Can Your Members Own the Credit Union Brand if Your Employees Don’t?
We talk frequently about the importance of solid branding in modern credit union marketing efforts. Branding is the key to the eventual success or failure of everything we try to project as a public image to member and potential members. Branding is everything we do to personify our credit unions, from marketing materials and corporate culture all the way down to cleanliness of facilities and targeted community involvement.
All of this requires member and potential member buy-in to work. If these people are going to “own” our credit union brand, we must successfully reach them and ingrain the type of branding message we want to embody. The deeper question becomes, then, how and why can we expect our members and potential members to own the credit union if our employees do not own the brand? The bottom line is – your brand is likely to fail if staff is not active proponents of it.
We often talk about how members are the actual owners of our credit unions, which is true. But the deeper questions becomes, can your members actually own the credit union brand if your staff doesn’t?
As the main point of contact between the credit union and members/potential members, employees are the critical link in the chain to successful branding. Since a chain is only as strong as its weakest link, it makes sense to ensure staff is enthusiastic about and knowledgeable concerning our unique brands.
How can we help this happen? Below are a few tips to help staff get on-board with your credit union’s brand proposition.
1) Staff must be regularly immersed in the brand culture. This means keeping them
involved and enthused about the brand on a regular and recurring basis. Talk about the brand at every meeting. Quiz staff about the brand and what it means to them. Ask them to relate stories of how they shared the credit union brand message with members as part of their daily jobs.