growth strategy?
- Determine if your membership base provides for the diversity that an internal growth strategy requires. For example, if your field of membership is comprised of low wage, hourly workers, then there may be limited opportunity to grow within the field of membership that will bolster the credit unions objectives.
- Establish the goal(s) for the internal growth strategy with the end result as the focus.
- Evaluate how your data processor can be utilized to assist in identifying the primary users of the credit union.