(Don’t wanna be) All by yourself while implementing your credit union member experience

You can’t help but think of love with Valentine’s Day approaching. And there are plenty of fantastic love songs … as well as many incredible ballads about lost love.

Eric Carmen’s “All by Myself” comes to mind as one of the greatest songs about lost love. The lyrics, as well as Carmen’s mournful crooning, really drive home a feeling of loneliness. No one wants to be all by themselves … especially those implementing your credit union member experience program.

Serving your members is a team effort, from top to bottom and front to back.

Here is how every employee is responsible, together, for the member experience.

Leaders: The example setters

If senior leaders don’t love your credit union member experience program, no one else will either. And if you don’t show your passion for the program, it will feel like just another business decision. Leaders are example setters … they must prove their love for the member experience via action.

Don’t be afraid to get down in the muck. Know the journey map and experience standards like the back of your hand. Jump in where needed to serve members. Once you live the experience, others will too.

Act in ways consistent with your member experience program’s values … day in and day out. It’s tiring and challenging, but it’s worth it. It’s an infinite game.

And just like in a relationship, constant sacrifices for the cause mean more than the occasional gift or treat.

Frontline staff: The face of the program

Obviously, your credit union member experience program can’t succeed without the frontline staff executing the plan. Your tellers, call center employees, and online chat representatives must live the program and be the brand.

Your brand must have high impact too. It’s all well and good that your leaders set the example, but it means very little if members don’t have a positive, memorable experience. Frontline staff deliver that experience.

It’s a very public responsibility … and therefore a very important one.

Some tips for executing an incredible frontline experience:

• Good manners (do staff members act friendly, smiling and greeting members?)
• Tangible takeaway (does the member get something solid they can leave with?)
• Providing solutions (did the member mention any problems they need solved?)

One note: Good manners is just a baseline for memorable service. You need to move beyond being nice to truly excel. This process likely requires additional training over the long run.

Go beyond the “first date” with your members. Go deeper.

Back-office team: The crucial support

Your credit union member experience heavily depends on people who may never directly touch members – the back-office staff. Even if leaders set the example and frontline employees live the brand, a lack of crucial support leaves your program in the lurch.

But the term “back-office” does these team members a disservice. It makes them sound distant and aloof from members. In reality, these employees are your “member-impacting” team. Everything they do impacts members … whether the members realize it or not.

Your back-office team might have the wrong impression about themselves. Remind them of their importance. Train them on the journey map and clarify how they ensure each step runs successfully. Break down the silos and unify the team.

Once the back-office feels vital to the credit union member experience, they act as if they are vital to the member experience. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.

And remember: Your level of external service will never rise above your level of internal service to each other.

Don’t be a heartbreaker

Your credit union member experience program isn’t a task for a couple lonely souls. It takes the whole team – a network of relationships – to execute it at the highest level. Failing to get your team together won’t just break the hearts of the program’s biggest supporters … it’ll ultimately break your members’ hearts as well.

It’s time to assess and improve your credit union member experience. Become the heartthrob members are waiting for!