When I speak to new employees every other week, I tell them that what I love most about credit unions is our commitment to service. We put our members first, of course, but then we take it out into our communities. We don’t do it because of any requirement, we do it because we want our communities to thrive. I’m constantly inspired by credit unions across the country coming up with innovative ways to serve beyond the walls of our centers.
Recently we’ve been using our milestones to give back. Whether you are hitting $1 billion in assets, turning 50, or you’ve grown to 100,000 members – there are creative ways to market your milestone while doing good. A recent report from CU Times showed 42% of millennials would move their accounts to another financial institution that’s engaged with charitable giving. What better way to capture this next generation of members who have more choices than ever (myself included)?
Here are some of the additional philanthropy campaigns we’ve used to celebrate. We were sure to align them with our philanthropic focus areas.
On turning 65…
This time last year our credit union turned 65! This birthday called for something special. While all of us had just gone through a rough couple of years, our teachers were in real need of a pick me up. We gave ten teachers $6,500 each to do whatever they would like with for a total of $65,000! We also used this as an opportunity for employee engagement, developing a decision committee of retired teachers who now work at Ent Credit Union.
The result? Ten teachers were surprised with a huge check that they used for self-care AND their classrooms, and we received increased earned media throughout the year.
On hitting 500,000 owner-members…
Thanks a (half!) million! Ent Credit Union just hit another huge milestone of 500,000 members. To celebrate, we’ve set a goal of collecting 500 new children’s books at each of our service centers. With every book a member donates, they’ll be entered to win a $500 gift card (and we’ve got five of these to give away).
Our employees are in on the fun as well, with a goal to raise 500 internally. We’re thanking members for helping us tell our story by putting books into the hands of children.
On hitting $10 billion in assets…
TBD. But when this happens, you know we’ll be celebrating in a big way.
Our team members, members and executive staff are constantly looking for ways to increase community advocacy efforts. Whether it’s hosting a school supply drive at one of our service centers, showing up with a personal check at a nonprofit fundraiser or incorporating philanthropy into one of our business development events… everyone steps up throughout the year to give. That’s the CU difference! I’d love to hear what your credit union is doing. Please reach out anytime.