THREE RIVERS, CA (December 17, 2013) -- Looking to better define and enhance its brand, Valley Oak Credit Union (approximately $47 million in assets) reached out to The BA Group, a national credit union marketing and media agency, to assist in the credit union’s rebranding efforts including a new website.
The BA Group goes through a process they call “Good Old Fashion Planning” as Amy Herbig, CEO of The BA Group, believes that “Marketing is not just creative for the sake of being creative. Everything has to have a strategy, goals, and measurement capabilities.” A vital aspect of this planning is market research and disseminating surveys to the credit union’s staff and members. The BA Group fully immersed itself into Valley Oak’s culture to better understand the credit union’s missions and values in order to move forward in evolving the brand.
The BA Group ran the credit union’s key staff through a brand planning session in which they discussed, analyzed, and questioned subject matters that play key roles in Valley Oak, including its culture, reputation, and vision. With these insights in mind, BA developed numerous rebranding ideas that captured the heart of Valley Oak Credit Union’s existing culture, as well as representing the credit union Valley Oak aims to be in the future.
The outcome was a new logo, tagline, “Rooted in Your Growth,” and website. The updated brand and more user-friendly website captures Valley Oak’s long agricultural history, its purpose and field of membership. The BA Group refers to this full process as a “brand evolution” because it brings to life that which credit unions have already built – a type of brand equity through their existing practices. Valley Oak was already living its tagline, but The BA Group helped bring their story to life.
Alan Cortum, CEO of Valley Oak Credit Union, said that, “The BA Group has really focused on our history as well as our strengths – they interviewed our entire management team to learn what makes our credit union unique and then used the unique things they learned […] to help create a rebranding that was not a total change, but more of an update which is fresh and new. BA’s process of learning about our credit union’s uniqueness really showed us that our members value us as much as we value them. Through the surveys The BA Group conducted and a photo campaign, we learned we really do make a difference in our member’s lives – we have always believed that, but now we know it.”
Another marketing strategy unique to The BA Group is that all marketing efforts and campaigns must pass through various “filter points” to ensure that everything the agency does embodies the client’s evolved brand. These filters become guiding principles to help lead the agency and the credit union’s decision-making to ensure that every marketing effort aligns with the credit union’s new vision. Every part of a marketing effort (whether a logo, website, or tagline, for example) must pass through these filters as a way of reflecting the personality, voice, culture, and values of the credit union.
What Cortum is most enthused about is, “having a website and brand image that makes us look professional and up to date. The website is our virtual branch and, today, it is often the first impression a potential new member will have of our credit union. With a modern, well designed, and functional website, our rebranding will carry through from the website to advertising campaigns and forms giving the credit union the look and feel of a progressive organization.”
The BA Group knew exactly who to turn to for the new website - SmartSource Solutions, a credit union content management and web development company. Brandon Derks, Vice President of Creative Development for SmartSource, said how “refreshing it is when a marketing agency actually works with and understands credit unions. The BA Group did a great job integrating Valley Oak’s core values into their brand and we played the more technical role in conveying The BA Group’s vision for Valley Oak into the layout and design of their website. Together we make a great team!”
Denise Aldrich, Senior Marketing Specialist at The BA Group, says the most exciting part of her job is “diving in and tackling a new credit union as they all have distinct personalities. It’s fun to truly understand who they are and to assist in better distinguishing them from competitors. Finding genuine brands is gratifying because credit unions need something to relate to and believe in. Seeing the final product, whether a printed pamphlet or a website going live, is extremely rewarding.”
Valley Oak Credit Union is excited about the months ahead as they continue to move toward the completion of their brand evolution. The BA Group is extremely proud of this evolution and looks forward to assisting other credit unions better define their brand in the future.
The BA Group is a national credit union marketing, project management, planning and media agency based in Northfield, Minnesota. The BA Group brings together more than 35 combined years of experience in credit union marketing, media, and creative. The BA Group supports credit unions nationwide and can be found at www.theBAgroup.com and www.facebook.com/TheBAGroup.