Press
CU marketers tackle trends, compliance, more at CUANY conference
ALBANY, NY (November 12, 2013) — Credit union marketers were given an opportunity to explore and discuss industry marketing trends at the Credit Union Association of New York’s Marketing Conference last week. The conference, held Nov. 7-8 at the Hampton Inn & Suites in Saratoga Springs, attracted attendees from across New York and Pennsylvania.
The conference kicked off with a presentation from featured speaker Sean McDonald, president of Your Full Potential LLC and founder of Credit Union Business Development Academy. McDonald discussed techniques marketers can use to help build an effective cross-selling culture, as well as ways to overcome challenges associated with cross-selling. Attendees then broke into groups to develop cross-selling ideas for fictional situations.
“The group project was excellent. We got a chance to bounce ideas around and see how different credit unions are doing things in terms of sales and cross-selling,” said Cara Carlevatti, member development coordinator at Great Erie FCU (Orchard Park, N.Y.). “How do we create a cross-selling culture? How do we get people excited about cross-selling? Those were the questions we attempted to answer.”
Following the group sessions, CUANY Compliance Director Mike Carter explained how and why compliance applies to marketing and communications professionals. He also highlighted specific examples of potential compliance pitfalls.
The conference resumed Nov. 8 with back-to-back presentations from Tansley Stearns, impact director at Filene Research Institute. In her presentations, Stearns explained findings from Filene’s social media research and shared ideas on building effective social media strategies. Attendees were also given a preview of QUEsocial Social Media Solution, which is designed to help credit unions expand their social media presence.
“The Filene Research Institute is a great asset to the credit union industry, and their presentations are great tools for us as marketers and communications specialists,” said Jody Carpenter, VP of marketing and business development at UFirst FCU (Plattsburgh, N.Y.).
The conference concluded with interactive presentations from Covera’s Fraud Analyst Christina Duncan and Portfolio Consultants Carol Ann Pacco-Long and Walter Wittemann. The presenters focused on EMV technology and debit/credit card marketing strategies.
Additional speakers included: CUANY VP Allison Barna; CUANY HR/Management Consultant Chris Pajak; and Elise Glassett, marketing specialist at Sidney FCU (Sidney, N.Y.).
“All of the presentations were really wonderful,” said Alicia Portada, director of marketing at Lower East Side People’s FCU (New York, N.Y.). “The networking is an important part of the conference as well. We’re able to discuss what other credit unions are experiencing with their strategic planning, and see if we can implement similar ideas at our credit union.”
The Credit Union Association of New York has served as the trade association for the state’s credit unions for 96 years. New York credit unions have assets of more than $65 billion and serve 4.9 million members. To learn more about CUANY, visit . To find a credit union or learn more about the credit union movement, visit www.asmarterchoice.org.