Plan to Succeed in 2013!

By Jay Kassing, MARQUIS

Are you ready to get the growth you desire in 2013?  Will your plan be different than what you did last year?  How will you make it easier for your members to do business with you?  How will Credit Union management acknowledge and reward key employees?

Each of these questions begs for sincere answers.

Can you repeat your current approach for marketing and sales in 2013 and achieve your desired growth goals?  Most would say, no.  In fact, most credit unions I talk to say they need to better align sales and marketing.  They also say that marketing needs to focus more specifically on driving sales opportunities to the front line staff.  And marketing also wants to measure what they do better.  The challenge lies in re-calibrating the dollars spent in marketing to drive more measurable outcomes vs. “we have always done it this way.”

Can you make it easier for your members to use your services?  Access is clearly what most of us think about, like: ATM, Debit Card, On-Line banking, a convenient branch network and mobile banking.  In the words of the Friends TV character Joey Tribbiani, “How you doing?”  Yet ease of use also means helping members better understand what is even possible.  Dreams become reality from a knowing mind.  How will you make your members dreams come true?

Objectivist philosopher Ayn Rand would be the first to say that, “some men do, others glom onto the success of others.”  There are clearly recognizable employees at each credit union that are the ones who make things happen.  Often, these are the same men and women who are asked to do more and more.  Why?  Because it is these folks who can be counted on the do the work and make decisions in the best interest of the member and the credit union.  Reward them…because without these few over-achievers, nothing will change for the better at your credit union.  Ever.

Are you ready for 2013?